For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
February 21, 2002
President Bush Meets with Chinese President Jiang Zemin
The Great Hall of the People
Beijing, People's Republic of China
1:15 P.M. (Local)
PRESIDENT JIANG: Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen, I
would like to begin by extending on behalf of the Chinese government
and people, a warm welcome to President Bush.
This is my second meeting with the President. Four
months ago, we had a successful meeting during the APEC Summit in
Shanghai. In our talks today, President Bush and I looked
back on the past 30 years of China-U.S. relations, and had an in-depth
discussion on bilateral ties and the current international
situation. We have reached many important common
understandings and achieved positive results in many areas.
We have agreed that under the current complex and volatile
international situation, China and the United States, both with
significant influence in the world, should step up dialogue and
cooperation, properly handled their differences, and work together to
move the constructive and cooperative relations between us further
forward.
We have agreed to intensify high-level strategic dialogue, as well
as contacts between various agencies at all levels, with a view to
increasing mutual understanding and trust. I have accepted
with pleasure and appreciation President Bush's invitation to visit the
United States in October, this year, prior to the APEC meeting in
Mexico. At the invitation of Vice President Cheney, Vice
President Hu Jintao will visit the United States in the near future.
We have agreed to vigorously carry out bilateral exchanges and
cooperation in such areas as economy and trade, energy, science and
technology, environmental protection, the prevention of HIV/AIDS, and
law enforcement, conduct strategic dialogue on regional economic and
financial matters, and hold within the year meetings of the Joint
Economic Commission, Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade, and Joint
Commission on Science and Technology.
President Bush and I have also had an in-depth discussion on the
international fight against terrorism. We have agreed to
step up consultation and cooperation on the basis of reciprocity and
mutual benefit, and to beef up the bilateral mid- and long-term
mechanism for counter-terrorism exchanges and
cooperation. The two sides have also exchanged views on a
series of major international and regional issues, and decided to
enhance communication and coordination.
To properly handle the Taiwan question is vital to stability and
growth of China-U.S. relations. In my meeting with President
Bush, I have elaborated the Chinese government's basic position of
peaceful reunification and one country-two systems for the solution of
the Taiwan question. And President Bush emphasized that the
United States upholds the one China policy, and will abide by the three
Sino-U.S. joint communiques.
Given the differences in the national condition of the two
countries, it is natural for China and the United States to disagree on
some issues, which President Bush and I have discussed with
candor. So long as the two sides act in a spirit of mutual
respect, equality and seeking common ground while shelving differences,
we will be able to gradually narrow our differences, enhance our mutual
understanding, and advance our cooperation.
It is my hope and conviction that today's meeting will have a
positive impact on improvement and growth of China-U.S. relations.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Well, thank you, Mr.
President. I appreciate so very much your
hospitality. We have just concluded some very candid and
positive talks. It is true that I invited the President to
the United States next fall. It's true he accepted.
This is the 30th year -- 30th anniversary of President Nixon's
first visit to China, the beginning of 30 years of growth in the
U.S.-China relationship. Our ties are mature, respectful and
important to both our nations and to the world.
We discussed a lot of issues, starting with
terrorism. We recognize that terrorism is a threat to both
our countries, and I welcome China's cooperation in our war against
terror. I encourage China to continue to be a force for
peace among its neighbors -- on the Korean Peninsula, in Southeast Asia
and in South Asia.
China as a full member of the WTO will now be a full partner in the
global trading system, and will have the right and responsibility to
fashion and enforce the rules of open trade. My government
hopes that China will strongly oppose the proliferation of missiles and
other deadly technologies. President Jiang and I agreed that the
United States and China could cooperate more closely to defeat
HIV/AIDS.
Our talks were candid, and that's very positive. The
United States shares interests with China, but we also have some
disagreements. We believe that we can discuss our
differences with mutual understanding and respect.
As the President mentioned, we talked about Taiwan. The
position of my government has not changed over the years. We
believe in the peaceful settlement of this issue. We will
urge there be no provocation. The United States will
continue to support the Taiwan Relations Act.
