From August 29 to September 5, AFPC hosted the Minnesota trip of three officials from the Chinese Association For International Understanding (CAFIU). The delegation’s participation in events surrounding the Republican Convention helped them evalute Sino-U.S. relations in a then-possible McCain Administration.

AFPC-arranged meetings included McCain advisors such as former Director of Central Intelligence R. James Woolsey and former National Security Advisor Robert “Bud” McFarlane. The Chinese delegates also talked with an Iowa convention delegate, attended briefings held by both the International Republican Institute and Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs and observed convention speeches in person at the Excel Energy Center.

In addition to the political meetings, AFPC’s Research Fellow Rich Harrison escorted the Chinese delegation to Mille Lac Indian Reservation. The Chinese were interested in understanding the concept of Indian sovereignty (i.e., an autonomously governed ethnic group able to peacefully coexist inside the U.S).