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CNN Saturday Morning News

Powell Meets With Chinese President

Aired July 28, 2001 - 08:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BRIAN NELSON, CNN ANCHOR: Secretary of State Colin Powell met with Chinese leaders today in Beijing, giving both nations an opportunity to get the relations back on a positive footing after that EP-3 incident.

CNN's State Department correspondent Andrea Koppel is traveling with Powell and she has the latest now from the Chinese capital.

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT CORRESPONDENT: Secretary of State Powell's mission here in Beijing was fairly straightforward. He had a couple of key issues on his agenda, one, of course, trying to push for improvements in China's record on human rights; the other being assurances from China that it would stop exporting ballistic missiles, these are nuclear capable ballistic missiles, to countries like Iran and Pakistan.

Secretary Powell, during his meetings with Chinese leaders, China's most senior leaders, in fact, said that he stressed that the U.S. wanted China to abide by a November 2000 agreement that was signed during the Clinton administration in which China said that it would no longer send any sort of technology or missiles to countries beyond its borders. And so Secretary Powell didn't really make much progress on that front, although he said that they moved the ball forward. There are still outstanding issues and they don't have an agreement with the Chinese. What they do have is at least an assurance that they're going to have expert level talks at some point in the near future.

Now, as far as human rights are concerned, again, on that front, Secretary Powell said that he didn't raise specific cases. He said that he preferred to look at the whole issue of human rights and the rule of law. He said they had a candid exchange and, in fact, they're going to resume these human rights talks that have taken place in years past. They're going to resume that dialogue in the coming months.

Now, in terms of Secretary Powell's other mission, that was to lay the groundwork for President Bush's visit in October, he said that they made quite good progress. He said he preferred not to look back but to look forward and that meant, in his words, that the EP-3 incident, this was the collision between a U.S. spy plane and a Chinese fighter jet off Hainan Island last April, that that incident is behind them. He said that U.S.-China relations are moving forward. And he also made a personal comment. He said that this is his first trip back to Beijing in more than 17 years and he called the changes in China remarkable. He also said that there would be a series of other high level U.S. visits, including visits by the commerce secretary and the treasury secretary, of course, paving the way for that visit of secretary -- of President Bush in October.

Andrea Koppel, CNN, in Beijing.

NELSON: All right, thank you, Andrea.

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