China and the United States should properly handle differences, brave difficulties, and find a right way to get along, Chinese State Councilor and Minister of National Defense Li Shangfu said here on Sunday.

The China-U.S. relationship bears on global strategic stability and is the focus of global attention, Li said in his speech at the 20th Shangri-La Dialogue.

He called on both nations to live up to the expectations of countries in the world and follow the trend of the times.

Li said that the international community looks for a sound and stable China-U.S. relationship and is concerned about any potential conflict or confrontation, which would be an unbearable disaster for the world.

Instead of provoking bloc confrontation for self-interests, major countries should bear in mind the interests of all, resolve differences through exchanges and cooperation, he said.

Despite different systems and other differences, he noted that China and the United States should seek common ground and common interests to grow bilateral ties and deepen cooperation, as history has proven that both countries will benefit from cooperation and lose from confrontation.

Noting that China seeks to develop a new type of major-country relationship with the United States, Li called on the U.S. side to act with sincerity, match its words with deeds and take concrete actions to work together with China in the same direction to stabilize the China-U.S. relationship from deterioration.

Li acknowledged that the past few years have seen China-U.S. relations at a record low since the establishment of diplomatic ties, but believed "the world is big enough for countries, including China and the U.S., to grow together."

He said the right way for China and the United States to get along is following the three principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation.

Li called on the United States to work with China to navigate the bilateral relations back to the right track from the difficult situation, so as to deliver more benefits to both countries and the world as a whole.