It is a measure of the current international dynamics that Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji has commenced his nine-day visit to the United States this week, despite Washington leading a NATO attack on Yugoslavia in the face of strong condemnation from China.

Not even a direct snub delivered by the US in the form of its refusal to accept China as Belgrade's diplomatic proxy in Washington (since the Yugoslavian embassy has closed down) has deterred Beijing from its single-minded goal of extracting the best out of China-US ties.

As he wound his way to Washington after landing in Los Angeles earlier this week, Prime Minister Zhu is having to weather many uncomfortable questions and much scrutiny about developments within and without China. Many analysts see this as a visit littered with minefields.

The first one explodedon Tuesday when the US rejected China as Yugoslavia's `protective' embassy in Washington saying Beijing had not been neutral in the conflict. Normally, countries accept any protective power chosen as long as they have diplomatic relations with that country and that country is not directly involved in the conflict. Sweden, for instance, represents US interests in Belgrade. US officials have suggested that they would prefer if Belgrade attracts a `classic neutral power' (which, in Washington's eyes, Sweden is) to represent it.

China, though not directly involved, has strongly condemned the NATO action, as have Russia and India. All three have attracted withering anger from the US State Department. But regardless of this imbroglio, and many other tempests on the US-China front, Beijing has chosen to go ahead with Zhu's visit, the first by a Chinese Premier in 15 years.

Central to China's current concerns is its 13-year old bid to enter the World Trade Organisation (WTO) which the US has successfully blockedbecause of what it says is China's restrictive trade policies. Despite intense negotiations till the very last moment and some concessions by China, it does not look like Washington will relent on this trip.

On the contrary, a sudden flurry of reports about Beijing's underhand activities in the United States -- from allegedly stealing nuclear technology to bankrolling US election campaigns -- has actually hardened the mood here.

In yet another poke in the Chinese eye, the Clinton administration last month decided to renew its efforts to sponsor a UN resolution condemning human rights abuses by China.

All this is a far cry from the mood last summer when President Clinton visited Beijing and lavished praise on China, going as far as to suggest it should arbitrate between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir issue. The US and China also issued a strong joint statement condemning the nuclear tests by India and Pakistan, laying the blame for the nuclear arms developments in the region solely onIndia.

Washington has since had time for a sobering reflection of its policies in the region, partly inspired by some reasonable voices in the Congress. Many analysts have begun to wonder if it behoves the world's greatest democracy to glibly treat Beijing's communist dictatorship as a democratically elected government while denouncing the tyranny of Saddam Hussein and Slobodan Milosevic.

But despite all the differences, both sides -- especially Washington -- are determined to keep talking. In a major policy speech on China on Wednesday morning, President Clinton insisted that engagement with the Asian giant was the best option. Pointing out that there was an ever-changing perception about China, Clinton said it veered from looking at it as a newly emerging capitalist tiger to old fears about it being a communist dragon. ``We cannot afford caricatures,'' Clinton said, while suggesting that the best policy for the US was to keep China engaged, and at the same time, be prepared for a worst casescenario.