Perfidious Act Portends Great DisasterOn April 25, the US government, disregarding the solemn representations of the Chinese side, brazenly decided to sell a batch of advanced weapons including Kidd-class destroyers to Taiwan. This is a political event that seriously infringes upon China's sovereignty and harms Chinese-US relations. This wrong move of the US side seriously violates the provisions of the three Sino-US joint communiques, particularly the Chinese-US "August 17" communique.It will further encourage the arrogance of the "Taiwan independence" forces to split China, aggravate the tense situation in the Taiwan Straits and jeopardize peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. The Chinese government and people express vehement indignation at this! In Chinese-US relations, the Taiwan question has always been the most important and most sensitive core issue. The US government has made its solemn promise to the Chinese government and people regarding the issue of Taiwan, that is, adhering to the one-China principle and abiding by the three Chinese-US communiques. In line with the "August 17" communique, the US government issued the statement that "it does not seek to carry out a long-term policy of arms sales to Taiwan, that its arms sales to Taiwan will not exceed, either in qualitative or in quantitative terms, the level of those supplied in recent years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the United States and China, and that it intends gradually to reduce its sale of arms to Taiwan, leading, over a period of time, to a final resolution". But the US side has repeatedly broken its promises, incessantly sold advanced weapons to Taiwan and continued to strengthen Taiwan's military strength. Especially since the 1990s, US arms sales to Taiwan have become increasingly fierce. First, increase in quantity. Statistics show that the value of US arms sales to Taiwan in fiscal year 1990 amounted to US$510 million, the figure shot up to US$6.62 billion in fiscal year 1993, and later the average annual figure exceeded US$2 billion. Second, ever higher quality. Among the weapons sold to Taiwan include F-16 fighter, Patriot-2 missile, E-2T early warning plane, advanced radar and engine and other high-tech weapons and equipment. Third, becoming more open. The annual arms sales conference of concerned departments of the United States and Taiwan was previously held covertly, but now it is held openly. Last year, in particular, US House of Representatives flagrantly passed the Law on Strengthened Taiwan Security in an attempt to provide a so-called legal basis for the United States to expand its military ties with Taiwan and to sell advanced weapons and equipment as well as technology to Taiwan. Statistics show that over the past 50 years, the weapons and equipment the United States sold to Taiwan have far surpassed US$50 billion, the figure does not include soft service, such as the export of military technology, the cooperative R&D and production of military weapon and equipment and the training of military technical personnel. Before the conference on US arms sales to Taiwan this time, US officials had continually stressed to the outside that based on its "excessively sensitive political consideration", the US government had made the decision not to sell "Aegis", but to sell Kidd-class destroyer in its stead. Since they know the "sensitive" nature of the Taiwan issue, they should mend their way, but why do they obstinately cling to their own course and continue to indulge in arms sales activities? Although the United States has cancelled its plan of selling "Aegis" to Taiwan, the Kidd-class destroyers are still relatively advanced weapons and equipment, the nature of arms sales is bad. People cannot help asking: Why has the US government time and again gone back on its words and gone further to sell arms to Taiwan? As the saying goes, "Sima Zhao's trick is obvious to every one in the street" -what he is up to is only too evident. The political aim of US arms sales to Taiwan is to set obstacles to China's peaceful reunification, contain China by playing the "Taiwan card" and serve its global strategy. US external arms sales directly serve US foreign strategy. US sales of advanced weapons to Taiwan are required by US global strategy. Building a uni-polar world under US control is a strategic goal long pursued by the US government, while US strategy toward China is an important component part of US global strategy. In recent years, whether or not to "protect Taiwan by force" has been a topic of frequent discussion in the United States. Although some Americans recognize the one-China principle and understand the importance of China, they, however, fear the power of China. Proceeding from this strategic idea, they intensify arming the so-called unsinkable aircraft carrier, further playing the "Taiwan card". US anti-China forces attempt to use the Taiwan issue as an important bargaining chip for applying pressure on China. Their direct aim in supporting "Taiwan independence" and intensifying Taiwan's military machine is to contain and weaken China and obstruct China's peaceful reunification. Facts have clearly indicated that US weapons have emboldened and bolstered "Taiwan independence" elements. The greater number and the more advanced US arms sales to Taiwan, the more frantic "Taiwan independence" element will become. When American F-16 fighter was sold to Taiwan, Lee Teng-hui responded with a "visit to the United States", which resulted in hurting Chinese-US relations. When the United States sold early warning planes and the Patriot missiles to Taiwan, Lee Teng-hui then dished out his "two-states theory". US sales of advanced weapons to Taiwan have increased Taiwan authorities' kinetic energy in rejecting peace talks with the mainland for reunification and given the "Taiwan independence" forces a conception that Taiwan has been strong enough to confront the mainland. Undoubtedly, this will increase the uncertainty and danger in the development trend of the situation in the Taiwan Straits. What a great disaster this will be! US sales of large quantities of weapons to Taiwan will eventually harm the interests of the United States itself. In the eye of some Americans with Cold War mentality, after the conclusion of the Cold War, US munition industry was affected, arms dealers were anxious to search for markets. The sales of arms worth tens of billions of US dollars to Taiwan will not only bring benefits to the arms dealers, but also will stimulate the military industry and boost related sectors, so it seems to be in the national interests of the United States. This obviously is a stupid action. Anyone with a slight sense will see such a fact: Compared to 10 years ago, great changes have taken place in the situation in China's mainland and the Taiwan region as well as in Chinese-US economic and trade relations. China has become the fourth big trading country of the United States which has, in turn, become China's first trade partner. As long Chinese-US relations develop normally, the prospect for trade between the two countries will be inestimable. To maintain the healthy development of this kind of "win, win" Chinese-US economic and trade ties, it is necessary to have a stable and peaceful environment as its premise. The large-scale of US arms sales to Taiwan can only inflate the arrogance of "Taiwan independence" elements, while the growth of "Taiwan independence" forces is bound to make it more difficult for cross-Strait dialogs on the basis of the one-China principle and will aggravate the tense situation in this region and the entire East Asia. Arms sales to Taiwan will, in the end, not only affect the Chinese-US relations, but will exert great negative influence on US investment and trade activities in China and its surrounding regions and bring disastrous influence on the world economy and will finally endanger the interests of the United States itself. At present, Sino-US relations are at the crucial moment, properly handling the Taiwan issue is vitally important to maintaining Chinese-US ties. The Taiwan issue is purely China's internal affair which admits of no interference from any outside forces. To put it bluntly, the sale of even a single bullet to Taiwan will essentially mean supporting Taiwan's splitting activities against the motherland and interfering in China's internal affairs. The Chinese government and the Chinese people absolutely not allow such actions. The Chinese nation is a peace-loving nation, the Chinese Army is a peace-loving armed force. However, when the territory, territorial waters and territorial airspace and soevereignty of the motherland are violated, we will fight against the violator through to the end at all costs. The process of the Chinese people's endeavor to accomplish the great cause of reunification of the motherland cannot be obstructed by anyone. |
| People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ |