For the second time, CUSEF invited delegates from the Center for American Progress (CAP) for a three-day visit to Beijing. The leader of the 2016 delegation was Mr. John Podesta, the founder of CAP and former chief of staff for President Bill Clinton. Other notable delegates included Los Angeles Mayor Mr. Eric Garcetti and former U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Change Mr. Todd Stern. This timely visit was particularly of great interest to many as the U.S, general election began to take off.

The delegation met with a number of Chinese leaders, including Mr. Zhang Gaoli, Executive Vice Premier of PRC, Mr. Xie Zhenhua, Deputy Chief of National Development and Reform Commission, Mr. Jin Liqun, President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Admiral Sun Jianguo, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the People’s Liberal Army and Madam Fu Ying, Director of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC).

In addition to meetings, CUSEF also hosted a Track II Round Table discussion for the delegation, where we invited many Chinese experts on various important issues to engage in dialogue with CAP. Climate change and regional security issues were discussed but there were also new focuses such as cooperation in space and the future of China-U.S. relations after the American presidential election.