at the Shanghai Foreign Languages Institute. Since he joined the Foreign Service in 1982, his assignments have included overseas postings in Manila, Chengdu, Singapore, Beijing, and Hong Kong. In this interview with ViaMei's Bruce Janssen, Jarrett touched on a wide variety of subjects.
Q: Aside from ministerial duties, what are the most frequent requests that you receive from Americans for assistance From Chinese citizens?
A: American citizens seek assistance from the consulate for a variety of reasons. In terms of sheer volume, the greatest demand is on the American Citizens Services unit of the Consular Section, which issues passports, registers births and deaths of U.S. citizens, and provides notarials. The Foreign Commercial Service office at the consulate fields many queries from American businesspeople, such as requests for assistance in finding local partners, questions about the investment climate in Shanghai, and requests for help on specific commercial disputes. From Chinese citizens, our most popular service is unquestionably the visa function.We will process over 125,000 non-immigrant visas in Shanghai in 2006, mainly for business, study and tourism.
Q: Other than student visas, what is the trend in Chinese citizens seeking to travel to the United States for business and sightseeing?
A: We are seeing growing numbers of Chinese citizens traveling to the United States for business and tourism. The two principal reasons for this trend are the relative ease with which a Chinese citizen can now obtain a passport and the growing affluence of Chinese citizens in East China. Chinese citizens are traveling internationally with greater frequency and the United States is a popular destination. The growth in visa issuances in the Shanghai Consular District (Shanghai, Anhui, Jiangsu and Zhejiang) has been around 20 percent per year in recent years.
Q: How long does a typical Chinese citizen have to wait for a visa? How does that compare with the pre-9/11 wait?
A: The waiting period for a visa interview varies depending on the time of year and the visa category. For example, those applying for student visas receive special priority so that they do not miss the start of school. Students receive priority for expedited appointments during particularly busy summer and winter student seasons. For those traveling for business or tourism, the wait can vary from three weeks to as long as six or seven weeks; the longer waits occur during peak travel months, when demand for appointments runs high. The length of the waiting period is posted on the State Department webpage at http://travel.state.gov. After completing the interview, the vast majority of qualified applicants receive their visa within two days.Our objective is to reduce the wait time to as close to zero as possible. While we have added additional personnel to our Shanghai consular section over the past year, we continue to seek even more staff in order to reduce the wait time. Changes in visa processing procedures make it difficult to compare current waiting periods to pre-9/11 because of the post 9/11 requirement that all applicants make a personal appearance for a visa. Moreover, since 9/11, we have switched to an appointment system in China to avoid the need for applicants to spend many hours waiting on line at the Consulate. Before the appointment system, applicants simply appeared at the Consulate for an interview and were processed on a first-come, first-served basis. The appointment system helps us provide for more orderly processing and saves time for applicants.
Q: Give us a look at the trends regarding the number of Chinese students seeking to study in the United States. Aside from the numbers themselves, tell us where these students are coming from within China, their destinations in the United States and their fields of study.
A: We welcome Chinese citizens to study in the United States. Chinese students bring a diversity of ideas and culture and enhance the educational experience for their American classmates. Student visa applications in the Shanghai Consular District have increased 40 percent over the past 12 months.The Consulate issued nearly 12,000 student visas for the fiscal year running from October 2005 to September 2006, with about 87 percent of applications approved. Currently, more than 65,000 Chinese students are studying in the United States, most of whom are graduate students. Almost five percent of all graduate students in the United States are Chinese. After a decrease in the number of Chinese students applying for U.S. visas in the period immediately after 9/11, applications are now above pre-9/11 levels.
Q: While on the subject of education, tell us about efforts by American universities that have set up outposts and joint ventures in China And the consulate's role in these expansions.
