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President Clinton paid a 9-day official visit to China this summer, in a high-level effort to improve relations between the United States and China. The visit represented the first visit to China by an American President since the Chinese government opened fire on Chinese dissidents demonstrating in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1993.
President Clinton visited five Chinese cities (see map). He met privately with China’s president, Jiang Zemin, in Beijing, and pledged his support for "closer ties and deeper friendship between America and China.”
Opposition to the Visit
Many Republicans and some human rights activists had condemned the President’s visit to China. Others, however, supported the President’s trip. “The West should not try to isolate the communist regime or limit contact to political exchange,” wrote Wang Dan, a Chinese dissident who spent 7 years in prison for his pro-democracy activities. “Washington needs to maintain dialogue on many fronts at once: economic, cultural, academic, anything that helps build civil society.”
The main outcome of the trip was a warming of relations between the two countries rather than major new agreements, although some
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agreements were signed. The two countries agreed not to target nuclear weapons at each
other's countries, and China agreed to allow United States monitors to check sensitive equipment sold for civilian use to ensure that it is not used for military purposes. China agreed to purchase 27 Boeing airplanes, valued at $1.2 billion dollars, and other equipment. The two countries also signed an agreement to cooperate on the peaceful use of nuclear technology.
A Show of Openness
In a rare show of openness, the Chinese government broadcast the joint news conference given by President Clinton and President Jiang. Millions of Chinese people thus had the opportunity to see the American President on television and to be exposed to the two leaders’ differences on a variety of issues, including Taiwan, Tibet, and human rights.
- What was the main purpose of President Clinton's trip to China?Answer
- What was the main outcome of the trip?Answer
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