China reconoce que aun le falta hacer mucho en relación con los derechos humanos

Chinese President Hu Jintao has acknowledged that "a lot still needs to be done" in China over human rights.

Mr Hu was speaking at a rare joint news conference with US President Barack Obama on the first full day of his state visit to the US.

Asked to justify China's human rights record Mr Hu said China had "made enormous progress recognized in the world".

Mr Obama said he saw China's "peaceful rise" as good for the United States.

"The US has an interest in seeing hundreds of millions of people lifted out of poverty," Mr Obama said.

Earlier, the US president hailed relations with China, saying the two countries have a huge stake in each other's success.

At a White House ceremony to greet Mr Hu, he said the US and China would be more prosperous and secure when they worked together.

Mr Hu said co-operation should be based on mutual respect, and they should respect each other's development paths.

The two leaders' talks at the White House tackled issues from currency and trade to defence and security.



US officials revealed that a $45bn (£28bn) export deal had been signed with China, including Beijing's $19bn purchase of 200 Boeing aircraft.

'Source of tension'

The two presidents promised to co-operate in their dispute over China's currency, the yuan, which the US says is kept artificially low to help Chinese exporters. President Obama said the yuan's value must be driven by the market, and there needed to be a level playing field in trade.

Mr Obama admitted that differences on human rights issues were "occasionally a source of tension" between the US and China.

"I believe part of justice and part of human rights is people being able to make a living and having enough to eat and having shelter and having electricity," he said.

"We welcome China's rights. We just want to make sure that (its) rise occurs in a way that reinforces international norms, international rules, and enhances security and peace as opposed to it being a source of conflict either in the region or around the world," the president added.

President Hu said China was willing to continue a conversation about human rights on the basis of mutual respect and non-interference into China's internal affairs.

Mr Obama said earlier on Wenesday that Mr Hu's trip to the US was the basis for the next 30 years of ties between the two nations.

The White House is laying out a full formal reception with lunch at the state department, a state dinner at the White House, and meetings with some of America's most powerful business leaders from firms like General Electric, Coca-cola and Boeing.