Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson cautioned Tuesday that "we're far from through" the current financial crisis but added that the United States has the tools to persevere.

Speaking to an audience at Westminster College and eight other sites via a streaming webcast from Washington, D.C., Paulson said the slowdown "is a real challenge."

"But just remember, we are a rich country, we're a strong country, we're a strong country economically, we're a resilient country and we've got the resources and the will to get through this, as we always have in the past and we will in the future," Paulson said in remarks to the World Affairs Council.

The secretary said congressional action was the key to avoiding a financial collapse.

"Looking forward, working with the Fed and the FDIC, we now have the tools and the commitment to do what is necessary to maintain the stability of our financial system," Paulson said. "Many challenges lie ahead, and progress will not be in a straight line, but I believe we have taken the necessary steps to put us on the right path to recovery and an eventual return to prosperity."

About 75 people, mostly Westminster students, attended Tuesday's webcast in Salt Lake City. The event was presented locally by the Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy — the Utah chapter of the World Affairs Councils of America — and Westminster's Bill and Vieve Gore School of Business.

Much of Paulson's comments were about U.S.-China relations, prefacing the fifth U.S.-China Strategic Economic Dialogue, which takes place Thursday and Friday in Beijing. Paulson praised China and other major governments for working to restore global financial stability.

"Looking ahead...it is critical that the United States, China and other major economies continue our vigorous efforts and take whatever further actions are necessary to stabilize the financial system, including using appropriate monetary, fiscal and financial regulatory policies."

The activities in China this week will feature several topics, including how the U.S. and China can cooperate through international forums to strengthen the global economic system," he said.

"Our meetings later this week in China will focus on the building blocks for an enduring U.S.-China economic relationship. We will continue to work on strategies for managing macro-economic risk and promoting balanced growth, open investment and trade policies, including strengthening product, food and drug safety; our respective roles in international institutions and strengthening cooperation in energy and the environment."

Paulson said the U.S.-China discussions "couldn't come at a more critical time" because of the downturns in the U.S. economy and the "slowed" Chinese and global economies. "The world will watch both of us as we grapple with these difficult economic issues," he said.

The secretary said China must rely more on domestic growth rather than exports, and he lauded direct engagement between the two countries.

"A stable, prosperous and peaceful China is in the best interests of the Chinese people, the American people and the rest of the world," he said, urging the U.S. to "continue to engage with China as it is, not as we would imagine it to be."

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