Clinton plays down tension risks with China
- Source: Global Times
- [07:42 January 13 2010]
- Comments
By Zhang Wen
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton downplayed on Monday the risk of tensions between China and the US, saying she believes the two countries have "a mature relationship" to overcome "differences of opinion."
Speaking on the first day of her ongoing Asia-Pacific trip, Clinton acknowledged in Hawaii that relations with China might be entering a rough pe-riod, as US President Barack Obama's administration supports the sale of defensive arms to Taiwan and a possible meeting between the president and the Dalai Lama.
"What I'm expecting is that we actually have a mature relationship that fits the description that was given at the summit between our two presidents, that it be positive, cooperative and comprehensive," Clinton said. "That means that it doesn't go off the rails when we have differences of opinion."
China has expressed its strong dissatisfaction with a US decision last week to sell almost $1 billion worth of anti-missile batteries and missiles to Taiwan.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu also emphasized Tuesday that mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as each other's core interests, are important conditions for the steady development of Sino-US relations.
Shen Dingli, director of the Center of American Studies at Fudan University, said Sino-US relations have always been adversarial and cooperative.
Even though more friction may appear this year, according to Shen, there are also long-standing problems. Therefore the recent developments shouldn't hurt bilateral relations fundamentally.
"Both Taiwan and Tibetan issues touch the core interests of China's sovereignty and territorial integrity. Any unwise move by the US may cause China to cancel cooperation with the US on anti-nuclear and anti-terrorism (issues), which would also touch the core interests of the US," Shen added.
