US Trade Rep unsure if legal options exist to negotiate China Internet restriction

At the National Press Club luncheon, guest speaker US Trade Representative Ron Kirk was asked about China, and spoke of current Internet service provider challenges facing U.S. owned companies such as Google which has strained relations with the Chinese government.

We are still dialoguing not just with Google, but with other Internet providers, to make sure we fully understand what is happening in China.

Ron Kirk suggested that it would preferable for an agreement to be reached directly between Google and government officials, and avoid negotiating a resolution through a WTO ruling which can take years to reach agreement, which our Chris Dawson suggests as a possible option.

C-SPAN carried the speech in its entirety. Click here for a pop window of the C-SPAN's coverage. His remarks concerning China begin at the 54:20 minute mark.