Founders of the United States House of Representatives' China
Working Group are in China for their first visit since the
establishment of the group last June.
Mark Kirk, a Republican from Illinois, and Rick Larsen, a
Democrat from Washington State, said they will discuss with their
Chinese hosts economic and other issues including possible
co-operation on space programs.
Kirk said the US and China could investigate possible
co-operation opportunities to enable their astronauts to help each
other in emergencies.
Kirk and Larsen and their entourage began their visit on Monday
in Beijing, they will also visit Shanghai and the
satellite-launching center in Jiuquan in Northwest China's Gansu
Province during their 10-day stay.
They have met Wu
Bangguo, chairman of the National People's Congress Standing
Committee, Defence Minister Cao
Gangchuan, and senior economic officials.
Kirk said the tour would also be an educational opportunity for
them.
"I feel we (the US congressmen) need to educate ourselves more
about China," he said on Wednesday during a luncheon organized by
the American Chamber of Commerce in China.
He said part of the feeling came from the reflection on the
highly controversial case of Chinese offshore oil company CNOOC Ltd's bid to
take over American company Unocal.
CNOOC dropped the bid due to heavy opposition from many US
legislators. However, a number of facts that many "emotional"
opponents used in support of their stand were actually not true,
Kirk said.
He said the 35-member China Working Group aims to build stronger
political and economic relations with China.
He said that Chicago, the largest city in his home state of
Illinois, plans to hold a Year of China in 2010.
Chicago also plans to make a bid to host the 2016 Olympics, Kirk
said, adding that they want to learn from Beijing's
experiences of bidding and hosting the Olympics.
(China Daily January 13, 2006)