Albright's Sept. 19 Statement on PNTR for China

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
September 19, 2000

STATEMENT BY SECRETARY OF STATE MADELEINE K. ALBRIGHT

CHINA -- SENATE VOTE ON PERMANENT NORMAL TRADE RELATIONS

I am delighted that the Senate has voted to extend Permanent Normal
Trade Relations to China. This historic decision will provide new
opportunities for American businesses, farmers and workers in a
dynamic and important market and, by opening China further to the
export of goods from America, help us sustain the economic growth we
have experienced during the past eight years.

In addition, I commend the bipartisan debate on this bill in the
Senate and in the House. Congress made what I believe was the right
decision for America after a spirited and thoughtful review of our
broad national interest in enacting PNTR for China. China's accession
to the WTO and the extension of PNTR to China will serve the long-term
interest of all Americans and a China that is more fully part of the
international system. It will help lay the groundwork for expanding
the benefits to the United States of a constructive bilateral
relationship in the years to come.

Now that the Senate and the House have spoken, we need to continue our
efforts in Geneva to complete, as soon as possible, the final working
party documents. Only after this important step will the President be
in a position to determine whether to certify that the protocol of
accession is "at least equivalent" to the bilateral agreement we
negotiated in November 1999.

Finally, I would like to thank all of those inside the Administration
and outside for their effort to secure passage of PNTR. Thanks to the
President's extraordinary personal leadership, we have taken a step
that I believe history will judge to have been instrumental to
building a more prosperous, peaceful, and open future in the Asian
Pacific region.