SEATTLE (AP) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao was opening his U.S. trip by meeting with Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates and other Seattle business leaders, part of a two-day whirlwind Washington state visit that will also include a stop at Boeing Co.
Hu has set an ambitious mission for his four-day U.S. tour, due to begin here Tuesday. It comes at a time of unease among American businesses, political leaders and the public about how China is using its new power.
His summit Thursday with President Bush will cover a broad agenda -- from China's criticized currency and other trade policies, to its aggressive quest for oil and the developing nuclear programs in Iran and North Korea.
In the Seattle area, at least three groups planned to protest Hu's visit: Taiwanese-Americans calling on China to let the island of Taiwan make its own decision about whether to rejoin the mainland; Tibetans seeking independence for their homeland; and practitioners of Falun Gong, a spiritual movement considered an ''evil cult'' by China's communist government.(…)

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: April 18, 2006