U.S. Democratic presidential contender Andrew Yang stressed the importance of U.S.-China relationship on Monday, urging the two nations to continue working with each other.

Speaking at the National Press Club, Yang said he believes that "U.S.-China relationship is one of the most important relationships" in the 21st century.

"U.S. and China are going to be the two biggest economies in the world for quite some time," Yang said. "We need to work together on things like climate change, artificial intelligence and geopolitical hotspots."

Yang also weighed in on ongoing U.S.-China trade tensions, saying that "there are real trade issues" but "trade war is a counterproductive way" to address those concerns.

"It ends up creating victims that have nothing to do with the conflict, including producers and farmers in Iowa and other Midwestern states," he added.

Yang, an entrepreneur, launched his presidential campaign in November 2017.

His signature policy is what he calls the "Freedom Dividend," a universal basic income in the form of 1,000 U.S. dollars monthly for every American adult aged over 18, which he believes is a necessary response to the rapid development of automation.

Prior to running for office, Yang founded Venture for America, a nonprofit organization that trains recent graduates and young professionals to work for startup companies in cities across the United States.

A SurveyUSA poll released Monday found Yang supported by 2 percent of likely Democratic primary voters, putting him in the sixth place, which he currently shares with three other Democratic presidential contenders in a crowded field.

(Cover: Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang speaks to the press in the spin room after the fourth Democratic primary debate of the 2020 presidential campaign season co-hosted by The New York Times and CNN at Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio, October 15, 2019. /VCG Photo)