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2,300 delegates arrive in Beijing for annual “Liang Hui”
2010/03/02
BEIJING: Around 2300 delegates of the Chinese People’s Consultative Conference (CPPCC) from all parts of China have arrived here to attend the annual “liang hui” or “two sessions” at the Great Hall of the People that will start tomorrow.
The two sessions are the biggest annual political events, which consists of a meeting of China’s top legislature, the National People’s Congress (NPC) as well as that of its advisory auxiliary, the Chinese People’s Consultative Conference(CPPCC).
Apart from discussing the government’s working report, they would also debate political motions put up by the delegates and to endorse the appointment of 13 new CPPCC delegates, Zhao Qizheng, spokesman for the llth CPPCC, told a press briefing here Tuesday.
On the agenda are the country’s economic development, social development and ecological development issues.
As China”s will be drafting its 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15) this year, amendments to election laws and livelihood issues” would also be major topics at the meetings.
More than 3000 Chinese and overseas reporters are expected to cover the two events. — BERNAMA
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/articles/20100302225054/Article/index_html
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| English.news.cn 2010-03-02 21:08:09 |
BEIJING, March 2 (Xinhua) — There should be more cooperation and less containment in Sino-U.S. relations, which suffered a “spring chill” at the beginning of 2010, said a spokesman for China’s top political advisory body here Tuesday.
Zhao Qizheng, spokesman for the third session of the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), made the remarks at a press conference at the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing.
Zhao said since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1979, the China-U.S. relations had developed rapidly with the volume of bilateral trade expanding more than 100 times as well as a lot of cultural, political and economic exchanges, which benefited both sides.
U.S. President Barack Obama seemed to have some new thinking on the relations, but two events, which happened during the first 20 days of 2010, had chilled the China-U.S. ties, said Zhao, referring to the Obama administration’s arms sales plan to Taiwan and Obama’s meeting with the Dalai Lama despite strong opposition from China.
“These two events damaged China’s core interests,” Zhao told hundreds of domestic and foreign journalists. “Changes in the China-U.S. relations are like changes in weather, from sunny days to cloudy days, and this has aroused Chinese people’s concerns.”
He said Obama’s meeting with the Dalai Lama “seriously disturbed” the Sino-U.S. relations, while the arms sales to Taiwan “seriously violated” three joint communiques between China and the United States and harmed China’s national security and cross-Strait peace and stability.
“The responsibility of the setback of the Sino-U.S. relations lies with the U.S. side,” he said. “This is like playing tennis, the United States served the ball and what China did was simply strike the ball back.”
“For the sake of the interests of both countries, there should be more cooperation between China and the United States and less ‘containment’ from the United States,” Zhao said.
“The Americans need to understand that the China-U.S. relation is like a car that have two drivers instead of one. The Chinese and Americans both have wheels and brakes, so they have to discuss with each other to drive the car forward on the right track,” he said.
“Otherwise, the car will only spin around and stay where it is,” he added.
The annual plenary session of the CPPCC National Committee will open Wednesday and more than 2,000 top political advisors are expected to make suggestions and proposals on state affairs.
Related:
U.S. responsible for retrograde Sino-U.S. ties: China advisory body spokesman
BEIJING, March 2 (Xinhua) — The United States should be responsible for the current retrograde bilateral relationship with China, said Zhao Qizheng, spokesman of the annual session of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Tuesday.
Zhao made the remarks at a press conference of the top political advisory body’s annual full session, which will open Wednesday.Full story
Will U.S.diplomats’ visit ease China-U.S.tensions?
BEIJING, March 2 (Xinhua) — Two senior U.S. diplomats are to embark on a three-day visit to China this week, but will the visit break the deadlock between the two countries?
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James B. Steinberg and Jeffrey Bader, senior director for Asian affairs at the U.S. National Security Council, will pay the visit from Tuesday to Thursday. Full story
U.S. Ambassador: 2010 to be “good year” for China-U.S. relations
BEIJING, March 1 (Xinhua) — The United States Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman said Monday that this year would be a good one for bilateral relations.
