U.S. officials pave way for Clinton visit
UPI
U.S. officials pave way for Clinton visit
BEIJING, April 6 (UPI) - Advance teams of senior U.S. officials will
begin arriving in China this week to pave the way for a late-June visit
by President Clinton. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs
Thomas Pickering will lead the way, arriving April 9 for a series of
talks with top Chinese leaders.
bc-china-us
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UPI
U.S. officials pave way for Clinton visit
BEIJING, April 6 (UPI) - Advance teams of senior U.S. officials will
begin arriving in China this week to pave the way for a late-June visit
by President Clinton.
Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas Pickering will
lead the way, arriving April 9 for a series of talks with top Chinese
leaders.
During his two-day stay, Pickering is expected to address ``global,
regional and bilateral issues of mutual interest,'' according to U.S.
State Department spokesman James Rubin.
Pickering will be followed by Secretary of State Madeline Albright,
who is expected to arrive in late April.
Clinton's visit will mark the first time a U.S. president has set
foot in China since the bloody June 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy
protesters in Tiananmen Square.
Former President George Bush traveled to Beijing in February 1989,
just two months before the death of a senior Chinese leader sparked
student protests and a brutal military response.
Bilateral ties froze in the wake of the Tiananmen massacre,
rebounding only after Vice President Al Gore visited Beijing last March,
followed by an October trip to Washington by Chinese President Jiang
Zemin.
A number of thorny issues are expected to be on the agenda during the
trip, including Chinese concerns about U.S. support for Taiwan, dispute
over freedom of religion in Tibet and allegations China is providing
weapons technology to rogue nations.
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