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China, US ever at loggerheads over
Taiwan
By Antoaneta Bezlova
BEIJING - As China forges ahead with the
promulgation of an anti-secession law that would
legitimize war with Taiwan, the United States has
stepped up efforts to keep China's growing
military might in check.
Beijing's
controversial anti-secession law is to be
officially submitted for approval by the National
People's Congress, or China's parliament, during
its annual full session, which opens on March 5.
Beijing says the legislation is aimed at
curbing Taiwan's separatist activities and would
serve as a powerful deterrent to Taipei formally
declaring independence. After the law is enacted,
China would have the legal means to launch a
military invasion of the island if it believes
that the legislation had been violated.
While the United States had refused to
issue an official comment on the proposed law
because it had not seen the legislation, the
administration of President George W Bush has
stepped up efforts to monitor China's overall
military build-up and expansion in the region.
The campaign is waged on two fronts - in
Europe, where US diplomats are lobbying to prevent
the European Union from inadvertently aiding
China's military build-up, and in the Asia-Pacific
region, where US and Japanese officials are
drafting strategies to counter China's rising
military power.
This week, President Bush
is on a fence-mending tour of Europe where he
warned that a plan by the European Union to end
its embargo on arms sales to China could "change
the balance of relations between China and Taiwan"
and said that it causes "deep concern" in the
United States.
The EU imposed the embargo
after the 1989 massacre of pro-democracy
demonstrators in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, but
France, whose defense companies stand to benefit
from the move, has led a campaign to abolish the
ban.
The White House and the US Congress
have voiced concerns that such a move could tilt
the status quo in the Taiwan Strait. China already
has more than 500 missiles targeted at Taiwan.
China says Taiwan is an integral part of
its territory and has vowed to use military means
if necessary to reunite the island with the
mainland. Both have been ruled separately since
1949, when nationalist forces lost the civil war
to Chinese communists and fled the Chinese
mainland to establish their rule in neighboring
Taiwan.
The United States recognizes the
claim that Taiwan is part of China but has said it
would defend the island from forced reunification
and any Chinese incursion. US officials - and the
Pentagon in particular - are concerned that the EU
will be helping China to advance toward rivaling
the US military.
"There's deep concern in
our country that a transfer of weapons will be a
transfer of technology, which would change the
balance between China and Taiwan," said Bush,
making clear his trip was not solely to mend
fences with old Europe.
The Bush
administration has warned that the United States
could limit sales of high-tech military equipment
to EU members if the embargo is lifted. It is also
under pressure from the US Congress to oppose
Beijing's anti-secession law, which US lawmakers
have described as a "license for war".
In
recent days US lawmakers have introduced two
resolutions on what is seen as possible
retaliation if Beijing passes the law. One
resolution demands the resumption of diplomatic
ties with Taiwan. Washington switched diplomatic
recognition from Taiwan to China in 1979 and
maintains only unofficial contacts with Taipei.
The proposed US bill has drawn a sharp
response from China. "This is a gross interference
in China's internal affairs and sends a mistaken
signal to Taiwan's independence forces," said
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan.
In another development aimed at keeping
China's military expansion in check, the United
States and Japan have renewed their joint security
agreement, which for the first time identifies
Taiwan as a shared security concern.
Redrafting the 1996 joint declaration on
bilateral security last week, Washington and Tokyo
cited "the peaceful resolution of issues
concerning the Taiwan Strait through dialogue" as
among the 12 objectives they share. They also
pledged to encourage "transparency in China's
military affairs".
The latter addresses
growing concerns between the US and Japan over the
security threat posed by a more powerful China.
Porter Gross, director of the Central
Intelligence Agency, said last week that "improved
Chinese capability threatens US forces in the
region". In a report delivered to the US Senate
Select Committee on Intelligence, Gross warned
about a possible clash between China and Taiwan
that could embroil the Untied States.
A
security report completed in December by the
US-based Rand Corporation at the request of the US
Army, forecasts a cross-strait war by 2012, when
China's military power would have increased
significantly.
China's double-digit growth
in its military budget in recent years is a source
of deep concern to the United States, and US
analysts are keeping a close eye on Beijing's
build-up of its armed forces.
The military
expenditure of the People's Liberation Army in
2005 is forecast to grow by at least 25 billion
yuan (US$3 billion) to 230 billion yuan ($27
billion). Last year's budget of 218.3 billion yuan
represented an increase of 11.6% over the 2003
budget.
Many analysts believe the
high-growth in defense spending means Beijing is
actively preparing for a potential conflict in the
Taiwan Strait, particularly after the re-election
of Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian, who has
promised to change the island's constitution that
links Taiwan with mainland China.
Tensions
in the Taiwan Strait have continued to rise, even
as Beijing and Taipei exchanged their first-ever
direct charter flights in 55 years during the
Lunar New Year holiday earlier this month. Those
flights have now been discontinued. President Chen
offered to discuss direct cargo charter flights
with China but warned Beijing that its proposed
anti-secession law would ruin hopes for better
relations.
In defense of the
anti-secession law, Foreign Ministry spokesman
Kong said its purpose was to prevent Taiwan
becoming independent and was aimed only at the
leaders of Taiwan's independence movement. "This
law would be conducive to peace and stability in
the Taiwan Strait," he said.
The law is
expected to be passed unanimously, or with few
abstentions, by the rubber-stamp National People's
Congress that endorses Communist Party decisions.
(Inter Press Service) |
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