The Woodrow Wilson Center
   Washington D.C.
  October 16, 2000


                               
Hon. Hamilton,
Mr. Hathaway,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

      It is a great pleasure for me to attend today's luncheon and to speak to such a distinguished group of members of the Woodrow Wilson Council. I want to take this opportunity to share with you my thoughts on China-U.S. relations.

      Recently, PNTR became a household word in China and the United States. The Permanent Normal Trade Relations between our two countries are indeed a matter of extraordinary importance. On October 10, President Clinton signed the PNTR bill into law. Some American commentators take PNTR as the most important event in China-U.S. relations since President Nixon's visit to China in 1972. In my view, since 1972, only the establishment of diplomatic relations between our two countries in 1979 may equal the PNTR in importance. Why is PNTR so important? Because permanent realization of trade relations between China and the United States will not only have far-reaching positive impact on China-U.S. relations, but also contribute to the stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.  

    First, it removes a big factor of instability in China-U.S. trade and economic relations by ending the yearly review of China's MFN status by the U.S. Congress. Since 1979 when China and the United States established diplomatic relations, especially after 1990, the U.S. Congress has held debate every year on China's Most Favored Nation trading status. Such a practice not only put great uncertainty in our trade relations but also caused serious disruption in our overall relations. It consumed our two governments and two peoples so much time and energy to fight for nothing but a normal trade relationship.

    Second, it opens up broad prospects for further development of trade and economic cooperation between China and the United States. The settlement of the trade status issue will accelerate China's accession to WTO which means huge economic benefits to the United States. After China's accession to WTO, China's tariff level for U.S. manufactured products will go down from 25% to 9% by 2005 , and from 31% to 14% for U.S. agricultural products. American farm exports to China will increase by about 2 billion dollars each year, which will help reduce the U.S. trade deficit with China. Meanwhile, American companies will enjoy greater access to China's  domestic financial and service market, higher share in its telecommunication market and even full access to its domestic circulation system. The benefits for China are obvious too, as China will expect greater trade, investment and  technology cooperation with the United States.

     Third, it helps enhance mutual understanding and mutual trust between China and the United States, which contributes to long-term stable  development of China-U.S. relations. Before PNTR was granted, the United States had had normal trade relations with almost all countries in the world but unfortunately kept China on a very short list of a half dozen countries on which discriminative trade policies were imposed. This arrogant practice made it difficult for the Chinese people to understand or even doubt the value of and need for better China-U.S. relations. The Congressional vote on PNTR has sent a clear message to the Chinese and American peoples on the importance attached to U.S.-China relations by the Administration, Congress, business community and other circles and their support for stronger U.S.-China relations in the future.  

     Fourth, PNTR has also sent a strong signal to the world that China and the United States, the two big powers in the Asia-Pacific region, are ready to coexist in peace and friendship and sincere for better relations through cooperation. As China-U.S. relations have a tremendous bearing on the well-being of the people in the Asia-Pacific region, the realization of PNTR will be a boon for the stability and prosperity in the region.

     Bearing in mind the new opportunities facing China-U.S. relations, it is high time that we work together with more daring moves to bring the relationship to a new high. What should we do then?  

     First, we should take effective measures to further promote bilateral trade and economic ties, bringing their potential into full play. The most pressing task at the moment is to complete China's accession to WTO as soon as possible. Without China's membership in WTO, the benefits promised in the bilateral agreement between China and the United States last November cannot materialize. Right now, China is very concerned about the slow pace in the multilateral negotiations in Geneva. It is unwise and unrealistic for some parties to try to pressure China into making more concessions. China will keep its promises and earnestly implement the bilateral agreements, but it will not accept new and unreasonable demands. We hope that the United States will play a positive role in pushing for an early conclusion of the negotiations in Geneva so as to make good its promises of ensuring China's accession to WTO by the year's end. Meanwhile, it is also necessary for the United States to eliminate the remaining obstacles and restrictions in the way of our trade and economic relations. For instance, the continued ban on OPIC and TDA operations in China and restrictions on exports of hi-tech products to China by the U.S. government neither conform with the permanent normal trade relations between the two countries nor serve America's own interests. An early removal of these obstacles will create favorable conditions for more U.S. exports to China and for further growth of China-U.S. economic relations and trade.

     At present, China-U.S. trade and economic cooperation have shown a continued strong growth momentum. According to Chinese customs statistics, from January to July this year, China-U.S. trade reached  40.6 billion dollars, up by 25.6% , with the U.S. export to China  increased by 18.5%. In the first half of this year, the number of new American investment projects reached 1207, showing a 20.22% growth. We have every reason to believe that after China's accession to WTO, China-U.S. trade and economic cooperation will reach a much higher level.

