[Ha'aretz] Yossi Melman - JP International is a large Chinese company named after its owner, Dr. Jiang Ping ("JP") Huang, the businessman primarily responsible for opening China's door to Israeli companies in the 1990s. In an interview last week in Beijing, JP said his connection with Israel came about quite coincidentally. He was just starting out in business and living in New York in January 1992 when an Israeli friend asked him if he was interested in doing business with Israel. The friend suggested he travel to Israel to meet businessmen, and JP agreed. Since then he has served as distributor and consultant for a growing number of Israeli companies including Tadiran, Netafim irrigation systems, and Israel Aerospace Industries. He recently joined up with an Israeli firm to lease more than 100 square kilometers of land in western China to grow trees to produce ethanol and wood chips. According to JP, "The entire world is competing for the Chinese market. Nevertheless, Israel has a huge advantage. The Chinese greatly admire the Jewish people. The average Chinese person does not distinguish between a Jew and an Israeli, and thinks that a Jew is a smart person."
2008-08-22 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive