Clinton Urges China to Embrace Reform
By IAN TALLEY - Friday January 14, 2011
WASHINGTON—Just days ahead of Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday urged China to improve its human rights policies and to accept more responsibility as a global leader.
Ms. Clinton's comments on human rights highlight a sore point for Beijing that may be exacerbated next week when a political dissident and former jailed Tiananmen Square protester takes center stage in the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee.
Calling it a "matter that remains at the heart of American diplomacy," Ms. Clinton reiterated Washington's call for the release of Nobel Peace prize winner Liu Xiaobo and other political prisoners in China.
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"America and China have arrived at a critical juncture, a time when the choices we make—big and small—will shape the trajectory of this relationship," Ms. Clinton said. She added that building trust between the two powers was an essential element if they are to "pursue a positive, cooperative, and comprehensive relationship."Foremost among those issues include greater military-to-military engagement, cooperation on enforcing sanctions against Iran and Beijing's influence on North Korea.
"It is vital that China join with us in sending North Korea an unequivocal signal that its recent provocations—including the announced uranium enrichment program—are unacceptable,'' Ms. Clinton said. She also regards the North Korean actions as a violation of United Nations security council resolutions.
"Until North Korea demonstrates in concrete ways its intention to keep its commitments, China, along with the entire international community, must vigorously enforce the sanctions adopted by the Council last year," she added.
The secretary said the U.S.-China relationship wasn't one that "fits neatly into black-and-white categories like 'friend or rival.' "Rather, "We are two complex nations with profoundly different political systems and outlooks. But we are both deeply invested in the current order, and we both have much more to gain from cooperation than from conflict."
Ms. Clinton also said Beijing has much work to do to move away from a state-dominated economy to a more market-oriented economy.
