The prospect of President Xi Jinping visiting Washington later this year is a positive one for the White House.

"There is no substitute for the two leaders sitting together," White House aide Ben Rhodes said on Monday. "It was important to have President Xi here." Rhodes is assistant to US President Barack Obama and deputy national security adviser for strategic communications and speech writing.

US National Security Adviser Susan Rice announced last week that Obama had invited Xi for a state visit this year. Also on the invitation list is Japanese Prime Minister ShinzoAbe.