Zhu Rongji: China to Fulfill WTO Entry Promises

China will not renege on its promises and prove itself to be a responsible country after its entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO), said Premier Zhu Rongji on Thursday in Beijing.

He told visiting US Trade Representative Arlene Barshefsky that Chinese government will fulfill all it has promised to its trade partners in its bilateral negotiations with countries including the United States, the European Union and Mexico.

Barshefsky was flying in from Washington to resolve a few emerging issues relating to China's multinational talks in Geneva on WTO's admission of China.

European Union and United States still think it is possible that China could acquire its WTO membership before year end, said Barshefsky on a news conference held after talks with Zhu, who late boarded a plane bound for Japan on Thursday.

It is not surprising that multilateral talks in Geneva last month stalled over on some disputes, said Barshefsky. And she said she did not believe that talks on China's entry into WTO has collapsed.

Her meeting with the Chinese prime minister has helped resolve some outstanding differences, said Barshefsky, adding her trip proved to be successful for the two sides to reach mutual understanding on them.

Barshefsky held talks with officials from Chinese Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Commission (MOFTEC) Friday, and she is expected to confer with some US businessmen in China before she leaves Beijing on Saturday.

Barshefsky was sent to Beijing by US President Bill Clinton Thursday, two days after Clinton signed into law the bill on permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) with China.



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