Chinese ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai addresses the 2016 New Year Celebration Gala Dinner of the China General Chamber of Commerce - USA in New York, Jan 19, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

NEW YORK - China and the United States must work together to ensure a smooth transition of their relationship in the 2016 election year and pave the way for its irreversible growth in the future, a Chinese diplomat said Tuesday.

For the China-US relationship, the good momentum brought about by the successful state visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to the United States last September must be strengthened in the new year, Chinese ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai said.

He made the remarks here when addressing the 2016 New Year Celebration Gala Dinner of the China General Chamber of Commerce - USA.

Cui said no country can single-handedly deal with challenges such as terrorism, financial contagion, infectious diseases and climate change in a world that is "undergoing profound changes."

The challenges "call for greater cooperation among nations ... Zero-sum game and 'winner takes all' are obsolete mindsets, and will only lead to a situation of no winner at all," Cui said.

With this global outlook, China has chosen a path of peaceful development, Cui said. "We are convinced that such a path will best serve China's development needs while bringing benefits to the international community as a whole."

"We reject the assertion that confrontation between rising and established powers is inevitable. We are confident that the so-called 'Thucydides Trap' can and will be avoided if our view of the world and our commitment to community building are shared by others," Cui said.

"It is with this in mind that China sees the need to build a new model of major-country relationship with the United States," Cui said, adding that this new model is both a long-term goal and an ongoing process, as well as both a set of guiding principles and an operational framework.

"It (the model) calls on the two countries to take a constructive and creative approach to deepen mutual trust, expand cooperation, and properly handle differences," Cui said.

He said the key features of the model of major-country relationship between the two countries "are always clear -- no conflict or confrontation, mutual respect, and win-win cooperation," despite changing situations.