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Bush still to visit China next month



By CNN's Alex Frew McMillan

HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- U.S. President George W. Bush still plans to visit China for the first time in October.

Bush plans to travel to Shanghai in late October for the annual summit held by APEC, or the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.

The U.S. leader told his counterpart, China's President Jiang Zemin, that the trip is still on. He is also said he would make a brief trip to Beijing.

The two leaders spoke in a phone call late Wednesday, according to China's deputy foreign minister Wang Guangya.

Jiang and Bush are expected to hold their own talks on the sideline of the Shanghai event.

China has expressed its backing of the United States after Tuesday's attacks. It states that "the Chinese people stand with the American people."

Bush criticized for response to tragedy

The American president has urged Americans to respond to Tuesday's tragedy with resilience and to show their mettle by getting on with their lives.

"This nation is sad, but we are tough and resolute," he said.

Beijing
People gather outside the U.S. embassy in Beijing  

But he has also been criticized for his response to Tuesday's attacks. Critics say he has been noticeable by his absence and slow to visit the scenes of the disaster.

Bush was expected to go to a memorial service in Washington, D.C., on Friday, then take Air Force One to New York, to view the scene of the disaster and the rubble of the World Trade Center's Twin Towers first-hand.

He declared Friday a national "Day of Mourning" in the United States.

APEC cancels Mexico session

The attacks in New York and Washington pushed back talks aimed to resolve China's entry into the World Trade Organization. Those were slated for Thursday but will now be held Monday.

APEC has also scrapped an informal round of talks in Mexico that were scheduled for next week. But the Shanghai summit is going ahead as planned.

"Nothing has changed. We're just proceeding as normal," APEC spokeswoman Sheryl Lowe said.

As its 15-year quest to join the WTO nears an end, China has emphasized its economy and worked to improve relations with trade partners. It has shown great pride in hosting the APEC events for 2001.

The centerpiece will be the October talks in Shanghai. The city is expected to come to a standstill, as China uses the event to showcase its bustling business capital.

Shanghai is expected to be first among China's cities to gain from the country's WTO entry, as a rival to other service hubs such as Hong Kong.

The APEC summit will also mark the first visit to China for Bush, who is due to attend with a group of other world leaders.

The 21 Pacific Rim member nations are sending high-level delegations to the APEC summit. The whole event will run from October 15-21, with a series of talks for trade and foreign ministers, CEOs and others.

The highlight is the Leaders Meeting on October 21-22 that Bush is due to attend.

Bush's predecessor, Bill Clinton and Jiang spoke at last year's summit, which took place in Brunei.

As the APEC host nation for 2001, China has been organizing events through the year. Next year's host is Mexico.







RELATED STORIES:
• Beijing offers help, Bush visit still on
September 14, 2001
• Asia counts its dead and missing
September 13, 2001
• Bush visiting New York on Friday
September 13, 2001

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