'Shirtsleeves summit' warms relations Informal: President Xi Jinping received an ally's welcome from President Barack Obama. At the start of their two-day meeting in California on Saturday, US President Barack Obama welcomed the "continuing peaceful rise of China as a world power" and Xi Jinping declared the "Pacific Ocean has enough space for the two large countries of China and the United States." It was a warm start to what many believe could be a historically significant moment. With Mr Xi beginning his term as president March and Mr Obama recently re-elected, some observers hope good diplomacy may help set a course to avoid what some have seen as the inevitable rise of tension between the new power and the old. "Our decision to meet so early, I think, signifies the importance of the US-China relationship," Mr Obama said. It's important not only for the prosperity of our two countries and the security of our two countries but it's also important for the Asia Pacific region and important for the world. As expected, Mr Obama's welcome was friendly and frank. Seated before Mr Xi, he said the US wanted to work with China on cyber security and the protection of intellectual property. Recently there has been great attention in the US on what appears to be a Chinese military program to hack American government and corporate computers in what the director of the National Security Agency described as the "greatest transfer of wealth in history." Mr Obama said talks would also cover issues like North Korea's nuclear program and climate change. Mr Xi said the China-US relationship was at a new starting point. "Our two countries have vast convergence of shared interests, from promoting our respective economic growth at home to ensuring the stability of the global economy; from addressing international and regional hotspot issues to dealing with all kinds of global challenges," Mr Xi said. The two leaders are also expected to discuss the development of protocols to follow should their armed forces come into contact as they exert their influence within the Asia Pacific region. The tone of the brief public moment was telling. Historically, Chinese-American meetings have been either held on the sidelines of international gatherings, or been rigidly formal bilateral summits in which both parties stuck to carefully scripted talking points read out before ranks of uniformed and suited military and civilian advisers. For the first time on Saturday, a Chinese leader was treated to the same sort of welcome the leaders of America's most powerful allies are occasionally given, prolonged personal meetings in a relaxed atmosphere. This tone was a studied signal not only to Mr Xi but also to the Chinese people, who have been closely watching preparation for the meeting, and who regard this new level of respect for their leader on the world stage as hugely significant. In recent weeks, the White House has taken to referring to this meeting, being held in the Sunnylands estate, a modernist retreat built by the Annenberg family in 1960s, as a "shirtsleeves summit." When the leaders and their entourages appeared before the press, all were wearing dark suits - but without ties. Given the significance of the event there has been some criticism in the US of Michelle Obama's decision not to attend and play host to Mr Xi's wife, Peng Liyuan.