The two countries would “come together quickly” and “focus on global issues during the rest of this year,” Huntsman said in an interview with Xinhua. Full story
(from)
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2010-03/02/c_13194503.htm
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http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2010-03/02/c_13193760.htm
Will U.S.diplomats’ visit ease China-U.S.tensions?
English.news.cn 2010-03-02 10:57:26
By Xinhua Writer Li Zhongfa
BEIJING, March 2 (Xinhua) — Two senior U.S. diplomats are to embark on a three-day visit to China this week, but will the visit break the deadlock between the two countries?
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James B. Steinberg and Jeffrey Bader, senior director for Asian affairs at the U.S. National Security Council, will pay the visit from Tuesday to Thursday.
The high-level visit comes amid spats between the two countries following Washington’s 6.4-billion-U.S.-dollar arms sale plan to Taiwan and President Barack Obama’s meeting with the Dalai Lama.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang has said the U.S. side proposed the visit and “China has accepted it.”
The two U.S. officials “will exchange views with the Chinese side over matters related to China-U.S. relations,” Qin said.
Steinberg, number two in the U.S. State Department, invented the new concept of “strategic reassurance” late last year to describe U.S.-China relations, suggesting Washington welcome China’s arrival as a global power even as China reassures the U.S. and its neighbors that its rise would not run counter to their interests.
Bader served as director of the John L. Thornton China Center at the Brookings Institution, a leading Washington-based foreign policy think tank.
Analysts describe the visit as a U.S. effort to “mend bilateral ties”.
“The U.S. side proposing the visit shows that it has realized the severity of the problem and hopes to patch up the ties as soon as possible. That is a good gesture,” said Tao Wenzhao, an expert with Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
“Steinberg and Bader will discuss with the Chinese side how to make joint efforts to put bilateral ties back on track,” said Tao.
The United States angered China with its decision to sell arms to Taiwan and Obama’s meeting with the Dalai Lama regardless of China’s protest. China has repeated that the U.S. move would severely harm its core interests.
“As the saying goes, it is better for the doer to undo what he has done. The U.S. side initiated the problem and should take some steps,” said Fu Mengzi, a U.S. expert at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations.
The visit also demonstrates that the two countries have the will to create a favorable atmosphere for the development of bilateral ties through face-to-face dialogue, as they need to cooperate on a range of global issues, including the economic downturn, climate change and trade liberalization.
“Despite the frictions and differences, cooperation remains the mainstream of China-U.S. relations,” said Fu. “China and the United States are inter-dependent at the world stage, they need each other.”
On the day China announced the U.S. officials’ visit, Premier Wen Jiabao said in an online chat that “a good China-U.S. relationship benefits both China and the United States as well as their peoples.”
Wen said Saturday that China did not want 2010 to be “an unpeaceful year” for trade and economic relations with the United States.
Since the two countries forged diplomatic ties in 1979, the China-U.S. relationship had developed amid twists and turns and to cooperate amid quarrels, analysts say.
| Special Reports >> |
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NPC, CPPCC Annual Sessions 2010 |
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Premier Wen gives online interview at Xinhuanet, Government Portal |
“For China and the United States, no one can develop without another. The two countries should maintain overall cooperation,” said Tao.
Related:
China asks U.S. to avoid further damaging bilateral ties, refutes military link with hacking
BEIJING, Feb. 25 (Xinhua) — China on Thursday asked the United States to avoid damaging bilateral relations further and also said it would not change its decision to suspend the planned mutual visits between the Chinese and U.S. militaries after the U.S. arms sale to Taiwan in late January. Full story
U.S. hopes ties with China return to normal soon
WASHINGTON, March 1 (Xinhua) — The United States expressed hope on Monday that ties with China will return to normal as quickly as possible.
