On March 8 and 9, 2004, Vice Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo visited the United States as a special envoy of the Chinese government. During the visit, he exchanged views extensively with US leaders on China-US relations and current issues of common concern in an in-depth manner, and forwarded a letter for President Bush by President Hu Jintao.

The two sides gave positive comments on the development momentum of China-US relations and expressed willingness to make joint efforts to push the constructive cooperative relations between the two countries towards further development. Dai Bingguo stated China's principled stance on the Taiwan issue. The US side reiterated that the US government adheres to the one-China policy and the position illustrated by President Bush on December 9 last year. When talking about the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, the two sides said they would enhance consultation and coordination to push for successful opening of the third round of the six-party talks in Beijing.