US Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke said here Monday clean energy technology is one of the most beneficial areas for US-China cooperation and also the only way for the two countries to keep sustained economic growth and combat global climate change.

Locke, who accompanied US President Barack Obama's visit to China, made the remarks at the Sino-US clean energy round table conference held here Monday.

It has been Locke's third trip to China since becoming Commerce Secretary in March.

"The United States and China have the power and indeed an obligation to alter history for the benefit of all people on the planet," he said.

As the world's most productive and innovative economies, the US and China are uniquely positioned to create the solar, wind, biofuel and renewable technologies that the world wants and needs, Locke said.

"We can do it by making clean energy the prime engine of the economic growth in the 21st century," he said.

Locke said he plans to lead an energy and trade mission to China next March, which would include US firms from new energy technology sectors and make stops in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities.

US Secretary of Energy Steven Chu also attended the conference, who expressed optimism about US-China cooperation in the deployment and development of clean energy technology.

The conference was co-hosted by China's State Energy Bureau, US Department of Commerce and Department of Energy, in a bid to advance mutual pragmatic cooperation in clean energy and promote the development of clean energy technology and industry.

(Xinhua News Agency November 16, 2009)