Chinese leader to visit state

Thu., Aug. 18, 2005

David Ammons Associated Press

OLYMPIA – Chinese President Hu Jintao will visit Washington state next month as part of his first U.S. visit as president, former Gov. Gary Locke said Wednesday.

“This is a major coup for the state of Washington, for the businesses of Washington state,” Locke told the Associated Press.

Locke, the nation’s first Chinese-American governor, has met Hu twice and has been picked by the Chinese ambassador to the United States, Zhou Wenzhong, to organize a visit to the Seattle area.

Details still are being worked out, including the precise dates and itinerary.

Although the visit to the United States has been mentioned in print, the White House declined to talk about it.

“We’re not able to provide any information about that. We have nothing to announce at this point,” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said Wednesday night.

Normal protocol is that an official announcement will be made about one week before the visit starts, Locke said.

Locke said the president’s visit will include at least one major public event in Seattle, probably a gathering of business and community leaders at which Hu will give a major address. A state dinner at a private home is planned that will include Gov. Christine Gregoire and other elected officials and civic leaders.

Outings are tentatively scheduled for Boeing Co. aircraft facilities in nearby Everett and to the Microsoft Corp. campus in Redmond, across Lake Washington from Seattle.

The president’s trip also is expected to include a visit with President Bush at the White House and an address to the United Nations General Assembly.

Locke, who left office in January, is co-chairman of the China practice at the Seattle-based law firm of Davis Wright Tremaine. The firm has an office in Shanghai, and Locke just returned from a China trip.

Locke and Gregoire plan to visit China during the third week of September, with some signing ceremonies already scheduled for Washington companies with new contracts in China.

Locke said he hopes to give Hu “a very favorable impression of the state of Washington, given the important role China has for so many Northwest companies. We hope from this visit to be able to approach Chinese officials on trade and business issues.

“We hope to grow (exports) by leaps and bounds.”

Locke said China already is a major trading partner – “everything from Boeing airplanes to architectural and professional services to agricultural crops and medical devices and Microsoft products.”

Washington state companies are providing some of the services needed to plan and stage the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, he added.

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