Gore Promises Stronger Bonds With China

After two days of talks with China’s Communist Party leaders, Vice President Al Gore said Wednesday night that despite domestic political pressures that are vexing Chinese-American relations, the Clinton administration remains determined to “strengthen and broaden” its bonds with the People’s Republic.

Speaking at a news conference here, he said planning would now go forward for President Jiang Zemin to visit Washington this fall and asserted that “a strong consensus in the center of the U.S. political system” supports continued dialogue and engagement with China.

But while Gore’s first visit to China provided the impetus for Chinese officials to close large commercial transactions with Boeing and General Motors, the political breakthroughs that had seemed possible only a few months ago did not materialize, just as they failed to last November when President Clinton met with Jiang in Manila.