China and U.S. upbeat on ties

China has been making a concerted effort to join the global community.

By staff and wire reports

BEIJING, China -- An upbeat chat between senior emissaries of China and the United States has provided the latest sign that ties between the two countries are on the mend.

Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan followed up on a request by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell to speak on the phone, China's official Xinhua news agency reported.

In the chat, the two agreed that relations between the two countries had improved and Tang promised to give them a further boost after recent troubles, the agency added.

Ties between China and the United States became strained after an April 1 spy plane collision, which soured relations early in the George W. Bush administration.

China held the U.S. air crew for 11 days before releasing them, causing the worst tensions between Beijing and Washington in two years.

As talks on removing the plane dragged on for months, a series of other rows erupted, including one over a U.S. pledge of arms sales to Taiwan -- which China considers part of its sovereign territory, and several over China detaining U.S.-linked academics on the mainland.

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But in the latest sign of a growing rapport, Xinhua reported that Tang told Powell he looked forward to meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum meeting in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi at the end of next month.

He also welcomed a visit to Beijing by Powell following the gathering.

No date has been set for Powell's visit to Beijing.

Tang also told Powell China was preparing for the meeting between Chinese President Jiang Zemin and Bush in Shanghai as well as Bush's visit to Beijing in October, Xinhua reported.

Bush is due to attend the annual informal summit of leaders of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Shanghai.

The two diplomats also discussed Iraq, Xinhua said, but gave no details.

Much to talk about

Both countries have much to gain from better relations and a strong working partnership.

Bush took office promising to change the American policy toward China from one of "strategic partnership" -- the Clinton administration's term -- to that of a "strategic competitor."

These comments, combined with talk of sponsoring a U.N. resolution faulting China's human rights record and pushing ahead with a missile shield plan China opposes, riled Beijing early on.

But in the clear sign that China is seeking to build its ties with the rest of the world and shrug off its isolationist stance, it has pushed hard in its bid for the 2008 Olympics, along with its entry into the World Trade Organization.

The United States, for its part, has said it is neutral on its stance for China to get the Olympics and recently decided to extend normal trading relations with China, despite reservations over human rights.

The Associated Press & Reuters contributed to this report.