China's future is for the Chinese people to decide. Yet
no nation is exempt from the demands of human dignity. All
the world's people, including the people of China, should be free to
choose how they live, how they worship, and how they
work. Dramatic changes have occurred in China in the last 30
years, and I believe equally dramatic changes lie
ahead. These will have a profound impact not only on China
itself, but on the entire family of nations. And the United
States will be a steady partner in China's historic transition toward
greater prosperity and greater freedom.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Q Thank you, Mr. President, for your hospitality.
President Bush, on the question of strategic nuclear policy, you've
said you want to develop a missile defense system in order to defend
the United States and its allies from the threats and dangers of the
21st century. Do you envision circumstances where that
includes Taiwan?
And, President Jiang, if I may, with respect, could you explain to
Americans who may not understand your reasoning why your government
restricts the practice of religious faith, in particular, why your
government has imprisoned more than 50 bishops of the Roman Catholic
Church?
PRESIDENT BUSH: I did bring up the subject of missile
defenses, in the broad context of protecting ourselves and our friends
and allies against a launch by a threatening nation. I
explained to the President that we've just recently gotten out from
underneath the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and are beginning to
explore the full options as to whether or not a system will
work. And that's the extent of our conversation.
Q Just now, President Bush mentioned that today marks the
30th anniversary of the first visit to China by President
Bush. In few days' time, the 28th of this month will mark
the 30th anniversary of the release of the Shanghai
Communique. So my question to President Jiang, how would you
characterize the relationship over the past 30 years?
PRESIDENT JIANG: We will have in February the 30th
anniversary of the first visit to China by President Nixon, and the
release of the Shanghai Communique. The visit by President
Bush coincides with this day, and his visit is highly
meaningful. Thirty years ago, leaders of China and the
United States acted together to put an end to mutual estrangement and
open the gate for exchanges and cooperation between the two countries.
History has proven that it was with great vision that our leaders
took this major move. The growth of bilateral ties over the
years has brought tangible benefits to the two peoples and played an
important role in safeguarding peace in the Asia Pacific region and the
world as a whole.
At present, despite profound changes in the international
situation, China and United States have more rather than less shared
interests, and more rather than less common responsibility for world
peace. The importance of the relationship has increased,
rather than decreased. So to build a constructive and
cooperative relationship serves the desire of not only the people of
the two countries, but also of the people throughout the world.
The Chinese side is ready to join the U.S. side in reflecting on
the past and looking to the future, increasing exchanges and
cooperation, and enhancing understanding and trust. I'm
deeply convinced that so long as the two sides bare in mind the larger
picture, take a long-term perspective, and abide by the principles in
the three Sino-U.S. joint communiques, the relationship will make even
bigger strides forward in the years ahead. Thank you.
Q Thank you. President Jiang, do you agree with
President Bush that there should be a regime change in
Iraq? And if so, would you support the use of all necessary
means to accomplish that? And, with respect, sir, we're
eager to hear the response to the original question about the arrest of
Catholic bishops in your country and attention to religious groups in
general.
And, President Bush, you have thanked the Chinese for their
cooperation in the anti-terror campaign. As that campaign
evolves, can you say today what would be the single most important
contribution that China could make? And did you receive any
assurance today that that will happen?
PRESIDENT BUSH: Let me start. We discussed
the Korean Peninsula, and I told the President that I was deeply
concerned about a regime that is not transparent and that starves its
people. I also -- he reminded me that he had a conversation
with Kim Jong-il last fall, urging Kim Jong-il to take up Kim
Dae-jung's offer for discussion.
That was constructive leadership. I then told him that
the offer I made yesterday in Seoul was a real offer, and that we would
be willing to meet with a North Korean regime. And I asked
his help in conveying that message to Kim Jong-il if he so
chooses. If he speaks to the leader of North Korea, he can
assure him that I am sincere in my desire to have our folks meet.
My point is that not every theater in the war against terror need
be resolved with force. Some theaters can be resolved
through diplomacy and dialogue. And the Chinese government
can be very helpful.
Furthermore, in the first theater in the war against terror, part
of the call for our coalition is to make sure that Afghanistan becomes
a self-supporting, peaceful nation. And the Chinese
government is supportive of the aid efforts, to make sure that we aid
the new post-Taliban Afghani government in its opportunities to develop
its own army, as well as its own economy, its own
security. And so they've been helpful there, as
well. Thank you.
