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Former Formosa may become former Taiwan |
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July 16, 2000
SHANGHAI, China (AP) - Sharing a sense of urgency, both the United States and China want movement soon on reconciling Taiwan with the mainland. After three days of talks with senior Chinese officials, however, Defense Secretary William Cohen heard little more than a softening of tone. Cohen said Friday he told Wang Daohan, the Beijing government's top contact with Taiwan on reunification issues, that "time is of the essence," and that China should realize that a special opportunity exists in the early months of the administration of Taiwan's new president, Chen Shui-bian. "I believe every opportunity should be taken advantage of to explore ways in which a reconciliation can be achieved" peacefully, Cohen told a news conference after his meeting with Wang. Cohen flew to Shanghai on Friday after two days of talks with top Chinese leaders in Beijing, including President Jiang Zemin. Cohen said Wang "indicated that this needs to be resolved" but Beijing still insists that Taiwan acknowledge in advance that if reunification takes place, it will not have the status of a separate state. China describes its formula for reunifying with Taiwan as "one China, two systems," meaning the capitalist Taiwan economy could remain in place but Beijing would be the sovereign power. Earlier this year China said the Taiwan issue needed to be resolved soon or risked becoming a trigger for war. Senior U.S. officials traveling with Cohen said they heard no such rhetoric in their talks this week, although it is clear that Beijing would like to see progress soon on a peaceful path to reunification. A senior member of Cohen's delegation, speaking privately, said Cohen believes the opportunity for a breakthrough could slip away quickly. This and other officials who were present in Cohen's talks said the Chinese were less bellicose than only a few months ago. "The discussion is in a sense more relaxed, it's more constructive, it's more forward-looking, there's not a sense of total stubbornness and crisis," said one official, who has been closely involved in China affairs since before the U.S. erroneously bombed China's embassy in Belgrade, Yugoslavia last May, an event that ruptured relations between the two nations. the official said. At a news conference after his meeting, Cohen said he found no surprises in Wang's main message. "Mr. Wang indicated that this needs to be resolved (and) there has to be a commitment to the one-China policy on the part of Taiwan," Cohen said. While not offering any specific new ideas, Cohen said the Chinese government needs to conduct "some creative examination" of options. Cohen's spokesman, Kenneth Bacon, said the defense secretary was satisfied that he had achieved his goal of encouraging officials to move ahead now on the Taiwan dispute during talks this week in both Beijing and Shanghai. Bacon said Cohen had not expected any immediate breakthroughs. The Clinton administration has been careful to avoid getting involved as a mediator in the China-Taiwan dispute, although it has exhorted both sides to hold face-to-face talks in search of a peaceful resolution. Washington acknowledges China's claim to Taiwan, but by law must help the island maintain its defense. After meeting Wang, Cohen addressed the Shanghai Stock Exchange, which he called the "epicenter of the burgeoning Chinese economy" and a future engine of growth for the economies throughout Asia. He touted the power of free trade and predicted quick approval by the Senate of permanent normal trade relations with China, which he said was a key to completing the "circle of stability, prosperity and democracy." The wealthier China becomes, the more its people will embrace democracy and demand change, Cohen said. In Washington, hopes of Senate passage this month of the legislation dimmed Friday with a suspension of talks on a parallel bill aimed at punishing China for weapons proliferation. The impasse could delay the China trade vote until September. Officials from both parties said they had stopped talking on a compromise to legislation being pushed by Sen. Fred Thompson, a Republican, that would apply sanctions on China or its business partners for violations of international treaties on proliferating weapons of mass destruction. Thompson and other senators are seeking a vote on that issue before the Senate moves to the larger question of putting normal trade status with China on a permanent basis. The House in May approved permanent trade status, a precursor to China's entry into the World Trade Organization, and there is widespread support for the measure in the Senate. But critics of China's sales of weapons and other military technology to Pakistan and other countries have demanded that the Senate first act on the Thompson legislation, which is cosponsored by Sen. Robert Torricelli, a Democrat.
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