[The Epoch Times, November 10, 2023](Reported by Epoch Times reporter Lin Yan) A senior American reporter was shocked when a U.S. executive spent $40,000 to sit at the same table with senior officials of the Chinese Communist Party. He thought it was not worth it.
The National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and the National Committee on U.S.-China Business are hosting a dinner and reception with Chinese President Xi Jinping on November 15, with tickets priced at $2,000 per person, according to an invitation circulating online.
The invitation letter stated that if the company paid US$40,000, it could reserve a table with eight seats, plus a seat at the same table as Xi Jinping.
Xi Jinping visited the United States this time to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit and held a side meeting with US President Biden.
His first priority is to appease foreign investors. Recent surveys show that foreign executives are increasingly uneasy about doing business in China and worried about Beijing’s “national security” obsession due to a range of issues including U.S.-China geopolitical tensions, China’s economic slowdown and the detention of foreign employees. .
Fierce competition between the United States and China now spans nearly every sphere—from military power and corporate espionage to emerging technologies and global governance—and threatens to extend further into a lucrative economic relationship.
With China’s economy slipping into relative recession after years of explosive growth, Xi Jinping’s visit is motivated by economic considerations and an attempt to prevent China’s economic situation from deteriorating further, while easing relations with Washington and preventing further decoupling of China’s and US economic strategies.
Republican Mike Gallagher, chairman of the House of Representatives Special Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, has written many times to advise U.S. companies not to maintain close ties with the Chinese Communist government.
“Every foreign company entering China will encounter a business partner: the Chinese Communist Party, which is sometimes silent and sometimes noisy. It’s time for American business executives to take off their golden blinders,” he wrote.
After China revised its Counterespionage Act in April, Gallagher said Beijing sent a loud and clear signal to the world: so-called private companies are not allowed in China.
He called on business leaders to clearly understand that the CCP’s series of raids on U.S. companies will not be a one-off event, but will be part of a long-standing pattern of exploiting companies that it is proud of.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also said in a public speech: “We are concerned about the recent increase in (Beijing’s) enforcement actions against U.S. companies, which coincides with China’s announcement that it will reopen to foreign investment. .”
Paul Mooney, a senior American journalist and China general, questioned on social media Counterproductive.”
“I can understand U.S. officials meeting with Xi Jinping, but it’s shocking to see executives paying big bucks to sit with a dictator,” said the media person who has worked in mainland China for 18 years. It would give someone like Xi Jinping credibility, but he doesn’t deserve it.”
Editor in charge: Ye Ziwei#
Tags: American reporter worth spending dinner highlevel officials Chinese Communist Party Jinping San Francisco APEC
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