Taiwan talks rest on sovereignty conditions

China stands ready to discuss a broad range of sensitive military, economic and diplomatic issues with Taiwan if the island’s new government accepts Beijing’s terms on national sovereignty, China’s U.S. Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong said Thursday.

“We have made clear that as long as they agree to the one-China principle, everything can be discussed,” Mr. Zhou said, including such topics as China’s military buildup across the Taiwan Strait and Taiwan’s participation in international organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO).

In a wide-ranging interview with editors and reporters at The Washington Times, Mr. Zhou said China’s rulers “do not challenge” the U.S. security presence in East Asia, even as China rises to the status of an economic superpower with global security and economic interests of its own.

“We recognize the United States as an Asian-Pacific power,” the veteran diplomat said. “You have major interests in this theater and we respect that. China does not want to challenge your interests, but we need to work together on common interests.”

Taiwan, a key U.S. ally and trading partner that China considers a breakaway part of its territory, has long been a sore spot in U.S.-Chinese relations. But Mr. Zhou acknowledged that relations between Beijing and Taipei have warmed noticeably since the inauguration last month of Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou.

Mr. Ma has taken a far more conciliatory approach to the mainland than did predecessor Chen Shui-bian, who regularly upset both Beijing and Washington with moves asserting Taiwan’s independence.

“The tension is clearly dropping. We are seeing signs of an improvement in cross-strait relations,” Mr. Zhou said.

Chinese President Hu Jintao late last month met with Wu Poh-hsiung, head of Mr. Ma’s Nationalist Party in Beijing. Mr. Hu reportedly told Mr. Wu that Taiwan’s participation in international bodies such as the WHO could be a “priority” in future bilateral talks.

Beijing’s insistent refusal to permit the island to join international organizations and alliances under the “Taiwan” name - even under less formal “observer” status - was a constant source of tension under Mr. Chen. Mr. Zhou said the recent thaw in relations could change that.

“We understand that the people of Taiwan desire to take part in international activities,” he said. “We have always respected their rights to having access to the necessary information.”

Mr. Zhou’s suggestion that China would be willing to discuss its military buildup came as Mr. Ma told the Japanese Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper, in its edition published Friday, that the withdrawal of China’s missile arsenal opposite the island was a precondition for talks on an ultimate political settlement.

“In order to reconcile with each other, we should hold peace talks on both sides [of the Taiwan Strait],” Mr. Ma said. “In that case, prior to … talks, I would demand the withdrawal of the missiles or some other way to remove the threat.”

China’s expanding defense budgets, its growing economic clout and its role in creating Asian regional groupings such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) have led to concerns in Washington that Beijing might in time seek to supplant the United States as the region’s dominant military force.

The SCO, dominated by Russia and China and including all the major Central Asian states, has been deepening security ties in recent years, including staging major joint military exercises from which U.S. observers were excluded.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said in a speech in Singapore on Saturday that the United States is a “resident power” in Asia. In explaining the term, the Pentagon chief said there is “sovereign American territory in the western Pacific from the Aleutian Islands all the way down to Guam.”

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