China Rebuffs U.S. Plan for Talks on Korea

China on Friday rebuffed the Clinton administration’s new initiative for talks on the future of the Korean peninsula by suggesting that the governments in Seoul and Pyongyang will have to work out their own differences before outside powers become involved.

Chinese Foreign Minister Qian Qichen also reacted coolly to the upgrading of security ties between the United States and Japan, warning that Washington and Tokyo should not extend their defense cooperation throughout Asia.

Qian’s remarks underlined the continuing frictions between China and the United States as the two most powerful presences in Asia try to figure out whether they can work together or whether their relations will become increasingly adversarial.

Secretary of State Warren Christopher and Qian met here for the first top-level talks between China and the United States since China fired missiles near Taiwan’s coastline on the eve of democratic elections there. Friday’s session took on added importance after the recent cancellation of a visit by Chinese Defense Minister Chi Haotian to the United States.

Qian warned Friday that strained Sino-American relations are now “at a critical juncture.” Alluding to the recent frictions, he said the two countries should “agree to disagree” about divisive issues such as human rights.

Christopher reassured Qian that the Clinton administration will support renewal of China’s most-favored-nation trade benefits. And he sought to emphasize points of agreement with Qian on Korea, noting that Washington and Beijing had cooperated in stopping the development of nuclear weapons on the Korean peninsula.

But there was no sign of any change in position between the two governments on Taiwan or human rights. And tight-lipped U.S. officials refused to make any claims of progress in persuading China to stop its exports of nuclear technology to Pakistan.

The U.S. intelligence community concluded recently that China has sold Pakistan ring magnets that can be used in Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program. Christopher has been trying to decide whether to impose economic sanctions against China for the sale.

On Monday, President Clinton and South Korean President Kim Young Sam proposed new four-way talks involving the United States, China and South and North Korea aimed at ending the hostilities that have persisted between Seoul and Pyongyang since the Korean War.

The proposal was somewhat similar to ones made several years ago by the Bush administration for multilateral cooperation on Korea.

But Clinton’s initiative gave a considerably larger role to China than the earlier proposals--in effect suggesting that Korea could become the test for whether the United States and China can work together.

The Bush administration’s initiatives had proposed talks among the United States, China, Japan, Russia and North and South Korea. But Clinton left out Japan and Russia, suggesting that the two most important outside powers on the future of Korea are the United States and China.

A senior State Department official explained Friday that the decision to invite China, but not Russia and Japan, to the talks on the future of Korea was made because it was “pragmatic” and had “the best chance of success.”

On Thursday, North Korea officially broke its silence on the new diplomatic initiative, reacting cautiously to the idea. “We are now examining the proposal of the U.S. side to see whether it seeks another purpose and whether it is feasible,” said a statement issued by the North Korean Foreign Ministry.

However, China on Friday threw cold water on the proposal by attaching a virtually impossible condition to it.

While Qian termed the Korea initiative “reasonable,” he quickly added: “But we also believe that it [the initiative] can only be realized when all parties, especially those parties directly concerned, can reach agreement.”

In effect, China was saying that there has to be an agreement first between North and South Korea, which remain bitter enemies. The reason for the Clinton administration’s initiative is that outside powers like the United States and China need to become involved, because the two Koreas can’t work out peace on their own.

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In recent years, the United States has often sought China’s help in bringing pressure upon North Korea. Chinese officials regularly point out, however, that China doesn’t have much influence over North Korea and that the isolated Pyongyang regime does not take orders from Beijing. China does provide North Korea with more oil and food supplies than any other country.

Qian also had few positive things to say about the joint declaration on security ties which Clinton and Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto issued earlier this week in Tokyo.

He portrayed U.S.-Japanese military ties as a relic of the World War II aftermath, in which the United States agreed to provide a nuclear umbrella to help defend Japan. If this Washington-Tokyo security cooperation were to be broadened from the task of defending Japan to collaborating with one another throughout Asia, Qian said, then it would be “a big problem.”

Christopher tried to put the best face on the administration’s differences with Beijing by saying China represents “one of the most important of our bilateral relationships.” He said the Clinton administration wants to see a “strong, stable, open and prosperous China.”

Yet the secretary of state admitted moments later that the United States is “disappointed with the lack of progress” by China in the field of human rights.

Next week, the United Nations Human Rights Commission is scheduled to take up a resolution, sponsored by the United States and European allies, that criticizes China for human rights abuses. Top Chinese officials have been working hard behind the scenes to prevent the U.N. from adopting that resolution.

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