Clinton seeks new accord with Chinese

President Bill Clinton yesterday embarked on a trip to Asia and the Pacific which the White House hopes will lay the groundwork for a long overdue improvement in relations with China.

After visiting Australia, Mr Clinton heads for Manila for a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation group. But the real business will be during a private meeting with Jiang Zemin, the Chinese President, likely to touch on issues ranging from human rights and Taiwan to trade and intellectual property rights. One concrete result would be agreement to hold negotiations to reduce tensions on the Korean peninsula.