US trade rep praises role of China in negotiations
( 2002-02-02 01:27 ) (1 )

United States trade representative Robert B. Zoellick on Thursday praised China for its role in helping launch a new round of global trade negotiations.

In a speech to the US-China Business Council in Washington DC, he said: "Beginning at APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation) last year, China helped invigorate efforts to launch new global negotiations, both through its determined effort to join the WTO (World Trade Organization) as well as through its prodding of other APEC countries to support the new negotiations at Doha.''

Zoellick said that he believes China could again play a positive role now that the members of the WTO have decided to advance the liberalization of global trade.

"The policies that have been at the core of China's spectacular growth in the last 25 years -- progress toward freer markets, greater openness to foreign competition and investment, deregulation and privatization, tariff reduction -- could serve as a model'' to other developing countries, Zoellick said.

"China can exercise leadership, not by posturing but by sharing and expanding from its own experiences,'' he said. "If China does so, it will benefit, and the world will benefit too.''

(Xinhua)