“We’ve gone through a bit of a bumpy path here and I think there’s an interest, both within the United States and China, to get back to business as usual as quickly as possible,” State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said at a regular briefing. Full story
(from -)
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Winston Lord – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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AMBASSADOR WINSTON LORD
AMBASSADOR WINSTON LORD: There were several reasons that President Nixon and Henry Kissinger thought it was in the US interest to open up with China after …
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/coldwar/interviews/…/lord1.html – Cached – Similar -
New Documentary Reveals Secret U.S., Chinese Diplomacy Behind …
Titled “History Declassified: Nixon in China,” the show combines previously secret U.S. …. with cover memo to Kissinger, from Winston Lord, 29 July 1971 …
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB145/index.htm
(from quickie google search – these link to the original agreements made between the US and China when Kissinger, Nixon and Winston Lord made the decisions for us . . . )
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From Reuters article last September by Tabassum Zakaria
China and the United States do not want a dispute over tires to spark a broader trade war, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg said on Thursday.
Steinberg will visit China on Monday and Tuesday during a trip to Asia that will also include stops in Vietnam, Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan.
In a speech to the Center for a New American Security, he said the U.S. decision to impose a tariff on tire imports from China had been taken under terms of a World Trade Organization framework accepted by both the United States and China.
Beijing condemned the U.S. decision for a 35-percent additional “safeguard” tariff on tire imports from China as protectionism that could undermine a global economic recovery. It is concerned the safeguard rule could also be used against other products.
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China top holder in US debt, after all
AFP – Sunday, February 28
WASHINGTON (AFP) – – China remained the top holder in the ballooning US debt last year, revised data showed, after earlier indications it had been eclipsed by Japan drew speculation about Beijing’s motives.
Revised data released late Friday by the Treasury Department indicated that while China had cut back on its bond holdings, the level was still well above that of Japan.
China held 894.8 billion dollars in Treasury securities at the end of December, more than the 755 billion dollars estimated earlier in the month. But it was still down from a revised 929.0 billion dollars in November.
Japan in December held 765.7 billion dollars in Treasury bonds, slightly down from the previous estimate of 769 billion dollars.
The sharp revision came as the Treasury Department looked at Chinese holdings in US Treasuries in third markets such as Britain and Hong Kong, which were not picked up by the earlier estimates.
China’s massive holdings in US Treasuries have set off alarm bells in some circles in Washington, with lawmakers warning that the soaring US debt was becoming a political as well as an economic risk.
China has warned of retaliation against the United States after President Barack Obama defied Beijing by approving an arms package to rival Taiwan and meeting Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
But many US analysts argue that any threat by China to shift its reserves out of US government paper is just bluster as the emerging Asian power needs to find a place for its foreign reserve holdings.
A serious move away from US Treasuries would trigger a fall in bond prices, ultimately hurting Beijing.
Some experts say that buying bonds more quietly in third countries could serve to lessen criticism in China that the country is investing too much in low-yielding US bonds.
In Beijing on Saturday, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said he hoped 2010 would be a peaceful year for trade and economic relations between the United States and China, the world’s largest developed and developing economies.
The total value of foreign holdings of US securities as of the end of June 2009 was 9.7 trillion dollars, down from 10.3 trillion a year earlier, according to the revised data.
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20100217/tbs-us-economy-finance-bonds-china-japan-ec2362a.html
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The USA Pavilion at the Shanghai 2010 World ExpoDate: 11/11/2009 Description: U.S. Pavilion 2010 © U.S. Pavilion 2010
Nov. 10, 2009
The 2010 Shanghai World Expo will be the largest Expo in history and the first ever hosted by China. During its 6 month operation, it is expected to attract 70 million visitors – more than any Expo in the 150 years of Expo history. The Special Representative for Global Partnerships gave a press briefing describing how over $45 million has been raised out of the $61 million required to build and operate the USA Pavilion.
