Chinese President, Bush Cancel White House Visit

Associated Press
September 4, 2005 9:03 a.m.

BEIJING -- Chinese President Hu Jintao Saturday postponed his official visit to Washington next week due to Hurricane Katrina, but he and President Bush agreed to meet on the sidelines of a United Nations assembly in New York later this month.

The postponement upset Mr. Hu's plans to try to polish Beijing's image in Washington amid strains over textile imports, China's growing economic and military power, human rights and other issues. It would have been Mr. Hu's first U.S. visit since becoming president in 2003.

He spoke with Mr. Bush by phone, and the two leaders agreed to the postponement "due to the special condition faced with the U.S. government in handling with the serious disaster caused by Hurricane Katrina," the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The White House also said Saturday that Mr. Bush had to cancel his meeting with Mr. Hu because of the hurricane but the two leaders agreed to meet in New York on the sidelines of the U.N. meeting in mid-September.

Gov. Christine Gregoire spokeswoman Kerry Coughlin and Sam Kaplan, deputy director of the Trade Development Alliance of Greater Seattle, confirmed Saturday that Mr. Hu had postponed the majority of his itinerary, including a two-day stopover in Seattle. Mr. Hu had been scheduled to begin his U.S. visit in Washington state, where he planned visits to the Microsoft campus in suburban Redmond, as well as an event hosted by Boeing Co., a major public address and a state dinner.

"We regret that we will not be able to welcome President Hu and his delegation to Washington state on Monday but appreciate his sensitivity to the impact of the tragic hurricane on the American people," Gov. Gregoire said in a Saturday news release. "We have an important trade and cultural relationship with China and look forward to greeting President Hu in the future."

The announcement came after Mr. Hu's government on Saturday offered $5 million in aid to Katrina survivors and said it would send medical personnel if necessary. "At a time when the American people face the difficulty of a serious natural disaster, the Chinese people stand steadfastly with them," the Foreign Ministry statement quoted Mr. Hu as saying.

Messrs. Hu and Bush agreed to hold a bilateral meeting when they attend ceremonies in New York for the 60th anniversary of the founding of the U.N., the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. That event takes place Sept. 14-16.

The two leaders agreed to reschedule Mr. Hu's visit at a "time of mutual convenience," the Foreign Ministry statement said.

The trip was planned amid tensions over American efforts to restrict surging imports of low-priced Chinese textiles, which U.S. producers say are threatening thousands of jobs. Two rounds of talks -- the second this week in Beijing -- failed to produce a settlement.

Beijing regards such a fence-mending mission as an increasingly urgent priority. Chinese leaders have watched with alarm as a series of strains in recent months marred ties with Washington, their biggest trading partner and the last superpower. In addition to the textile dispute, criticism erupted over a bid by state-controlled oil company Cnooc Ltd. to buy Unocal Corp. Opponents said the deal could threaten U.S. national security. The criticism prompted Cnooc to drop its bid in August.

In July, a Pentagon report said China's growing military power could eventually threaten other Asian-Pacific countries. And this week, Beijing denied a U.S. State Department report that said it maintains elements of a biological warfare program in violation of international treaties.

The Bush administration describes its relations with Beijing as positive. But Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told the New York Times in an interview last month that China must make significant changes in its economic policy. Ms. Rice expressed concern about its military buildup and its record on human rights and religious freedom.

Copyright ? 2005 Associated Press