U.S. And China Soften the Rhetoric

Posted September 3rd, 2012 at 5:47 pm (UTC+0)
6 comments

Clinton Due in Beijing Ahead of Asia-Pacific Summit

China and the United States are dialing down their rhetorical broadsides over greater U.S. military and economic influence in Asia ahead of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit to Beijing Tuesday.

 

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai have met before. They are shown here as Clinton visits Shanghai May 21, 2010. Photo: AP

Washington and Beijing have variously accused each other of trying to manipulate the outcome of competing territorial claims in the South China Sea, especially after Southeast Asian foreign ministers failed to agree on a code of conduct for the dispute in July.

Following that meeting in Phnom Penh, U.S. officials said China used Cambodia to derail the agreement because it prefers to deal with rival claimants one-on-one. And Chinese officials accused Western governments of meddling in the dispute to keep Asia divided.

Leading up to Clinton’s third trip to Asia since May, China’s state-run news agency, Xinhua, said the United States is “stirring up disputes” in the region to curb Chinese influence. This was part of Washington’s “surreal ambition of ruling the Asia-Pacific and the world,” according to Xinhua.

But it was a far less antagonistic climate once Clinton arrived in the Cook Islands stop on her Asia tour, with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai saying Beijing is “in this region not to seek any particular influence, still less dominance.”

Good Partners

“We’re here to be a good partner for the island countries, we’re not here to compete with anyone,” he told reporters at the annual meeting of the Pacific Islands Forum. “The thrust of China’s policy toward the Pacific is to achieve peace, stability and development.”

Cui said China is ready to work with other countries, but “it will not mean that China will have to change its foreign aid policy.”

Clinton appeared equally conciliatory, saying the Obama administration believes “it is important for the Pacific Island nations to have good relationships with as many partners as possible, and that includes China as well as the United States.”

“Now I know there are those who see America’s renewed engagements over the last three and a half years in the Pacific perhaps as a hedge against particular countries,” Clinton said. “But the fact is the United States welcomes cooperation with a number of partners, including Japan, the European Union, China, and others. The Pacific is big enough for all of us.”

South China Sea claims

Beijing is increasingly assertive in claiming nearly all of the 3.5 million-square-kilometer South China Sea, which is thought to hold vast energy deposits and is one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.

Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Brunei all have competing claims to parts of the sea, which Xinhua says “should become a spot that ties the region together, not one that pulls it apart.”

Given the sensitivity of President Obama’s so-called “Asia Pivot” and the rival South China Sea claims, U.S. officials say they had “very intense consultations” with every key player in the Asia Pacific ahead of this trip.

 

Clinton talks with Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa during a press conference in Jakarta Sept. 3, a day before she goes to Beijing.

“It is absolutely essential that cooler heads prevail in every capital, and that great care be taken on these issues,” says a senior State Department official. “They have been managed generally effectively for decades. And during this period we’ve seen some of the most manifest Asian prosperity. We need that to continue. This is the cockpit of the global economy, and so care must be taken across the board.”

The senior official says all Asian countries “must find a way to deal with China. It’s not a matter of geo-strategy. It’s a matter of geography. So they do not have a choice in the sense that they must find a way to engage effectively and pragmatically on issues of mutual concern.”

Secretary Clinton says she was looking forward to talks in Beijing about what more China and the the United States can do to further sustainable development.

“We want to see more multinational development projects that include the participation of China,” she says. “We want a comprehensive, positive, cooperative relationship between the United States and China. We think it is good for our country, it’s good for our people, and in fact, it’s not only good for this region, it’s good for the world.”

“We speak very frankly about areas where we do not agree,” she said. “We both raise issues that the other side would prefer perhaps we not, or they not. But I think our dialogue has moved to a positive arena because we are able to discuss all matters together.”

At Washington’s Center for Strategic and International Studies, senior fellow Bonnie Glaser says China and the United States both have an interest in containing arguments over competing territorial claims.

“The U.S. and China continue to try to work together to diffuse tensions, to exchange views on what can be done, to talk about, for example, the content of a code of conduct” over the South China Sea, she says.

“While we can sit on the outside and encourage these countries to take their disputes to an international mediation, ultimately this is only something that the claimants themselves can decide.”

 

6 responses to “U.S. And China Soften the Rhetoric”

  1. […] Voice of America (blog) […]

  2. SV says:

    You mean “U.S. Soften the Rhetoric”, right?

    • tan says:

      Clinton, you did the right thing. Yes, the Pacific is very important for the peace of world.
      Don’t be short sighted. Asian counties need USA to keep their balance. Also, American needs the market and allies in there.

  3. Asian American says:

    Clinton … just stirs things up and creates problems, getting ourselves in areas none of our business: the other part of the world, China and Pacific.

    I mean if China stirs controversy with Mexico and Canada, would we be happy? Shut up Clinton, we are not going to elect you next term. Why don’t you step down now as we ask, and look for job or retire.

    • a real asian american says:

      to the so called “Asian American”
      you are not an American, you not even an Asian-American. You are just a Chinese spy whose loyalty is with the Communist China. Shame on you with that kind of thuggy language to our secretary of state (it really shows your true colors)
      An American who does not agree with any policy of his/her country still shows respect to the people who represent the USA .

  4. […] Clinton was in the Cook Islands, Voice of America captured media consensus with the headline “U.S. And China Soften the Rhetoric.” Then most reports changed tone. The New York Times reported that Clinton met a […]

Scott Stearns

Scott Stearns

Scott Stearns is VOA’s State Department correspondent. He has worked as VOA’s Dakar Bureau Chief, White House correspondent, and Nairobi Bureau Chief since beginning his career as a freelance reporter in the Liberian civil war. He has written for the BBC, UPI, the Associated Press, The Jerusalem Post, and The Economist. Scott has a Bachelors and Masters in Journalism from Northwestern University.

Categories

Calendar

September 2012
M T W T F S S
« Aug   Oct »
 12
3456789
10111213141516
17181920212223
24252627282930