| Press Briefing
| Secretary’ Clinton’s Letter
Date: 11/19/2009 Description: Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship Logo © White House Image
America has entered a new era of engagement through partnerships with the private sector and civil society; and one of the most noteworthy opportunities for partnerships will be the Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship to be held early in 2010. Click the image above if you are interested in learning more about partnering with the U.S. Government on Summit activities. -More
http://www.state.gov/s/partnerships/index.htm
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But to start off, we have Ambassador Elizabeth Bagley, who is our Special Representative for Global Partnerships. The Secretary, in many of her speeches, has talked about the concept of partnerships, the fact that in the 21st century, in solving the major challenges that we face in the world, not all of those solutions are going to come from governments. In many cases, they can, but in some cases, it’ll be a collaboration that might involve governments, nongovernmental organizations or a private initiative. And Elizabeth is at the forefront of those efforts. She’ll describe a little bit more broadly what her office is up to. But very specifically today, we thought it was important for her to outline what has been happening with the Shanghai Expo, obviously a manifestation of the importance of the relationship between China and the United States and the commitment that the United States has to that relationship and also to Asia as a whole.
So Elizabeth, you want to start us off? Thank you very much.
AMBASSADOR BAGLEY: Thanks, P.J. Thank you all, and welcome to Kentucky. I’ll – as P.J. said, I’ll talk a little bit about and answer, of course, any questions you have about our new office. But first, let me just run through the facts as we know them on the 2010 Shanghai Expo.
It will run from – many of you know – in Shanghai from May 1st to October 31st, and it’s the largest expo in history, and the first ever hosted by China. During its six-month operation, it is expected to attract 70 million visitors, most of whom are Chinese, more than any expo in the 150 years of expo history.
To date, 190 countries and 48 international organizations have accepted invitations to attend. The theme for the expo is “Better City, Better Life,” and it will present a vision of a sustainable, healthy, prosperous world in the 21st century. There will be, of course, an exposition of American values, culture, business. This is, of course, China’s most dynamic city, so it’s very important to be there and to bring our own American businesses in as partners. The Secretary is very committed to this. She has been since she went to China in February, right – soon after she was sworn in.
The Chinese have been extremely supportive; in fact, urging us to be part of this expo, and we – and they have been our partners throughout. And it is, of course, a very important manifestation of our relationship with them, of our bilateral relationship and also of our commercial diplomacy, because it’s very important to have our American businesses support and participate in this in order to get into the Chinese economy and also to express the importance of American culture, our diversity, our freedom. And it’s a great opportunity for us to show public diplomacy and also commercial diplomacy and to show what our values, our core values, are to the Chinese people. That’s pretty much – I can answer questions on that.
There’s a 501(c)(3), just so you know, that the funds are private funds. So we’re raising money from corporations, because there’s a piece of legislation in the early ‘90s that prohibited any public funds. So we are raising – $61 million is our goal. We’ve raised 45 million of that. So we’re still – any of you who want to contribute are most welcome. We’re – we have some major – wonderful major corporations, great participation. We’re in the middle of hopefully closing this off.
The Secretary will be visiting. As P.J. said, she will be in Shanghai on Sunday and will visit the site on Monday and we’ll have our sponsors there, so we’ll encourage – thank them all, of course, and encourage those who haven’t decided to participate to join our efforts.
That’s pretty much – just a final – just to let you know that the progression of events – there was a participation agreement that was signed in June, in the end of June. A visit – Commissioner General Jose Villarreal was also appointed in April, I believe it was. Shanghai Expo 2010 is the 501(c)(3) that is accepting the contributions. Groundbreaking in July by Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, which was very successful, and also a topping-off ceremony, where they actually finished the construction of the frame, and apparently have a broom and a U.S. flag that they bring. And that was done – officiated by our new Ambassador Jon Huntsman, who also said if you’re not – if businesses are not here, they’re not players. So he has been very forthcoming, very excited about this, and has encouraged participation by the business community both in Beijing and Shanghai.
To just go through a little bit about what we’re doing – in fact, this is probably one of the best examples of public-private partnerships. It’s – the public being the State Department, along with our 501(c)(3) and with our friends in business, have put together a really important partnership that will, I think, show the importance not only of our U.S. bilateral relationship with the U.S. – between the U.S. and China, but also the importance of our companies in a commercial diplomacy.
Beyond what we’re doing at Shanghai Expo, we have a whole host of issues that we’re working on in terms of developing priorities, fulfilling the priorities that the Secretary and the President have already set forth such as food security, Muslim outreach, women empowerment, diaspora engagement – meaning those ethnic groups that are here in the country and that want to relate to their homeland – not only sending remittances, monies back home, but also we’re engaging in a diasporas corps that will actually help them invest or encourage direct investment, help them to help their relatives in their homelands, their respective homelands. So we’re working – that’s something the Secretary cares very much about. We’re actually working with the Filipino community now in anticipation of the Secretary’s trip to the Philippines.
http://www.state.gov/s/partnerships/131747.htm
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Contact the Global Partnership Initiative
Email: Partnerships@State.gov
Phone: (202) 647-2200
Fax: (202) 647-7631
Mail:
Global Partnership Initiative
Harry S Truman Building, US Department of State
2201 C Street NW Suite 6817
Washington, DC 20520
Kris M. Balderston
Deputy Special Representative for Global Partnerships
BalderstonKM@state.gov
Kris Balderston serves as the Managing Director of the Global Partnership Initiative and the Deputy Special Representative for Global Partnerships in the Office of the Secretary of State. Prior to his role at the U.S. Department of State, Kris was Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s first Legislative Director in January 2001 before serving as her Deputy Chief of Staff from 2002 to 2009.
Kris began his career with the National Governors’ Association and then ran the Massachusetts State Office for Governor Michael Dukakis from 1987-1991. He became Senior Policy Advisor to Majority Leader George Mitchell at the US Senate Democratic Policy Committee from 1991 to 1993. From 1993 to 1995, he served as the Deputy Chief of Staff at the U.S. Department of Labor under Secretary of Labor Robert Reich. Kris served in the White House from 1995 to 2001, as Special Assistant for Cabinet Affairs to President William Jefferson Clinton and then later as the Deputy Assistant to the President and the Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet.
Kris holds his BA in Political Science from LeMoyne College and his MA in Government from Georgetown University.
Gloria Cabe
Senior Advisor
CabeGC@state.gov
Gloria Cabe serves as Senior Advisor at the Global Partnership Initiative in the Office of the Secretary of State, focusing on democratic governance and human rights issues. Prior to this role, she worked at James Lee Witt Associates, a crisis and emergency management consulting firm, where she provided guidance and support for several of the firm’s clients as Managing Director of International affairs in numerous countries including the Maldives, Budapest, Albania, Greece, Trinidad, Tobago, and tsunami affected countries in south and southeast Asia. Under her management, the International Practice grew significantly, with the practice opening an office in Beijing, China, in 2008 and entering into many partnership agreements around the world, from Australia, to Norway to Greece.
Prior to joining James Lee Witt Associates, Gloria’s previous private sector experience included serving as President of Emerging Market Strategies, Vice President and COO of the Corporate Council on Africa, and Vice President of The Ridley Group, all based in Washington, D.C. Gloria has over 20 years experience in public service as a senior advisor to the highest level executives at the state, federal and international levels of government, including as Counselor to the Chairman and Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. While serving 10 years as a member of the House of Representatives in the Arkansas State Legislature, Gloria provided leadership in many areas and served as Floor Whip for Governor Bill Clinton; and in 1991, Gloria became the Chief of Staff for Governor Clinton, where she shepherded the most successful legislative program in the Governor’s 13 year tenure.
