Obama announces new US-China visa policy
- By He Shan
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E-mail China.org.cn, November 11, 2014
At the APEC CEO Summit in Beijing on Monday, U.S. President Barack Obama announced plans for a new U.S.-China visa policy that will expand visas beyond the current one-year term.
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U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at the APEC CEO Summit in Beijing Sunday. [He Shan/China.org.cn]? |
"Under the new arrangement, student and exchange visas will be extended to five years," Obama said in a speech at the APEC CEO Summit. "Business and tourist visas will be extended to 10 years."
According to Obama, the new visa policy will "benefit everyone from students, to tourists, to businesses large and small."
Obama and other APEC economic leaders arrived in China on Sunday for the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting to discuss trade, investment and sustainable growth across the Asia-Pacific region.
The new visa agreement will allow the United States to tap into the fast-growing Chinese tourism market. The United States now attracts only two percent of Chinese international tourists.
In 2013, 1.8 million Chinese travelers visited the United States, contributing US$21.1 billion to the U.S. economy and supporting more than 109,000 U.S. jobs.
In his speech, Obama also noted that the U.S.-China relationship was not a "zero-sum game" and that it “benefitted both countries and the world.”
“The United States and China have special responsibilities to embrace," Obama said. "If China and the U.S. can work together, the world benefits."
"We want China to do well," Obama said.
