Clinton to meet China's President

NEW YORK (Reuter) - With tense relations between their countries, President Bill Clinton and the Chinese President, Jiang Zemin, will meet for the first time in Seattle in November, the US Secretary of State, Warren Christopher, said.

'Yes, President Clinton and their president will meet at that event,' Mr Christopher said, about a heads of state meeting on 20 November in connection with a meeting of the Asian Pacific Economic Co-operation organisation. He made his comments after talks with the Chinese Foreign Minister, Qian Qichen.

Mr Christopher admitted US-Chinese ties were going through a difficult period, and said the talks with Mr Qian had produced no change of position on the issue of non-proliferation. He expressed the hope China would not resume nuclear testing.

But he said the two sides had agreed on new steps to try to improve relations including a visit to China on 10 to 12 October of Assistant Secretary of State John Shattuck for the first talks with Peking on human rights in more than a year.