Q I have got a two-part question. First, in recent
years, China has enjoyed rapid economic growth and its national
strength has increased. Some people in the United States
have concluded that because of this, China has posed a potential threat
to the United States and they call for a policy of containment against
China. What's your comment, President Jiang?
And, secondly, in your opening remarks, President Jiang, you
mentioned that the key to steady growth of Sino-U.S. relationship is
the proper handling of the question of Taiwan. President
Bush, in his opening remarks, also elaborated on the U.S. position on
Taiwan. President Jiang, could you comment on what President
Bush has said on the question of Taiwan?
PRESIDENT JIANG: We're living in a world of
diversity. As two major countries with different
national conditions, China and the U.S. have, indeed, had certain
disagreements. But they also share broad and important
common interests. So the old mind-sets which views the
relationship between countries as either of alliance or confrontation,
ought to be abandoned, and a new security concept which features
security through mutual trust and cooperation through mutual benefit
should be established.
It's true that since the inception of reform and open -- program,
China's national strength and people's living standards have somewhat
improved in recent years. Yet, compared with the developed
countries, our economic and cultural developments remains quite
backwards. With a population of over 1.2 billion, the road
ahead is still very long before we can basically complete modernization
and deliver a better life to all our people.
To focus on economic development and improvements of people's
livelihoods is our long-term central task. What China wants
most is a peaceful and tranquil international environment with
long-term stability, to not do unto others what you would not like
others to do unto you. Even if China becomes more developed
in the future, it will not go for bullying or threatening other
countries. Facts have proven already, and will continue to
prove that China is a staunch force dedicated to the maintenance of
peace in the region and the world, at large.
Now, let me comment on the questions posed to me by the American
correspondents as they raised questions for President
Bush. -- President Bush, he has much more experience than
I. (When it comes to meeting the press, I think President
Bush is much more experienced.) (Laughter.) I
will do my best to answer your question.
In the first question, the correspondent mentioned that some of the
Catholic Church people have been detained. I want to explain
that since the founding of People's Republic of China, all our
constitutions, various versions, have provided for the freedom of
religious belief. In China there are many religions which
include Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Islam and a typical
Chinese religion, Taoism. And their religious faiths are
protected by our Constitution.
I don't have religious faith. Yet this does not prevent
me from having an interest in religion. I've read the Bible,
I've also read the Koran, as well as the Scriptures of
Buddhism. I often have meetings with the religious leaders
in this country. For instance, when we are about the
celebrate the new year or during holiday season, I would have meetings
with them and exchange views.
Whatever religion people believe in, they have to abide by the
law. So some of the law-breakers have been detained because
of their violation of law, not because of their religious
belief. Although I'm the President of this country, I have
no right interfering in the judicial affairs, because of judicial
independence.
You also asked about the Korean Peninsula
issue. President Bush has also commented on
this. In our talks just now, the two of us exchanged views
on the Korean Peninsula. I want to make clear that we have
all along pursued such a position. That is, we want the
Korean Peninsula to have peace and stability. We hope that
the problems between DPRK and ROK can be resolved through
dialogue. And we also sincerely hope that the contacts
between the United States and DPRK will be resumed.
All in all, in handling state-to-state relations, it is important
to resolve the problems through peaceful means, in a spirit of equality
and through consultation. And that's why I've explained our
consistent and clear-cut position on the question of Korean
Peninsula. It's quite near.
You asked about Iraq. Iraq is not as
near. But I think, as I made clear in my discussion with
President Bush just now, the important thing is that peace is to be
valued most. With regard to counter-terrorism, our position
has not changed from the position I made clear to President Bush when
we last met four months ago. And that is, China is firmly
opposed to international terrorism of all forms.
I'm very pleased to see that Afghanistan has now embarked on a road
of peaceful reconstruction. I wish them well. I
hope they will succeed in rebuilding their country and enjoying
national unity and peace.
Let me conclude by quoting a Chinese proverb: "More
haste, less speed." Despite the fact that sometimes you will
have problems that cry out for immediate solution, yet patience is
sometime also necessary. Or perhaps I could quote another
Chinese old saying to describe the situation: "One cannot
expect to dig a well with one spade." So we need to make
continuous our unlimiting efforts to fight terrorism. Thank
you.
END 1:52 P.M. (Local)
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