Trump said it was a great honor to pay a state visit to China, calling Xi a great leader and China a great country. "I have tremendous respect for President Xi and the Chinese people," Trump said.

Trump expressed his willingness to work with Xi to strengthen communication and cooperation, properly handle differences, make bilateral relations better than ever before and embrace a fantastic future.

The United States and China are the most important and most powerful countries in the world, and the two presidents can "do a lot of big and good things for the two countries and the world," he said.

Trump encouraged representatives of the US business community to expand cooperation with China.

The two presidents exchanged views on major international and regional issues, such as the Middle East situation, the Ukraine crisis, and the Korean Peninsula.

They also agreed to support each other in hosting a successful APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting and G20 Summit this year.

Video: opening remarks of two presidents