| China trade's shaky ground
By Andrew Curry
U.S. News and World Report
The Kosovo war
may be over, but the United States' relations with China remain strained
after last month's bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade. During an
eight-hour meeting in Beijing with senior U.S. diplomat Thomas Pickering,
the Chinese demanded severe punishment for perpetrators of the attack,
which killed three and injured 20. Chinese officials later dismissed Pickering's
explanations as "unconvincing." The episode threatens to derail negotiations
over China's entry into the World Trade Organization, which would open
huge markets to American exports. An agreement must come soon in order
to win congressional support in time for international trade talks scheduled
for fall.
* China may
be moving back to the trade-talks table. Both sides agreed to negotiate
on compensation for the bombing victims, a key Chinese demand. Still, China
is "inclined to use this for whatever leverage it can get," says one American
expert. If trade negotiations don't resume in the next few weeks, chances
of China's joining the WTO anytime soon will be slim.
|
