Dialogue set for CPC, US parties
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The Communist Party of China (CPC) is scheduled to hold a high-level dialogue with the Democratic Party and Republican Party in the United States by the end of this year, a senior CPC official has said.
A US bipartisan delegation has extended an invitation for the CPC to attend the event, said Li Jun, spokesman for the International Department of the CPC Central Committee (IDCPC).
The two sides will decide the details of the dialogue's agenda and timetable later, Li said.
The invitation followed the first high-level dialogue between the three main political parties when the US delegation led by former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former Assistant Secretary of State Richard Williamson visited China from March 30 to April 3.
"After the dialogue, Mrs Albright concluded that communication between the two parties aims to promote the mutual understanding of each other's approach to governance. She thought it helped the US to obtain an overall knowledge of China," Li told China Daily in an exclusive interview.
"The political parties of various countries were confronted with similar issues and undertook similar tasks to promote national prosperity in spite of the differences of their theories of governance, therefore such dialogue is very meaningful," Li cited Williamson as saying.
Li, who is also director of the research office under the IDCPC, said the dialogue showed how communication among the CPC, Democratic Party and Republican Party has been institutionalized despite their ideological differences.
Two IDCPC officials in charge of US affairs went to Denver, Colorado, to observe the Democratic Party's quadrennial national convention in August 2008. They were the first observers sent by the CPC to the Democrats' paramount meeting .
The officials went to observe the convention at the invitation of the US-based National Democratic Institute.
The CPC had also maintained contact with the Republican Party before the April dialogue.
The CPC's exchange with the two main US parties are part of its efforts to "make friends all around the world", Li said.
The CPC has established contacts and exchanges with nearly 600 political parties and organizations in more than 160 countries, he said.
"Given the current international situation together with globalization and the lingering financial crisis, a country's government can hardly solve a host of difficult problems alone," Li said.
"The exchanges and communication between the ruling parties and other influential political organizations on the issues concerning governance and the economy are very necessary," he said.
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