Yang and Kerry, who chaired the strategic track of the talk, talked about building a new type of major-country relationship, a concept first agreed to by Xi and Obama when they met in Sunnylands, California, in June 2013.
Yang and Kerry also talked about practical cooperation, including coping with Asia-Pacific regional and global hotspots and constructively managing differences.
The two countries agreed to strengthen cooperation and exchanges in a wide range of areas such as space, customs, public health, agriculture, forestry and transportation in order to bring concrete benefits to the people of the two nations, according to Yang.
He noted that both sides recognized the great significance of Xi's upcoming visit. "It is in the common interests for China and the U.S. to ensure a complete success of the state visit," he said. "The two sides should make concerted efforts in preparing for the trip."
On climate change, Yang said the two sides agreed to join other nations to push forward a positive outcome in the upcoming United Nations Climate Conference in Paris in December.
Kerry, who has been passionate about climate change, praised the two nations' cooperation on that front, including enlisting more private sector companies in this year's program.
Yang reiterated China's commitment to peaceful development and said he hoped that other nations will also pursue such a path.
"China has been a participant, builder and contributor to the current global system," Yang said.
Yang reiterated China's stance on Taiwan and Tibet, and he hoped the U.S. side will respect China's sovereignty and the Chinese people's choice for their development path.
On the basis of ensuring national sovereignty and maritime rights, China is committed to negotiating directly with other parties involved to solve the disputes through dialogue, according to Yang.
Kerry, who came to the meeting on crutches due to a recent bicycling accident in France, said he disagreed with the notion that the U.S.-China relationship has been on a decline.
"I don't think you heard from any of the four people sitting here, any scintilla, not one tiny piece, of indication of this downward spiral," he said, adding that there is a great promise for the two nations' cooperation.
Lew agreed, saying that the relationship gets only stronger with each engagement.
Ted Carpenter, a senior fellow of defense and foreign policy at the Cato Institute, a think tank in Washington, said the talks have gone at least as well as anticipated.
"It's especially encouraging that Chinese and U.S. military officials have indicated that they will be in contact on a more frequent basis," he said.
He said it is also encouraging that officials from both countries have adopted a low-key, non-confrontational approach to the sensitive issue of cyber hacking.
