HONG KONG -- The new U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's visit to China provides hope that the increasingly bitter stalemate in economic relations between the two countries may be amenable to change. The problem is that protectionists in Washington may not be willing to give Paulson the time he needs.
Paulson was welcomed in Beijing as an old friend, which is an old Chinese tactic. However, the Chinese clearly valued him and were listening intently to what he had to say. In an unprecedented series of meetings for a U.S. economic official, Paulson had met not only with his ministerial level counterparts but also with both President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao. In the meeting with Hu, the two men talked with only their interpreters present.
The only tangible product of Paulson's visit is an agreement by the two sides to create a "strategic economic dialogue." While this is an excellent idea, the danger is that American politicians facing election in November will pooh-pooh the process and demand immediate progress.