US, China sign long-term energy, environment agreement

The US and China finalized a 10-year plan to cooperate on energy and environmental goals and launched talks on a bilateral investment agreement as the fourth round of the two countries’ Strategic Economic Dialogue came to a close in Annapolis Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal reported. The energy and environment agreement includes the set up of five Sino-US taskforces to develop action plans for cooperation in power distribution and energy efficiency, water and air pollution and natural resource protection. The two sides also began talks on establishing a bilateral investment agreement, which are designed to facilitate overseas investment through reciprocal rules governing basic issues such as arbitration. US officials also said there was "a reasonably good chance" for both sides to reach such an agreement in the future. The US has bilateral investment treaties with nearly 40 countries, while China has signed such agreements with more than 100 nations.