Beijing and Washington are holding talks to prepare for the next visit by US President George W. Bush to China, according to a Foreign Ministry spokesman.
Kong Quan yesterday said the talks were a follow-up to the invitation that had been extended by President Jiang Zemin to Mr Bush when the Chinese leader visited Mr Bush's family ranch in Crawford, Texas, last month.
Mr Kong said representatives from both countries were in discussions through 'proper diplomatic channels' on the date of the American presidential tour of the mainland.
Mr Bush paid a whirlwind visit to Beijing last February and was invited to Tsinghua University to deliver an address to students and academics.
At Tsinghua, Mr Bush had a brief meeting with Vice-President Hu Jintao, who was named general secretary of the Communist Party at the just-concluded 16th congress.
If Mr Bush's visit goes ahead, it will probably be his first official meeting with Mr Hu as the party leader, according to the spokesman.
