Ambassador for China tries to shore up support here

Even for an experienced diplomat, life has not been easy lately for Zhou Wenzhong.

China's top envoy to the U.S. is facing a barrage of questions over product safety, trade practices and the Beijing Olympics. On Wednesday, he made several appearances in Seattle to shore up support from a traditionally favorable region.

Zhou spoke out against a rash of bills pending in Congress that would punish China, while his hosts took pains to avoid the kind of protests that marked his visit to Portland on Tuesday.

In an interview with The Seattle Times, the 62-year-old ambassador also tried to reassure consumers about the safety of Chinese products and said he hopes the next U.S. president will emphasize cooperation between the two countries.

Zhou brought his message to the West Coast to reach businesspeople and others who have a stake in keeping China and the U.S. on good terms.

As the gateway to Asia, the West Coast has always been at the forefront of exchanges with China, starting with the arrival of China's first cargo ship, which docked in Seattle 28 years ago, he said. Since then, trade with China has come to define the Pacific Northwest economy. China was Washington state's biggest export market in 2006.

Peaceful U.S.-China relations are critically important to the state and to the rest of the world, he said.

"A good Chinese-U.S. relationship is of strategic significance to safeguarding and advancing peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia Pacific region and the world at large," Zhou said in a speech to the Rotary Club in Seattle.

In light of safety problems that have led to recalls of tainted products including pet food, toys and toothpaste, Zhou said China is taking steps to ensure the quality of its products destined for U.S. and other markets.

"I want to reassure the customer here that the great majority of products are safe," he said. "The cases we have come across are isolated cases. I don't think it's wise to jump to any kind of conclusion by generalizing.

"I think we're very sensitive to your concerns," he added. China has set up a high-level task force and directed its national quality-control agency to examine every food shipment for export starting Sept. 1, he said.

The U.S. should avoid politicizing economic and trade issues, Zhou said. Trade between the two countries has grown to $262 billion, with new collaboration in areas such as energy, environmental protection, climate change and public health.

Yet with the U.S. heading into an election year, political pressure will intensify to push China toward revaluing its currency, shoring up its product safety and other contentious issues, said University of Washington political-science professor David Bachman.

The Chinese government is still counting on its close relationship with President Bush, but there's a chance Congress could pass a veto-proof bill that slaps trade sanctions on China.

About 30 bills are pending in Congress that call for action against China for its burgeoning trade surplus, currency policy and intellectual-property piracy.

"The tolerance level of Congress on both sides of the aisle is pretty low right now," Bachman said.

As for China's ability to work with the next U.S. president, Zhou said that despite the extremes of both parties, "the mainstream has always been cooperation. I hope that will be the feature of the China policy of the next administration."

By appealing to friendlier audiences on the West Coast, Zhou is taking China's public-relations campaign "to those who have a vested interest in it, to be more upfront about what's at risk here," Bachman said.

Zhou called U.S. fears about a rising China "a perception problem."

"We hope China will be perceived as a partner and friend rather than a rival. The message I want to bring to you is that China's development is peaceful," he said. "There is no need to fear or have any misgivings about China's intentions."

Zhou's message was closely scripted, reiterating points made by Chinese President Hu Jintao in meetings with Bush around the G8 summit in June.

"I think it really underscores the importance the Chinese attach to the relationship with the United States. It's essential to their continued progress," said Bill Center, a retired Navy admiral and former president of the Washington Council on International Trade.

On the other hand, he said, "people in this country are a little cavalier about the relationship, and they see it as one-way. They don't see that the challenges China faces are huge."

One of those challenges is to raise living standards by increasing its per-capita gross domestic product from $2,150 to $3,000 by 2020. That would rank China among the top 100 countries.

In his speech to the Rotary, Zhou used his strongest language on the issue of Taiwan, which he called "the most important and sensitive issue in U.S.-China relations."

"The situation in the Taiwan Strait is grave and delicate," he said, calling moves toward independence on the island "reckless and dangerous." The U.S. should stop selling advanced weapons to Taiwan and refrain from meeting with its officials, he said.

Earlier Wednesday, about 60 students, faculty and others attended an invitation-only event with Zhou at the University of Washington. Before he arrived, a university employee announced that the speech was not a public event, so any protesters would be escorted out of the room.

Zhou was extremely worried about encountering protests here and agreed to speak at the university reluctantly, said Anand Yang, director of the Jackson School of International Studies.

As it turned out, only a handful of protesters from the Falun Gong movement stood outside Suzzallo Library, handing out brochures criticizing China's communist party.

"They are not qualified to host the Olympics," said Pearl Chen of Bellevue, one of the demonstrators. "They have never changed anything about human rights."

Inside, after his speech, Zhou was asked whether China is ready for next year's Olympics.

China is making good progress, he said, and hopes to deliver on its promise to the International Olympic Committee to clear Beijing's smoggy air in time for the games. The city has been experimenting with allowing only half the normal number of cars on the road each day, which has improved the air dramatically, he said.

August in Beijing can sometimes be wet. If opening ceremonies happen to fall on a rainy day, "plans are being drawn up to use new technology to disperse the clouds," Zhou said.

"We will do everything we can to make sure it's a good Olympics."

Kristi Heim: 206-464-2718 or kheim@seattletimes.com