Political India: Engaging America

Taking forward the United States' conciliatory approach towards China, possibly in anticipation of a major fighter aircraft sale to Taiwan later this year, U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates said that his country was “not trying to hold China down.”

Speaking to media on the eve of the Shangri-La talks between the U.S. and East Asian nations, Mr. Gates said China had been a “great power for thousands of years.” He added that China “is a global power and will be a global power.” The Secretary's comments came in the wake of recent moves between the U.S. and China, to bring greater rapprochement to a bilateral relationship that hit a frosty low last year. Following U.S. President Barack Obama's announcement of a major weapons sale to Taiwan in January 2010, Beijing severed all military ties with Washington.

Notwithstanding Mr. Gates' efforts, history could well be on the brink of repeating itself as last week 45 Senators from both sides of the U.S. Congress urged the White House to press forward with the sale of 66 new F-16 C/D fighters to Taiwan.

“Without new fighter aircraft and upgrades to its existing fleet of F-16s, Taiwan will be dangerously exposed to Chinese military threats, aggression and provocation, which pose significant national security implications for the United States,” said the Senators in their letter.

Mr. Gates echoed similar sentiments on the U.S.' interests in Taiwan, however treading a careful line with regards to the implications of this for China. He said while the U.S. did have obligations under the Taiwan Relations Act, under both the Bush and Obama administrations, it had tried to “thread the needle pretty carefully in terms of Taiwan's defensive capabilities, but at the same time being aware of China's sensitivities.”

When the U.S. invited the People's Liberation Army Chief of General Staff Chen Bingde to Washington recently as part of the broader attempt to reset military-to-military relations, the Chinese General was reported to have “renewed his objection to any U.S. arms sales to Taiwan.” Yet even General Bingde sought to water down recent calls in the U.S. for more transparency in Chinese military capabilities, particularly in terms of their focus on Taiwan. Arguing that American claims of Chinese military capabilities are exaggerated, the General said “China's efforts to enhance... military capabilities is mainly targeted at separatist forces ... who have attempted to split Taiwan away from China.”

From The Hindu

Technical problems with simultaneous translations plagued the post-state visit press conference with United States President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao on Wednesday.

Yet the fact that many of the technical snags occurred when Mr. Hu faced questions on China’s human rights record was a fact that left many observers wondering about their timing.

The first set of comments on the thorny bilateral issue of human rights in China, by President Obama, passed through the sound systems unscathed.

Clearly enunciating the U.S. support for human rights and expressing hope that China would do the same, Mr. Obama said that during the state visit, “I reaffirmed America’s fundamental commitment to the universal rights of all people. That includes basic human rights like freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association and demonstration, and of religion – rights that are recognized in the Chinese constitution.”

On the steps forward, he added the U.S. and China had agreed to move ahead with a formal dialogue on human rights and new exchanges to advance the rule of law “while acknowledging there are going to be areas where we disagree.”

He was quick, however, to add that the U.S. recognised that “Tibet is part of the People’s Republic of China, [and] the U.S. continues to support further dialogue between the government of China and the representatives of the Dalai Lama to resolve concerns and differences, including the preservation of the religious and cultural identity of the Tibetan people.”

Yet the reporter to whom Mr. Obama had responded had also asked Mr. Hu about how he would justify China’s record on human rights, and if Mr. Hu thought that was a legitimate concern of the American people – yet no answer was forthcoming from the Chinese President, who instead responded a question from another reporter.

But there was no avoiding the issue when a second reporter reiterated his colleagues question and specifically requested a response from President Hu, who then replied, “First, I would like to clarify, because of the technical translation and interpretation problem, I did not hear the question about the human rights... As you raise this question, and I heard the question properly, certainly I am in a position to answer that question.”

Mr. Hu then explained that in over eight meetings he had held thus far with Mr. Obama, China had not shied away from discussing human rights and its position was that “China recognises and also respects the universality of human rights. And at the same time, we do believe that we also need to take into account the different and national circumstances when it comes to the universal value of human rights.”

However while he stressed that China was a developing country that was currently in a “crucial stage of reform,” and still faced many challenges in economic and social development, he conceded, “And a lot still needs to be done in China, in terms of human rights.”

China was willing to continue to have exchanges and dialogue with other countries in terms of human rights, and we are also willing to learn from each other in terms of the good practices, Mr. Hu said, specifically saying that although there were “disagreements between China and the U.S. on the issue of human rights, China is willing to engage in dialogue and exchanges with the U.S. on the basis of mutual respect and the principle of non-interference in each other’s internal affairs.”

From The Hindu

Since he arrived in Washington on Tuesday Chinese President Hu Jintao’s state visit has entirely dominated the attention of the White House’s protocol army. However if recent statements by senior administration officials are anything to go by, official bonhomie may give way to tense negotiations by Wednesday evening, when Mr. Hu will attend a press conference with United States President Barack Obama.

In their opening remarks at the South Lawn of the White House the Chinese President clearly emphasised his hope that his visit would “increase mutual trust, enhance friendship, deepen cooperation, and push forward the positive, cooperative, and comprehensive China-U.S. relationship for the 21st century.”

He added that “China and the U.S. should respect each other’s choice of development path and each other’s core interests,” possibly an oblique reference to China’s interest in Taiwan. Until recently China had suspended all military-to-military ties with the U.S. after the latter sold arms to Taiwan in 2009.

In turn Mr. Obama struck a positive but balanced tone in his remarks saying that, while “The previous 30 years had been a time of estrangement for our two countries... the 30 years since have been a time of growing exchanges and understanding.”

He also hinted at the U.S.’ concerns on human rights in China when he noted, “History shows that societies are more harmonious, nations are more successful, and the world is more just, when the rights and responsibilities of all nations and all people are upheld, including the universal rights of every human being.”

The tenor of Mr. Obama’s comments appeared to jibe with recent comments made by senior officials in his administration who have, in the past few weeks, underscored policy dissonance on thorny economic, social and military issues between the two countries.

Last week U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner reiterated the U.S. view that “a stronger yuan is in China's own best interests, because it would help tame rising inflation that has become a key risk to China's rapid growth,” according to reports. Official anxiety regarding trade imbalances has also grown, focussing in particular on U.S. companies’ lack of access to China’s markets.

Similarly Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a speech on Friday that China’s human rights record needed to improve, in particular criticising in particular its imprisonment of Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo.

In a similar critical message issued during a meeting with Chinese Minister of National Defence General Liang Guanglie, U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates hinted that the China’s development of a stealth aircraft and its growing assertiveness in the South China Sea were matters of serious concern.

While trade, currency, human rights and military development issues are clearly of much concern in the Obama White House, it may find itself groping for levers to persuade Mr. Hu to make concessions where it matters.

A litmus test of how willing Mr. Hu is to consider please for policy reform will come later on Wednesday when, along with Mr. Obama, he will interact with a group of 18 American and Chinese CEOs and hear their requests for greater market access in China.