     Second, we should continue to pursue mutual interests and cooperation and enlarge common ground in political and security areas. As permanent members of the UN Security Council and nuclear powers, China and the United States have a common responsibility in maintaining peace and stability in Asia-Pacific and the world at large. Particularly, the two countries have an important stake in ensuring peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, keeping it free from nuclear weapons and promoting the Four-Party Talks. It is China's firm conviction that reducing tension and promoting peace, stability and national reconciliation on the Peninsula serve the interests of both North and South Koreas, as well as the interests of China,  the United States and other countries in the region. China welcomes the positive steps recently taken by the U.S. and the DPRK to improve their bilateral relations, including the historic visit by the Vice Chairman of the National Defense Committee of the DPRK to the United States earlier this month. China supports the improvement and normalization of relations between the DPRK and the United States, Japan and the European Union and will continue to play a constructive role in maintaining peace and stability on the Peninsula.  

     China and the United States should also strengthen their cooperation on other major international issues. Both countries are concerned about nuclear arms race and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in South Asia. Both want to see a stable Russia and a Japan that contributes to economic stability and prosperity in the region. Both support the multilateral economic and security mechanism in the region, such as APEC, ARF and Northeast Asia Security Forum. Next year, China will host the APEC informal leadership meeting in Shanghai. We are ready to cooperate with the United States and other APEC members to ensure the meeting a success. Besides, China and the United States also have a urgent need and common responsibility for closer cooperation in meeting such global challenges as environmental degradation, international terrorism, cross-border crime, drug-trafficking, alien smuggling and money laundering.

     Third, to appropriately handle the sensitive issues in the bilateral relations.  

     The Taiwan question is the most sensitive and most important issue at the very heart of China-U.S. relations. It bears on China's sovereignty, territorial integrity and national reunification and touches the national feelings of the 1.2 billion Chinese people. The normalization of relations between China and the United States could not have taken place without the U.S. government agreeing to sever diplomatic relations with Taiwan, abrogate mutual defense treaty with the regime and pull out all American forces from the island. The proper handling of the issue holds the key to a stable China-U.S. relationship in the new century.

     Since 1972, every U.S. administration has made serious commitments on the issue of Taiwan. That is, the U.S. acknowledges that there is but one China and Taiwan is part of China; the U.S. recognizes the government of the People's Republic of China as the sole legal government of China and, within this context, the American people maintain cultural, commercial and other unofficial relations with the people of Taiwan; the U.S. does not seek to carry out a long-term policy of arms sales to Taiwan, its arms sales to Taiwan will not exceed, either in qualitative or in quantitative terms, the level of those supplied in late 70s and early 80s when China and the U.S. normalized the relations, and it intends gradually to reduce its sale of arms to Taiwan, leading, over a period of time, to a final resolution. In recent years, the U.S. government has repeatedly reaffirmed its commitment to the "one China" principle and its adherence to the three joint communiqués. Inparticular, it undertakes in explicit terms that it does not support an independent Taiwan, "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan", as well as Taiwan's membership in any international organization where  statehood is required. We appreciate all these commitments. What we hope is that the U.S. side will match its words with deeds.

     We are greatly concerned about some recent U.S. moves on Taiwan. Last month, the U.S. announced a sale of 1.3 billion dollars worth of high-tech American weapons to Taiwan, including the supersonic medium-ranged air-to-air missiles. Such move by the U.S. side has seriously violated its commitments in the three joint communiques, especially the "August 17th" Joint Communique. We hope that the United States will stick to the "one China" principle, abide by the three Joint Communiques and its own commitments, stop selling advanced weapons and military technologies to Taiwan, refrain from developing any official relations with the Taiwan authorities and supporting their efforts to join international organizations where statehood is required, so as to avoid damage to China-U.S. relations as well as peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.  

     The basic policy of the Chinese government on the Taiwan question remains peaceful reunification on the basis of "one country, two systems".  We have the utmost sincerity and will try everything possible to achieve this goal . At the same time, we cannot sit idle watching separatist forces on the island to dismember our motherland. The root cause of tension in the Taiwan Strait is Taiwan independence. For more than half a year since Taiwan's elections last March, the newly elected leader of Taiwan has talked glibly about reconciliation, but stubbornly turned his back on the "one China" principle, which only shows his lack of sincerity for better cross-Strait relations. The "one China" principle is the basis and prerequisite for the peaceful resolution of the Taiwan issue and for the resumption of cross-Strait dialogue. As Chinese leaders said many times, so long as the Taiwan authorities recognize the "one China" principle, namely, that there is only one China to which both the mainland and Taiwan belong, and that China's sovereignty and territorial integrity are indivisible, peace talks can start right away, leaders of the two sides can visit each other and everything can be put on the table for discussion, including the issues of concern to the Taiwan side.  

     With its long-held commitment to the "one China" principle, the United States should not find it too hard to openly support the peaceful reunification of China. As a matter of fact, a reunited China will not cause any disruption to Taiwan's trade, economic, cultural and people-to-people ties with the United States. An earliest possible resolution to this question can only facilitate rather than impede the normal growth of China-U.S. relations.  A strong, prosperous and peacefully reunited China will only enhance rather than damage American interests. I believe more Americans will see things that way.

