U.S. Toughens Stance on China, Cancels Trips

U.S. Toughens Stance on China, Cancels Trips

NewsMax.com Wires
Tuesday, April 10, 2001

WASHINGTON (UPI) – In a shift in the U.S. position toward China, the State Department has encouraged lawmakers to cancel planned trips there in light of Beijing's refusal to free the crew of a U.S. Navy plane, a senior State Department official told UPI Monday.

The official noted that "most of the congressional delegations had decided not to go before consulting us. In all cases we made sure to say it was their decision, but when asked directly for advice we said it was probably not a good time to go." This official added that the advice hinged on the fact that diplomatic negotiations over the EP-3 surveillance plane and its 24 person crew remained unresolved.

In at least one case, Secretary of State Colin Powell personally advised a lawmaker leading a delegation against going to China, the official said.

This appears to represent a significant shift of the administration's position. On April 5, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters, "The White House is not objecting to any trips that lawmakers have to China."

To date, separate congressional delegations led by Sens. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, Don Nichols, R-Okla., Richard Shelby R-Ala., and Rep. David Dreier, R-Calif., all canceled trips to China. In addition a conference arranged by Aspen Institute for 20 U.S. lawmakers in China has been scuttled.

"It was Senator Shelby's thought that there would be nothing to discuss with Beijing when they were holding 24 American service men and service women," his spokeswoman Andrea Andrews told UPI.

"This was a low-profile delegation," said the Aspen Institute's spokesman, James Spiegelman. "Had this not had happened during the course of the spy plane incident this would have gone on with very little fanfare."

Where It Hurts: The Wallet

The canceled trips, however, may be only the tip of the iceberg in freezing U.S. China relations. After a bitter congressional fight over Permanent Normal Trade Relations with China last year, some U.S. lawmakers that supported the bill are changing their minds. Because Beijing is not likely to gain full membership in the World Trade Organization in time, Congress may well have another bite at the China trade apple this year.

Last year PNTR passed the House by 237 votes to 197, so if only 20 votes flip this year the House could vote to reverse that position. The House International Relations Committee chairman, Henry Hyde, R-Ill., who supported PNTR last year, changed his position last week in light of the spy plane row.

At the White House Monday, President Bush said: "Every day that goes by increases the potential that our relations with China could be damaged. And our hope is that this matter gets resolved quickly.

"We're working. We're working behind the scenes. We've got every diplomatic channel open. We're in discussions with the Chinese. It is now time for our troops to come home so that our relationship does not become damaged."

Beijing stepped up the rhetoric Monday when an army newspaper called for an end to all surveillance flights off its coast. The Liberation Army Daily's tough rhetoric fueled suspicion that China's military was moving for a rigid stance when dealing with the United States in this diplomatic standoff and that it could be disrupting a possible agreement between the two countries. The newspaper is published by the military and only senior commanders oversee the content.

"China has the right to fully and thoroughly investigate this entire incident, including the American military aircraft and the people in charge of it," the newspaper said. "The U.S. government should immediately stop all military surveillance activities off the Chinese coast."

Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:

China/Taiwan

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