Chinese president to visit Ireland
Mr Ahern and a Government delegation, including ministers Micheál Martin, Mary Hanafin and Mary Coughlin, met Mr Hu and his officials at the Great Hall of the People on Tiananmen Square.
They discussed Europe-China relations, including, it is understood, the likelihood that the EU will in the coming months lift its arms embargo on the communist state, which has been in place since the Tiananmen Square massacre of 1989.
Other items on the agenda for the closed meeting included economic and human rights issues.
Following the discussions, Mr Ahern renewed an invitation to Mr Hu that had first been made by President Mary McAleese during her State visit to China in October 2003. Mr Hu accepted yesterday’s invitation and will visit some time next year.
It would be his first time travelling to Ireland. Chinese premier Wen Jiabao visited Dublin in May of last year, while his deputy, vice-premier Huang Jo, followed in November.
Under the Chinese system, the president is the overall leader, responsible for establishing general policy. Responsibility for implementation of the details is delegated to the premier
The Taoiseach is eager to foster his growing relationship with the Chinese leadership and use it to enhance trade between the two countries.
Human rights campaigners, however, are likely to use Mr Hu’s visit as an opportunity to demonstrate against continued abuses of citizens by the Chinese authorities.
Mr Ahern has proposed a bilateral “programme of cooperation in the field of human rights”, although the details of the programme have to be worked out.
The Taoiseach, who has been criticised for not being firm enough with China on the issue, especially during his tenure as European Council president last year, expressed to Mr Hu yesterday his hope that “Ireland can be of assistance to you in the development of China’s own human rights culture”.
However, the focus of the delegation returns to the economic relationship between the two countries.
The Taoiseach is heading a 300-strong trade mission to China organised under the aegis of Enterprise Ireland, the State agency responsible for developing Irish industry.
The delegation left Beijing last night for Shanghai, where a number of events will take place today.
These include a joint Department of Agriculture-Bord Bia food seminar in the Garden Hotel and a visit to Fudan University, where the Taoiseach will deliver an address on economic policy.
The delegation will move on to Hong Kong tomorrow night.
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