The United States and China are expected to reach an agreement today which would allow the export of US nuclear reactors in exchange for a Chinese pledge to end sales of missiles to Iran. The pact may be announced following a meeting between President Clinton and President Jiang Zemin, who is on a four-day state visit to the US. Yesterday, Mr Jiang visited Williamsburg in Virginia where he donned a colonial-style hat. Small groups of protesters were kept at a distance. Later, Mr Jiang and his entourage flew to Washington, and last night he had a meeting with Mr Clinton which was described as "social". Today, following an official welcome to Washington, Mr Jiang will discuss the state of US-China relations with Mr Clinton, who will later be his host at a state dinner at the White House.
Demonstrations by human rights activists against the visit are planned for the park outside the White House. Protesters against China's treatment of Tibet will hold a "stateless dinner" in a nearby hotel. The Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, yesterday welcomed the decision by Beijing to invite a group of American religious leaders to China. Ms Albright said that she found it "encouraging" and "a welcome step in the direction of openness".
Referring to the White House dinner, Senator Jesse Helms, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, said yesterday after meeting a group of Chinese dissidents: "I'm not going to be a party to anything that is rude. I'm not going to thumb my nose at the guy. I want him to understand that the American people . . . are concerned about the dismal human rights record of the People's Republic of China."