China Urges U.S. for 'Clear-cut' PNTR

China Thursday urged the United Statesto consider its own interests and swiftly approve permanent normaltrade relation (PNTR) status for China without any pre-conditions.

The Chinese government appreciates the efforts by the U.S. government and businesses to urge the Congress to grant PNTR to China, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao said at a regular press conference Thursday afternoon.

"We believe that it's absolutely normal for countries to grant each other PNTR, but the United States has for a long time attached pre-conditions to granting normal trade relations to China by making annual appraisals, which has seriously affected bilateral trade relations," Zhu said. The Chinese government insists that what the U.S. is about to offer must be a "clear-cut and neat" PNTR -- with no conditional measures thrown in, he pointed out.

U.S. businesses in China will be seriously hurt if the U.S. fails to find a solution to this problem, Zhu warned, adding that the WTO accord the two countries signed in November 1999 would be meaningless without the U.S. granting PNTR to China.

China has made active moves to implement the agricultural cooperation agreement signed by the two last December, by sending groups of experts to the U.S. for research tours, Zhu said. Deputy Trade Minister Sun Zhenyu just finished his U.S. tour, he added. Zhu said that China welcomes the upcoming visits of U.S. Secretary of Commerce William Daley and Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman, and that the two sides will exchange views on strengthening bilateral trade and getting PNTR for China.

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