A: Many U.S. universities have cooperation agreements with universities in East China. This comes as no surprise, as East China is home to many of China's leading universities, such as Fudan University, Tongji University, Jiaotong University, Nanjing University, Zhejiang University and the China University of Science and Technology. These agreements range from student and faculty exchange to collaboration on research projects. A growing number of American students are also studying in China. For example, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies has a joint project with Nanjing University that brings together American and Chinese students for a rigorous program of area studies. In fact, I was lucky to have been a student in that program in 1989. The Consulate helps facilitate academic exchange programs by providing advice and assistance to American educators, as needed, as they pursue opportunities in East China.
Q: Describe U.S. efforts in relation to pirated goods being sold in China and goods being exported. What are the largest areas of U.S. concern?
A: The infringement of intellectual property rights remains a serious problem in China, with counterfeiting and piracy at unacceptably high levels. This causes serious economic harm to U.S. businesses in virtually every sector of the economy. As China becomes a world-class economy it will have to have world-class IPR protections. The Consulate actively participates in the U.S. Government-wide effort to improve IPR enforcement in China. This work focuses on working with the Chinese government to improve the legal and regulatory structure for protection of IPR, aggressive advocacy for American businesses whose IPR has been stolen and includes capacity building and technical assistance.
Q: In regard to business promotions, what can the consulate do for individuals and corporations seeking a presence in China. Compare that to efforts that the consulate can make on behalf of U.S. states and cities. Continuing in this vein, how many U.S. states and cities have trade offices in Shanghai What is your relationship with them?
A: The Consulate has a large section staffed by the Foreign Commercial Service (FCS), the export promotion arm of the Department of Commerce. Our FCS operation is one of the largest in the world and is in the business of helping U.S. companies sell to China. Our objective is to reduce our trade deficit with China (over 220 billion dollars this year) by increasing U.S. exports, not by limiting Chinese exports to the U.S. The office has a special focus on small and medium-sized companies. The FCS office can provide market analyses, identify potential partners and set up business schedules -- these services are provided on a cost-recovery basis. More information is available at www.buyusa.gov/china/en/shanghai.html .
Many states and cities, as well as some ports, maintain trade offices in Shanghai. There are approximately 15 such offices in Shanghai and the Consulate works closely with all of them on their trade promotion work. These offices have recently joined together to form an umbrella organization known as the Council of American States in China (CASIC), based in Shanghai.
Q: Does the consulate have any role in the run-up to the World Expo The Beijing Olympics?
A: We are working closely with the Shanghai World Expo Bureau on the preparations for the 2010 Shanghai World Expo. The United States has announced its intent to participate in the show, contingent on the availability of funds from the private sector for the construction and maintenance of a U.S. pavilion. China expects approximately 70 million tourists ！ predominantly Chinese citizens ！ to visit this six-month long fair. Thus, the show will offer an excellent opportunity to showcase the United States to our Chinese friends.
The Consulate will have a limited role in the 2008 Beijing Olympics because most of the Olympic events will take place in Beijing. Shanghai will only host some of the soccer preliminaries. In October 2007, however, Shanghai will host the Special Olympics. This event will attract many thousands of athletes from around the world, including a large team from the United States. We are already working on the logistical planning for this exciting event and look forward to a successful performance by the U.S. athletes.
Q: Terrorism is a continuing concern everywhere, it's sad to say. Describe any efforts being made through your office in regard to container security?
A: All U.S. diplomatic missions around the world are intently focused on the global war on terrorism ！ the Consulate in Shanghai is no exception. Part of our work in this area involves explaining to our Chinese friends the importance of joint efforts in eliminating the scourge of terrorism. In addition, Shanghai is one of the biggest ports in the world and a leading source of U.S.-bound shipping containers. Thus, Shanghai was an early choice for the establishment of a Container Security Initiative presence.Under this initiative, a team of U.S. experts works with their Chinese counterparts to screen U.S.-bound containers for weapons of mass destruction.This team has been in place for almost two years and has enjoyed good cooperation from Shanghai Customs officials. |
