China, US Pledge Closer Ties, Joint Efforts to Fight Terror

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, January 21, 2003

China, US Pledge Closer Ties, Joint Efforts to Fight Terror

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Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan and US Secretary of State Colin Powell pledged Sunday in New York to further enhance bilateral cooperation in economy, trade and the fight against international terrorism.

Tang arrived here earlier in the day for a UN Security Council ministerial meeting, which is slated for Monday to examine global counter-terrorism efforts.

Tang sees a positive trend of development of China-US relationsand said the two sides should continue to implement the consensus reached last October during a meeting in Crawford, Texas, between Chinese President Jiang Zemin and his US counterpart, George W. Bush.

The two sides should maintain bilateral contacts at various levels, continue to strengthen coordination on major internationalissues, and push their relations for further improvement and development in the new year, Tang said.

Powell said US-China relations are developing in a positive direction and the US side is satisfied with its increasing cooperation with China in economy, trade and counter-terrorism.

They also discussed the Taiwan issue and the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula which attracted world attention after Pyongyang withdrew from the Nonproliferation Treaty earlier this month.

Tang said the Taiwan issue concerns China's core interests and that handling the issue in a careful and appropriate way is critical to the stable development of China-US relations.

He expressed the hope that the US side will stick to the one-China policy, honor its commitments to the three China-US joint communiques and honor its pledge not to support Taiwan independence. He urged Washington to handle the Taiwan issue in a cautious manner and avoid sending any messages that could encourage separatist forces in Taiwan.

Powell said the US side understands the sensitivity of the Taiwan issue and that he is willing to reaffirm the commitments onthe issue made by President Bush during his meeting with PresidentJiang last October.

As to the nuclear crisis on the Korean Peninsula, Powell said the US side is seeking a peaceful solution through diplomatic means and Pyongyang should drop its nuclear program.

Noting that China is much concerned over the nuclear crisis, Tang reiterated that China stands for a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula and believes that an early resumption of talks between parties concerned is key to the resolution of the crisis.

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