From Bloomberg (link)
The U.S. and China, at odds over currency policy and trade, are now bickering over another diplomatic issue — what to call President Hu Jintao’s planned visit to Washington on April 20.
Chinese officials are describing the trip as a “state visit,” Chu Maoming, spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said. The White House isn’t.
“We’ve told the Chinese that we understand that they label any visit by President Hu to a foreign land as a `state visit’ under their definition of his travel,” Frederick Jones, a spokesman for President George W. Bush’s National Security Council, said.
“We have also told them that we will not be referring to it as a `state visit,’ because each visit to the White House is unique,” he added.
