Broadcasting Time: 2006-09-09



Hello and welcome to this edition of CRI Roundup. I'm Shen Ting in Beijing.

Today is Saturday, September 9th, 2006.

Let's take a look back on some of the major events from the past week in China and around the world.

China and Chile have formally launched negotiations on investment and the service sector to complement the Sino-Chilean Free Trade Agreement.

China and the US will continue to push for the resumption of the stalled six-party talks.
The five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany have made substantial progress in discussions on Iran.
And British Prime Minister Tony Blair promised to resign within a year.

China and Chile have formally launched negotiations on investment and the service sector to complement the Sino-Chilean Free Trade Agreement, or FTA, which is scheduled to take effect on October the first.

The announcement was made by the visiting Chinese top legislator Wu Bangguo and Chilean President Michelle Bachelet.
Wu Bangguo says the issue is of great concern for bilateral ties.

"The start of negotiations symbolizes a new phase in bilateral economic ties. It will also greatly impact the development of relations between China and other Latin American countries. I sincerely wish that based on the principle of equality and mutual benefits, the two sides can finally achieve a win-win agreement in investment and service trade."

Chile is the last leg of Wu's three-nation South America tour, which has taken him to Brazil and Uruguay that both vowed to enhance the economic and trade cooperation with China.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang says China and the US will continue to push for the resumption of the stalled six-party talks to peacefully resolve Korean Peninsula’s nuclear issue.

"China is opposed to sanctions. Both parties believe that the six-party talks are effective mechanism for resolving the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula."

Meanwhile, Christopher Hill, during his recent visit to China, has also acknowledged China's efforts to prompt North Korea to return to the six-party talks, saying the US will not urge China to pressurize North Korea.

"What happened in July was a very difficult time for China. I know China worked very hard to put together various drafts. That's a lot of work for Chinese. I'm sure many of us appreciate the work."

A senior U.S. State Department official said on Thursday that the five permanent United Nations Security Council members plus Germany have made substantial progress in discussions on Iran.

At the end of the six-nation talks in the German capital of Berlin, U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns says the talks, which are meant to formulate a common response to Tehran's refusal to freeze uranium enrichment, had a very "useful start".

This was the first meeting of the diplomats from Britain, France, Russia, China, the United States and Germany since Iran defied the August 31st deadline set by the UN Security Council resolution to freeze its uranium enrichment.
U.S. officials are pushing for sanctions against Iran, with Russia and China insisting on diplomatic means to settle the issue.

Talks between EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Ali Larijani, scheduled for Wednesday, had been postponed to Saturday.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair promised on Thursday that he would resign within a year.

Blair refused to set a specific departure date, but said the annual Labour Party conference this month would be his last.

Next year's conference is scheduled for September 2007.

Blair said the decision would be made "in the interests of the country and depending on the circumstances of the time."

"As for my timing and date of departure, I would have preferred to do this in my own way, but as has been pretty obvious from what many of my Cabinet colleagues have said earlier in the week, the next party conference in a couple of weeks will be my last party conference as party leader, the next TUC (Trades Union Congress) next week will be my last TUC, probably to the relief of both of us."

Pressure for the prime minister to go now, or to at least announce a departure date, has intensified in recent weeks.

And with that, we conclude this edition of CRI Roundup. Remember, if you have any comments or suggestions, or if you want to listen to our programs online, you can log on to our website - www.crienglish.com.
I'm Shen Ting in Beijing. Thanks for listening. Stay tuned for more on China Radio International.

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