China has promised to pursue product pirates identified by US authorities in a new effort to stamp out counterfeit products, the head of the US customs agency said Friday.

Beijing Cultural Law Enforcement Agency officers destroy pirated DVDs and CDs video and music material in the outskirts of Beijing, China Saturday April 14, 2007.[AP]

Under a memorandum of cooperation signed this week, US Customs will provide China with information on the source of seized goods, and Beijing will report back within 90 days on the status of efforts to track down the counterfeiters, Basham told reporters.

"We've got to start dealing with the source of the problem. We can't expect to rely upon interdiction to be our tool in order to stop these products," Basham said.

Basham said his talks with Chinese officials did not touch on tainted products, which he said was the responsibility of the US Food and Drug Administration. He said the FDA was in touch with Chinese officials.

China has increased penalties for piracy and launched repeated crackdowns.

Basham met with his Chinese counterpart, Mu Xinsheng, and other officials this week.

Basham said American officials offered China help with security for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He said that might include support from a US program used at several foreign airports to identify travelers who might be barred from the United States.