Andrea Görög
Special Assistant to Ambassador Bagley
GorogA@state.gov
Robert R. Haynie
Global Partnerships Liaison
HaynieRR@state.gov
Robert Haynie is a Senior Consultant with Booz Allen Hamilton’s Diplomacy and International Development practice. He is on a full-time assignment with the U.S. Department of State’s Global Partnership Initiative, focusing on global health issues and managing the Department’s database of public-private partnerships. Robert has experience with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) working within the Global Development Alliance office building public-private alliances and implementing economic growth projects in Serbia. He also lived in Jordan for a year under USAID’s Emerging Markets Development Advisors Program focused on small business promotion. Robert graduated from Georgetown University’s MBA program and obtained an honors certificate in International Business Diplomacy from the School of Foreign Service. Prior to graduate school, Robert lived in China for three years working with Microsoft Corporation focusing on regional support services and process integration.
Robert Tice Lalka
Global Partnerships Liaison
Presidential Management Fellow
LalkaRT@state.gov
Robert Tice Lalka serves as Global Partnerships Liaison for the Global Partnership Initiative in the Office of the Secretary of State, focusing on partnership initiatives with faith-based communities, entrepreneurship and economic development, and promoting educational opportunity, as outlined in the President’s A New Beginning speech in Cairo. He previously worked at the United Nations’ Geneva office; the World Bank’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., and AmeriCorps in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. He is a cum laude graduate of Yale University, where he received honors in both English and history, and he holds his master’s degree with a concentration in global public policy from Duke University.
G. Kevin Saba
Regional Director
SabaGK@state.gov
Kevin Saba serves as Regional Director for Global Partnerships, focusing on economic recovery and growth issues. He has over 20 years of private sector experience serving in various leadership capacities as well as having gained experience in start-ups, and “turnarounds” of ongoing concerns. His most recent experience in the private sector included service as President of Managed Care USA and President of Nations’ Care, a subsidiary of the Orion Capital Companies. Kevin’s public private partnering experience includes being recruited by the State of Connecticut to create and implement a strategic plan to reduce a $7 billion unfunded liability that had accumulated over the period of 1945 through 1995. Approximately two years later, the liability had been reduced to less than $1 billion and a plan was in place to finance and administer the remaining unfunded liability. The initiative was recognized by a Connecticut think tank as the “most significant government success in 20 years.”
Kevin joined the Department of State in 2002 and was involved in the start-up of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). He then joined the MCC as its first Managing Director of Threshold Country Programs and served for approximately two years in this capacity, successfully overseeing the start-up of a number of threshold programs. Kevin was accredited in June 2008 by the Overseas Development Institute (United Kingdom’s leading think tank on international development) and the International Business Leaders Forum (internationally recognized leader in cross-sector partnerships) as a professional broker of multi-sector partnerships. In addition to his public and private service he has enjoyed teaching college courses in business and has a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of Hartford.
Jim Thompson
Regional Director
ThompsonJF2@state.gov
Jim Thompson serves as Regional Director for Global Partnerships, focusing on food security and water security issues. Jim served as the Acting Director of the U.S. Department of State’s Global Partnership Center and is the former Acting Director of the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID’s) Global Development Alliance, which is the Agency’s business model for the replicable use of public-private alliances. He was responsible for overall management and strategy of the activity and managed major corporate partner relationships for the Agency. Jim has over 17 years of Government experience, previously serving at USAID as a Food for Peace Officer and a Program Officer in the Europe and Eurasia bureau. He also was a Contracting Officer at USAID and at the U.S. Department of Energy and has used his acquisition and assistance experience to create new public-private partnership models.
Jim has taught management courses throughout Africa, Latin America and Europe for the USAID, and he was also responsible for developing the alliance builder training program delivered by GDA both in Washington and at USAID missions globally. Jim is a frequent speaker on public-private partnerships and practitioner building numerous alliances. Jim was a Rotary Ambassadorial scholar to New Zealand in 1990 and completed his Master of Arts in Political Studies at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.
http://www.state.gov/s/partnerships/contact/index.htm
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