BEIJING, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- China and the United States agreed to work together to combat illegal logging and the associated wood trade in order to promote sustainable forest management, according to statement by both countries on Thursday.

    Under a joint Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed after the 3rd Strategic Economic Dialogue, the two countries would start immediately to share information on shipments of timber, step up law enforcement against illegal activity and encourage private-sector partnerships to promote sustainable forest management.

    Calling this move "ground-breaking," the U.S. statement said that it was the first time that the world's top two consumers of natural resources had used an MOU to address illegal resource trade.

    A detailed bilateral agreement would be negotiated on the basis of the MOU, said the Chinese statement.

    Describing environmental protection and promoting clean energy "a shared priority" for both sides, the U.S. statement said, "Illegal logging contributes significantly to the high rates of deforestation currently occurring worldwide."

    "Deforestation not only threatens the health and survival of forests and the humans and wildlife that depend on them, it is also estimated to contribute to 20 percent of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions."

    This pact was one of several timber-protection agreements signed by China recently.

    To better protect forests and improve global cooperation, China has signed agreements and memoranda with Russia on joint development, forest fire prevention and nature reserve protection.

    In June, it agreed with India, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates to sign a joint agreement with Tanzania that calls for information sharing on timber exports, to curb tax evasion in Tanzania.

    China consumed nearly 330 million cubic meters of timber last year, a volume second only to the United States.

    China is the world's leading producer of timber-based items such as man-made boards, wood flooring, carbon and furniture, according to a report of the China Green Times, run by the State Bureau of Forestation.

    In another initiative on environmental sustainability, China and the United States also agreed to establish a national sulfur dioxide emissions trading program in China, with the U.S. side providing technical assistance to support the development of the necessary infrastructure and institutional capacity for the successful implementation of the program.