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Clinton Says China is Not an Adversary
By MARK LANDLER, October 28, 2010
HONOLULU Opening a seven-country tour of Asia shadowed by fears about Chinas rising influence, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton declared here on Thursday that the United States was not bent on containing China, even if its relationship with Beijing was complicated.
There are some in both countries who believe that Chinas interests and ours are fundamentally at odds, she said in closely watched address. But that is not our view. In the 21st century, it is not in anyones interest for the United States and China to see each other as adversaries.
Mixing conciliatory words with hints of a firmer American stance, Mrs. Clinton said China must be a partner of the United States on issues ranging from climate change to North Koreas nuclear program.
She called on Beijing to make responsible policy adjustments on its artificially depressed exchange rate an issue that has deepened tensions between the United States and China in recent weeks because the undervalued Chinese currency has hurt American exports.
Mrs. Clintons remarks came as China apparently lifted an unannounced halt on shipments of strategically important rare-earth minerals to the United States, Japan, and other countries. Officials traveling with Mrs. Clinton said they were seeking clarification from the Chinese government about its policy.
Mrs. Clinton made no mention of the rare-earth minerals dispute in her speech. But a day earlier, after a meeting with Japans foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, she said that the United States, Japan, and other countries would need to find alternative sources of supply for these elements.
In her speech, Mrs. Clinton sought to project a more aggressive American role in Asia, labeling it forward-deployed diplomacy. The policy, she said, means reinvigorating Cold War alliances with Japan and South Korea and seeking bigger American influence in regional security groups.
Alluding to disputes between China and its neighbors over islands in the South China Sea, Mrs. Clinton said she was encouraged that China showed signs of cooperating more with these groups.
Mrs. Clinton noted that Asia was the only place where three Nobel laureates Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma; the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, and Liu Xiaobo, the Chinese dissident who recently won the peace prize are either under house arrest, in prison or in exile.
In recent months, the United States has sought to assemble coalitions of countries to pressure China on issues like currency, trade, and Beijings maritime ambitions in its coastal waters. Mrs. Clinton insisted this did not amount to containment, despite what she said were the suspicions of many in China.
I would simply point out that since the beginning of diplomatic relations between our two countries, China has experienced breathtaking growth and development, she said. This is primarily due, of course, to the hard work of the Chinese people, she added. But U.S. policy has consistently, through Republican and Democratic administrations and Congresses, supported this goal since the 1970s.
The day before Mrs. Clinton left for Asia, the State Department hastily added a China stop to her itinerary, reflecting its sensitivities about Beijing. She will stop for two hours on Hainan, a resort island east of Vietnam to meet with Chinas state councilor for foreign policy, Dai Bingguo.
The symbolism of Hainan is awkward: in 2001, an American spy plane was forced to land there after colliding with a Chinese fighter jet. China detained the planes 24 crew members, amid a war of words between both sides, and released them only after the United States agreed to apologize.
Mrs. Clinton said she and Mr. Dai would discuss the preparations for a visit to the United States by President Hu Jintao next year. Mr. Dai is also a key Chinese contact for Mrs. Clinton on North Korea.
For her part, Mrs. Clinton avoided criticizing Chinese behavior, preferring to celebrate the alliance between the United States and Japan. The security environment is always evolving, she said. The security environment of 2010 is not the security environment of 1960.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/29/world/29diplo.html?src=mv
By MARK LANDLER, October 28, 2010
HONOLULU Opening a seven-country tour of Asia shadowed by fears about Chinas rising influence, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton declared here on Thursday that the United States was not bent on containing China, even if its relationship with Beijing was complicated.
There are some in both countries who believe that Chinas interests and ours are fundamentally at odds, she said in closely watched address. But that is not our view. In the 21st century, it is not in anyones interest for the United States and China to see each other as adversaries.
Mixing conciliatory words with hints of a firmer American stance, Mrs. Clinton said China must be a partner of the United States on issues ranging from climate change to North Koreas nuclear program.
She called on Beijing to make responsible policy adjustments on its artificially depressed exchange rate an issue that has deepened tensions between the United States and China in recent weeks because the undervalued Chinese currency has hurt American exports.
Mrs. Clintons remarks came as China apparently lifted an unannounced halt on shipments of strategically important rare-earth minerals to the United States, Japan, and other countries. Officials traveling with Mrs. Clinton said they were seeking clarification from the Chinese government about its policy.
Mrs. Clinton made no mention of the rare-earth minerals dispute in her speech. But a day earlier, after a meeting with Japans foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, she said that the United States, Japan, and other countries would need to find alternative sources of supply for these elements.
In her speech, Mrs. Clinton sought to project a more aggressive American role in Asia, labeling it forward-deployed diplomacy. The policy, she said, means reinvigorating Cold War alliances with Japan and South Korea and seeking bigger American influence in regional security groups.
Alluding to disputes between China and its neighbors over islands in the South China Sea, Mrs. Clinton said she was encouraged that China showed signs of cooperating more with these groups.
Mrs. Clinton noted that Asia was the only place where three Nobel laureates Aung San Suu Kyi of Burma; the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, and Liu Xiaobo, the Chinese dissident who recently won the peace prize are either under house arrest, in prison or in exile.
In recent months, the United States has sought to assemble coalitions of countries to pressure China on issues like currency, trade, and Beijings maritime ambitions in its coastal waters. Mrs. Clinton insisted this did not amount to containment, despite what she said were the suspicions of many in China.
I would simply point out that since the beginning of diplomatic relations between our two countries, China has experienced breathtaking growth and development, she said. This is primarily due, of course, to the hard work of the Chinese people, she added. But U.S. policy has consistently, through Republican and Democratic administrations and Congresses, supported this goal since the 1970s.
The day before Mrs. Clinton left for Asia, the State Department hastily added a China stop to her itinerary, reflecting its sensitivities about Beijing. She will stop for two hours on Hainan, a resort island east of Vietnam to meet with Chinas state councilor for foreign policy, Dai Bingguo.
The symbolism of Hainan is awkward: in 2001, an American spy plane was forced to land there after colliding with a Chinese fighter jet. China detained the planes 24 crew members, amid a war of words between both sides, and released them only after the United States agreed to apologize.
Mrs. Clinton said she and Mr. Dai would discuss the preparations for a visit to the United States by President Hu Jintao next year. Mr. Dai is also a key Chinese contact for Mrs. Clinton on North Korea.
For her part, Mrs. Clinton avoided criticizing Chinese behavior, preferring to celebrate the alliance between the United States and Japan. The security environment is always evolving, she said. The security environment of 2010 is not the security environment of 1960.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/29/world/29diplo.html?src=mv