U.S.-China Committee

* “China Hosted Several Lawmakers, Records Show” (June 14) asserts that the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations “receives money from the Chinese government.” This simply is not true. We have never received any revenue from the Chinese government or its intermediaries (or from Taiwan).

The article errs when it says the committee recently sent more than one group of members of Congress to China: We have sent one group in our 30-year history. We are a public education organization and the overwhelming bulk of our exchange activity involves sending and receiving a wide variety of American, Chinese, Taiwanese and Hong Kong civic and public-sector leaders.

The article discusses the FBI investigation of alleged campaign funding violations by the Chinese government (and others). While I have no idea what any foreign government may have done to influence our electoral process, the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations had absolutely nothing to do with these alleged events.

The article mentions that funds used to send our congressional group were provided “by a foundation related to the American International Group, a company with business ventures in China and ties to the Lippo Group.” This is guilt by third-hand implied association. The foundation that contributed to that project is a family-run philanthropy whose head is a retired senior officer of AIG, but his interest in China and East Asia stems from his family background; his grandfather was a minister in Shanghai, his father was a teacher in Beijing, and he was born and raised in China. Most importantly, the foundation exerted absolutely no influence over how its grant was used by the committee.

DAVID M. LAMPTON

President, National Committee

on U.S.-China Relations

New York