Don't ignore different rulebook

IN AN ARTICLE, "A RESPONSE TO PRESIDENT XI JINPING", our fellow journalists at The New York Times have again expressed frustration at having "a hard time obtaining permission to work in China".

Before that, a reporter from the NYT asked President Xi whether the US-China agreement on easing visa restrictions would be extended to foreign journalists. It would be wonderful if it were, for it would make things easier for journalists from both countries. That the benefit covers only businesspeople, students and tourists is the outcome of bilateral negotiations based strictly on reciprocity, not a unilateral decision of the Chinese government.

So whether and when we journalists, too, can get that treatment rests on both governments' willingness and capability to negotiate a feasible solution.