As China roars toward becoming an economic superpower, it is mindful of the political paths taken by Western countries but has no plans to simply copy them wholesale, President Hu Jintao (
Hu sought to quell fears about the effects of China's rapid development on the environment and the world's energy supply. But when asked whether his country's restrictions on political expression would hinder its economic growth, he said China would make those decisions for itself.
"On one hand, we are ready and willing to draw on the useful experience of foreign countries in political involvement," he said on Friday. "On the other hand, we will not simply copy the political models of other countries."
Hu pledged Chinese cooperation with the US and said differences between the two countries, which include disagreements over monetary policy and human rights, can be overcome by their shared desire for peace.
Several blocks away, hundreds of protesters, including members of the Falun Gong spiritual movement, which is banned in China, waved signs and shouted anti-communist and anti-government slogans in Chinese.
"Hu Jintao is not telling the truthful story of China," said Sarah Liang, a US citizen living in Hong Kong who said her mother and brother are imprisoned in China for their Falun Gong membership. "He speaks of very positive things, but the real story of China is not being told."
Pro-government demonstrators also waved signs, some reading: "Warmly Welcome Chairman Hu Jintao to the United States" and "Bring China-US relations closer."
Yale President Richard Levin, who has helped establish dozens of collaborative programs with China, welcomed Hu and said the future of the 21st century relied on a good relationship between the US and China. Hu credited Yale, which in 1854 became the first US university to graduate a Chinese student, with being a steward of that relationship.
Like the Chinese leader's earlier welcome in Washington, not everything went as planned.
A CNN reporter was thrown out of the welcoming ceremony after shouting a question about whether Hu had seen the protesters nearby. A Yale spokeswoman said the reporter was thrown out because he was invited "to cover an event, not to hold a press conference."
Hu appeared unusually relaxed before the crowd of academics, joking that he would like to have been a student at Yale and suggesting he might stay on as a professor.
Hu met with US President George W. Bush on Thursday, and the two leaders said it was a productive summit meeting. The two leaders pledged cooperation but did not break new ground on resolving the economic issues, including the big US trade deficit with China.
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
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