Alaska will be a place to "anchor" a new starting point for China-U.S. ties, said an expert on the upcoming high-level strategic dialogue between China and the U.S. in Alaska on Thursday and Friday.

Diao Daming, a researcher at the National Academy of Development and Strategy and an associate professor in the Department of International Relations at Renmin University of China, talked to CGTN about the Alaska talks.

"This meeting means that the Chinese delegation will become the first foreign delegation to visit the United States since the Biden administration came to the power, which also highlights the key significance of Sino-U.S. relations," Diao said.

Anchorage means "a place to anchor," he added and expressed his hope for the meeting will anchor a new starting point for Sino-U.S. relations and a better future.

"Anchorage has always been an important transfer point for Sino-U.S. trade, and basically also a middle place between two capitals of the two countries, which reflects the attitude of meeting halfway," Diao said.

Besides the wide range of issues of mutual concern that are up for discussion, Diao pointed out that the implementation of the consensus arrived at by two nations' leaders during a Chinese New Year's Eve call should be further pursued at this meeting.

"I believe that this meeting will help to promote a healthy, stable and forward development of Sino-U.S. relations, of course, including economic and trade relations," Diao said, adding that stable development of economic and trade relations meets the general trend and conforms to the interests of both the Chinese and American people.

Though experts and media reports say that the meeting will release positive signals, challenges cannot be underestimated.

Diao echoed Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. Cui Tiankai's Wednesday remarks, saying that it is hard for one single meeting to solve all the problems.

He also mentioned the timing and the location of the meeting, saying that both reflected the great attention the U.S. is paying to its relations with China.

The Alaska meeting comes after top U.S. officials' visits to Japan and South Korea and the virtual session among the Quad group of countries, of which the U.S. is a part.