Chronologies
US - China
Chronology from Oct 2003 to Dec 2003
: Special envoy James Baker arrives in Beijing to discuss with Chinese leaders the possibility of Beijing reducing or canceling the debts owed to China by Iraq.
: A Chinese purchasing mission signed contracts with U.S. companies totaling $320 million on importing aluminum from the United States. The mission also signed contracts totaling more than $500 million on importing fertilizers.
: President Hu tells President Bush in a late night phone call that he appreciated the U.S. reaffirmation of the “one China” policy and opposition to “the words and actions of Taiwan authorities aimed at altering Taiwan’s status.”
: In an annual report to Congress, the USTR accuses China of dragging its feet on implementing its international trade commitments, saying the PRC “lost a significant amount of momentum” in 2003.
: Newly appointed U.S. State Department special envoy on Korean Affairs Joseph R. De Trani arrives in Beijing for a visit.
: USITC determines that imports of certain ductile iron waterworks fittings from China are hurting U.S. producers. The commission will recommend remedies under which domestic producers can obtain relief.
: FM Li and Secretary Powell hold a phone conversation in which they discuss Wen’s successful visit to the United States, developments in Iraq, and efforts to convene another round of six-party talks to resolve the North Korea nuclear weapons issue.
: Commerce Department initiates an antidumping investigation on imports of wooden bedroom furniture from China.
: Yang Jiechi, China’s ambassador to the U.S., and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs Patricia de Stacy Harrison sign an executive plan agreeing on cultural exchanges from 2004 through 2006.
: U.S. and China sign a five-year bilateral maritime agreement that gives U.S. registered shipping companies the legal flexibility to perform an extensive range of new business activities in China.
: President Bush meets with Premier Wen in the Oval Office and declares that he “opposes comments and actions made by the leader of Taiwan” that “indicate that he may be willing to unilaterally change the status quo, which we oppose.”
: Premier Wen visits New York, Washington, and Boston.
: Chinese FM Li calls Secretary Powell to exchange views on Taiwan and the North Korean nuclear issue, according to a Xinhua report.
: The U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) votes unanimously to impose antidumping duties on imports of malleable pipe fittings from China. President Bush must make the final decision on whether to accept the USITC recommendation.
: China’s State Council Information Office publishes a white paper entitled “China’s Non-Proliferation Policy and Measures.”
: Gao Zhan, former researcher and human rights activist, pleads guilty of exporting sensitive technology to China and tax fraud. Gao faces up to 13 years in prison and will be sentence on March 5, 2004.
: The U.S. imposes dumping duties on color TVs imported from China.
: China delays the departure of an official trade delegation to the U.S. to buy agricultural products.
: The Washington Post publishes an interview with Wen Jiabao prior to his departure for the United States.
: Randall Schriver, deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, holds a press conference on U.S.-Taiwan-China issues.
: Ambassador Randt is summoned for a second time following Washington’s decision to slap import quotas on PRC textile products, state press said. Vice Minister of Commerce Ma Xiuhong warns Randt that U.S. import quotas on textile products would negatively impact PRC-U.S. trade and harm U.S. domestic interests.
: Vice FM Zhou Wenzhong summons U.S. Ambassador Clark Randt to express concerns over the U.S. decision on imposing quotas on three types of textile products it imports from China.
: Vice FM Wang Yi meets James Kelly, U.S. assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, in Beijing to discuss the possibility of holding another round of six-party talks.
: Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA) votes to invoke safeguard relief on knit fabric, dressing gowns and robes, and bras imported from China following petitions filed by the U.S. textile industry.
: Deputy USTR Josette Sheeran Shiner leads two U.S. delegations to China to discuss intellectual property rights protection and China’s implementation of its WTO commitments.
: China signs deals with U.S. companies to purchase 30 Boeing 737 planes and 4,500 U.S. made cars.
: After accompanying National People’s Congress Chairman Wu Bangguo to Pyongyang, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wang Yi visits Washington to discuss the North Korea nuclear weapons issue.
: Secretary of Commerce Evans says in remarks to the Minnesota and St. Paul Chambers of Commerce that the Bush administration opposes congressional proposals to repeal China’s normal trade relations status and to impose a 27.5 percent tariff on Chinese exports to the United States.
: Secretary Powell delivers a speech on China-U.S. relations at a conference at the George Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University. Former Vice Premier Qian Qichen also attends the conference.
: FM Li and Secretary Powell talk by phone and reportedly agree to actively implement the consensus reached by their presidents in Bangkok to strengthen the China-U.S. relationship.
: Chinese Ministry of Labor and Social Security and U.S. Department of Labor sign an agreement on a labor law project. The two sides will carry out technical cooperation in labor legislation, law execution, labor law education, industry relations, and labor legal aid.
: Alan Larson, U.S. under secretary of state for economic, business, and agricultural affairs, heads a delegation to Beijing to attend an economic development and reform dialogue between the Chinese State Development and Reform Commission and the U.S. State Department.
: Defense Minister Cao Gangchuan meets separately with Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Powell, and NSC Adviser Condoleezza Rice, with the latter meeting including a five-minute drop-by by President Bush. Cao also visits the Pacific Command and West Point Military Academy during his trip.
: China deports a Chinese-born American who had been convicted of obtaining state secrets two years before his prison sentence expires. Fong Fuming, 68, a business consultant from West Orange, N.J., had been on a list of 13 prisoners that the United States government identified to China as priority cases.
: Commerce Secretary Donald Evans arrives in China for a four-day visit. After traveling to Xian, he ends his visit in Beijing, where he meets with Chinese leaders and delivers a speech at the American Chamber of Commerce urging China to open its markets to U.S. companies and implement its WTO obligations.
: Two PLA Navy ships arrive in Guam for a four-day goodwill visit. The fleet is commanded by Rear Adm. Xue Tianpei, deputy commander of the PLAN South Sea Fleet, and marks the first visit by the PLAN to the U.S. territory in the Pacific.
: Presidents Bush and Hu meet on the sidelines of the 11th APEC forum meeting in Bangkok.
: Secretary of Health Tommy Thompson meets his Chinese counterpart and announces the opening of an HIV-AIDS office to be run by officials from the U.S. Center for Disease Control.
: FM Li meets with Secretary Powell prior to the APEC forum meeting in Bangkok. The two sides agree to step up cooperation in all areas, including counterterrorism, and to increase bilateral trade.
: U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick travels to Beijing and Shenyang to discuss China’s implementation of WTO commitments and the important role China plays in the regional and global economy.
: President Bush sends Hu a letter congratulating China on the successful completion of its first manned space mission.
: The Chinese spacecraft Shenzhou 5, carrying astronaut Lt. Col. Yang Liwei, blasts off from the Gobi Desert, orbits the Earth 14 times, and returns safely after a voyage of roughly 21 hours.
: Chinese FM Li Zhaoxing exchanges views with Secretary of State Powell by phone on bilateral ties, North Korea, and Iraq.
: President Hu Jintao meets former U.S. President George Bush in Beijing.
: The Senate passes a resolution calling on China to release immediately and unconditionally Rebiya Kadeer, a prominent businesswoman from China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region.
: Congressional Executive Commission on China releases its annual report.