     Another issue that calls for proper handling is human rights. As China and the United States obviously differ from one another in history, political system, value, cultural background, and level of economic and social development, it is only natural that they have some different views on human rights. Such differences, in our view, should be handled through dialogue on the basis of equality and mutual respect. Confrontation is not an option since it can only make things more difficult and harm the relationship. Since 1990, the United States has tried nine times to pass anti-China resolutions at the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva, but none has succeeded. This shows that such a practice is both unreasonable and unpopular. We hope that the U.S. side will abandon the confrontational approach and stop interfering in China's internal affairs under the pretext of human rights.

     I cannot butsay something about Falun Gong here, an issue which is  exploited by some people in this country in China bashing. Numerous irrefutable facts have shown that Falun Gong is an evil cult. More than 1600 Chinese have so far lost their lives, thousands more have suffered mental disorder and a large number of families have gong through trauma as a result of  practicing Falun Gong. By banning the cult in response to the popular calls of the Chinese people, our government has just done what any responsible government would have done under similar circumstances. While cracking down on dangerous cults such as the Davidians on its own soil, the U.S. government has arbitrarily criticized China for its legitimate actions against Falun Gong. This is a typical case of double standards.  

    China has committed to human rights. While respecting the universality of human rights, we believe that protection of human rights cannot be divorced from our national conditions. In the context of China's economic, social and cultural development, the Chinese government has worked hard to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Chinese people. The human rights progress in China is remarkable and unprecedented.  Today, the Chinese people are living much better and much longer than 50 years ago when the People's Republic was founded, and even than 20 years ago when reform and opening-up started. Life expectancy has increased from 35 in 1949 to 70.8 now, much higher than the world average of 65. China has created the miracle of feeding, clothing and housing 22 percent of the world's total population with only 7 percent of the world's total arable land. At present, China's GDP in 12 days is equal to that of the whole year in 1952. Since 1998, hundreds of millions of villagers have participated in direct elections at the grassroots level. Right now, more than 100 million people in China are believers of various religions. Religious figures are elected deputies to the National People's Congress. China has more than 2,000 radio and TV stations, over 2,000 newspapers and over 8,000 magazines. Every year, over 100,000 new books are published in the country. There are over 16 million netizens, more than 27,000 worldwide web sites, over 70,000 Chinese domain names and 61 million mobile phones in China. The Chinese people are enjoying extensive and ever expanding access to information and having increasing channels  to express their views. We are fully confident that, along with reform and opening-up, China will make even faster progress in human rights.  
     Last but not least, China and the United States should make  more efforts to enhance mutual understanding and mutual trust. The national conditions of our two countries are so different that it is all the more necessary for us to promote understanding of each other.  Both history and  realities show that prejudice is farther away from truth than ignorance and is a greater barrier to exchanges and contacts between nations than mountains and oceans. China is now making greater an effort to learn about the US. The recent successful visits to the United States by Chinese warships, religious leaders and the China Disabled People's Performing Art Troupe as well as the '2000 Experience Chinese Culture in the US are the cases in point. We hope that the United States will make a similar effort to learn about China.  

     To ensure a sound and stable China-U.S. relationship, it is also necessary to forgo the Cold-War mentality. The Cold -War is behind us for almost a decade, but some people in the United States seem reluctant to let it go. They have a penchant for overestimating China's strength so as to justify their "China threat" argument and "containment" prescriptions. But nothing is further from the truth. Historically, China did not go for territorial expansion but frequently fell victim to foreign aggression, domination and bullying. Right now, China does not occupy a single inch of foreign soil, nor station a single soldier abroad. China's defense policy is completely defensive in nature. It military spending is the lowest among the major powers in absolute terms. It is also among the lowest in the world in per capita terms. At present, China is fully engaged in reform, opening-up and modernization program which calls for an extended international environment of peace and stability. As China will remain a developing country for quite a long time in the 21st century, it will not threaten anyone, nor will there be any need for it to do so. Even if it becomes stronger, China will not go for aggression and expansion, still less seek hegemony which its own Constitution forbids. It is obvious that an open, stable and prosperous China is a blessing to world peace, stability and prosperity, whereas a closed, poor and chaotic China is a boon for no one.

     Ladies and Gentlemen,

     China and the United States are great countries. Historical experience has proved that a stable and growing China-U.S. relationship not only serves the common interests of the two countries and two peoples, but also contributes to peace and stability in Asia-Pacific and the world at large. We should see each other as friends, not as enemies, and treat each other as partners, not as competitors. We should examine and handle our bilateral relations from a strategic and long-term perspective. Let us seize the opportunity to work together to enhance mutual understanding,   properly handle differences, expand areas of cooperation, and advance China-U.S. relations towards the constructive strategic partnership in the 21st century.

    Thank you!