US Secretary of State Clinton visits Shanghai World Expo ahead of talks in Beijing

Clinton tours World Expo ahead of Beijing talks

SHANGHAI — Facing an uphill diplomatic struggle to win China’s support for penalizing its ally North Korea over the sinking of a South Korean warship, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Saturday highlighted the benefits of U.S.-Chinese cooperation at the World Expo in Shanghai.

With a public schedule devoid of any policy meetings, Clinton toured the U.S. and Chinese pavilions at the Expo, extolling growing ties between the two countries in a cultural diplomacy charm offensive. Displaying the energy of the politician she once was, Clinton waded into crowds at the two exhibits, shaking hands and posing for photos.

Her visit to the massive World Expo on the banks of the Pu River marks a respite from an otherwise hectic and intense three-nation journey to Asia that took her briefly to Japan on Friday and will see her move in China from Shanghai to Beijing on Sunday and then to the South Korean capital of Seoul on Wednesday.

At each stop on the way, the crisis over the ship incident is expected to dominate her agenda but nowhere more than in Beijing where she and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner are leading a delegation of nearly 200 U.S. officials for high-level U.S.-Chinese talks intended to improve economic and strategic relations.

That second round of the so-called Strategic and Economic Dialogue was supposed to be the main thrust of her Asia trip, but with Thursday’s report blaming Pyongyang for sinking the South Korean vessel, her main task in Beijing will now be to try to persuade China to support U.N. Security Council action against North Korea.

China, North Korea’s primary ally and financial supporter has thus far remained neutral on the conclusions of the report that found Pyongyang responsible for firing a torpedo that sank the South Korean ship Ceonan in March, killing 46 sailors.

The U.N. Command’s Military Armistice Commission, which oversees the 1953 Korean War truce agreement, on Saturday launched and independent investigation of the Ceonan’s sinking.

Representatives from the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, the U.S., France, New Zealand, South Korea, Turkey, and Denmark will review the findings of the multinational investigation and determine the scope of North Korea’s armistice violation, a U.N. spokesman said.

U.S. officials traveling with Clinton said she would try to persuade the Chinese to “acknowledge the reality” of what happened and support measures that would help persuade the North to change its behavior. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity due to the delicacy of the diplomacy.

On Saturday, however, Clinton adopted a low-key approach but made clear she hoped the Expo, in particular the popular U.S. pavilion, would create greater understanding and goodwill ties between Washington and Beijing as well as the Chinese and American people.

“I will carry with me many positive feelings when I leave Shanghai tomorrow to go to Beijing,” she told the local Communist Party chief after visiting the Chinese Pavilion. “We think government-to-government relations are very important but we believe people-to-people relations between the Chinese and American people are the most important foundation for a very positive future between our two countries.”

The Expo tour was free of any of the thorny issues that have dogged U.S.-China relations in recent months, such as Tibet, Taiwan, human rights, currency valuation differences or international diplomatic squabbles.

The U.S. pavilion featured a pair of short feel-good films welcoming Chinese visitors and a multimedia presentation showcasing American ingenuity and persistence in the face of adversity. There was no overt mention of democracy or personal freedoms.

Instead, the exhibit, which US officials say has been popular with the Chinese, focuses on America’s multicultural experience and community values.