U.S. Department of State Dispatch
Volume 7, Number 48, November 25, 1996
Bureau of Public Affairs
ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE
1. The U.S. and Australia: Working Together To Meet New Challenges of
the 21st Century -- President Clinton
2. The U.S. and Thailand: Making a Partnership Work for the Asia-
Pacific -- President Clinton
3. The United States and China: Building a New Era of Cooperation for
a New Century -- Secretary Christopher
4. Strengthening U.S.-China Ties -- Secretary Christopher
5. A Pacific Future of Prosperity and Stability: Sustaining APEC's
Remarkable Momentum -- Secretary Christopher
6. Launching a New Phase In APEC's Evolution -- Secretary Christopher,
Secretary Kantor, Ambassador Barshefsky
ARTICLE 1:
The U.S. and Australia: Working Together To Meet New Challenges of the
21st Century
President Clinton
Address to Australian Parliament, Canberra, Australia, November 20, 1996
Mr. Prime Minister, Mr. Speaker, Madam President of the Senate, the
Leader of the Opposition, all the members of the Senate and House,
ladies and gentlemen: Let me begin, Prime Minister, by thanking you,
the people of Canberra, and all of Australia for the absolutely
tremendous welcome that Hillary and I and the entire American delegation
received. I know this is called the Land Down Under, but after only a
day, we all feel like we're on top of the world, and I thank you for
that.
I appreciate the opportunity to speak to you in this great hall of
democracy. Your Prime Minister -- Sir Robert Menzies -- was one of the
very few world leaders to address our United States Congress twice. Now
I give you that fact as a point of interest, not a pitch for a return
engagement here.
Forty-one years ago this year, here is what he said to our people: We
have, with your great country -- as a result of war as well as of peace
-- a tie which I believe to be unbreakable and a degree of affectionate,
simple understanding that I do not believe can be surpassed between any
two countries of the world.
Today, 41 years later, the Prime Minister's insight still holds. The
ties between us span more than 200 years. In 1792, an American ship
named for brotherhood -- The Philadelphia -- arrived at Port Jackson
with supplies that helped save the colonists from starvation. Former
Prime Minister Frasier noted that the beef that The Philadelphia carried
had been on board for nine months -- well-cured, he called it.
Well, my friends, two centuries later, our friendship -- tested in war
and seasoned in peace -- has also become well-cured. Our people have
built bridges of commerce and culture, friendship and trust, reaching
over the greatest expanse of ocean on the earth. The United States is
proud to be Australia's largest foreign investor and largest trading
partner. We are also proud of the wars we have fought together and the
peace we have fought to sustain together.
The great diversity of our ties was born of shared experience and common
values. Our pioneers both settled vast frontiers and built free nations
across entire continents. In one another, I really believe we see a
distant mirror of our better selves -- reflections of liberty and
decency, of openness and vitality. In this century, our bonds truly
have been forged in the fires of wars -- war after war after war.
Together, we carried liberty's torch in the darkest nights of the 20th
century.
My message to you today is that we must embrace the dawn of this new
century together, and we must make the most of it together. We carried
a torch through the night; now we can create the dawn our children
deserve.
For Australia's strength and sacrifice through these many struggles, for
your fierce love of liberty and your unfailing friendship to the United
States, the American people thank you. And the American people look
forward with you to this new era of freedom and possibilities. After
all, our nations are at peace, our economies are strong. The ideas we
have struggled for -- freedom of religion, speech and assembly, open
markets, tolerance -- they're more and more the habits of all humanity.
For the first time in all history, two-thirds of all the nations on this
earth and more than half the people alive today are ruled by governments
picked by their own people. The rigid blocks and barriers that too long
defined the world are giving way to an era of breathtaking expansion of
information technology and information.
And because of these things, we now have a chance -- greater than any
generation of people who ever lived before us -- to give more and more
people the opportunity to realize their God-given potential, to live
their own dreams, not someone else's plan.
But this chance we have is nothing more than that. It is a chance, not
a guarantee. For all its promise, we know this new century will not be
free of peril, and therefore, we know that our freedom still requires
our responsibility. Nations and people still will be tempted to fight
wars for territory or out of ethnic, religious, or racial hatred.
As I told the American people over and over again during the recent
election campaign, it was literally heartbreaking to me to think of how
much of their time I had to spend dealing with people who still believe
it's all right to murder each other and each other's children because of
their racial, religious, ethnic, or tribal differences. We must stand
against that, and the example of how we live together must be a rebuke
to that in the 21st century.
And make no mistake about it, there is a nexus of new threats --
terrorists, rogue states, international criminals, drug traffickers.
They, too, menace our security, and they will do more of it in the new
century. They will be all the more lethal if they gain access to
weapons of mass destruction, whether nuclear, chemical, or biological.
Because of our size, our strength, our prosperity, and the power of our
example, Australia and the United States have a special responsibility
not only to seize the opportunities but to move against the new threats
of the 21st century. Together, we can reduce even more of the danger of
weapons of mass destruction. We can take the fight to the terrorists
and the drug traffickers. We can extend the reach of free and fair
trade. We can advance democracy around the world. And, yes, we can
prove that free societies can embrace the economic and social changes
and the ethnic, racial, and religious diversity this new era brings and
come out stronger and freer than ever.
The threat of nuclear weapons, born a half-century ago, finally is
diminishing as a new century begins. The United States and Russia are
reducing our arsenals, pointing our weapons away from one another, and
working to safeguard nuclear materials and facilities. Every Australian
should be very proud of the role your country has played in guiding the
world toward a more secure future.
You helped lead the fight to extend the non-proliferation treaty. Your
determined diplomacy brought the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty to
reality and the world to the verge of banning all nuclear testing for
all time. Every nation is in your debt for that achievement. And on
behalf, again, of the people of the United States, I say thank you.
Now we must pursue together our remaining arms control agenda -- further
reductions in Russia's and America's arsenals once Russia ratifies Start
II; a chemical weapons convention, so that our troops never face poison
gas in the battlefield and our people never fall victim to it in a
terrorist attack; a stronger biological weapons convention, so that
disease is never used as a weapon of war; a worldwide ban on landmines,
so that all our children can walk with confidence on the earth beneath
them.
As we deal with these challenges to our security we must recognize the
new ones which are emerging and the new approaches they require.
Terrorism, international crime, and drug trafficking are forces of
destruction that have no tolerance for national borders. Together, we
must show zero tolerance for them. That means putting pressure on rogue
states, not doing business with them. It's very difficult to do
business by day with people who kill innocent civilians by night.
It means giving no aid and quarter to terrorists who slaughter the
innocent and drug traffickers who poison our children. It means, in
short, pursuing a concerted strategy -- intelligence and police
cooperation worldwide, coordinated legal action in every country to stop
money laundering, shutting down gray markets for guns and false
documents, and increasing extraditions. It means security coordination
in our airports and airplanes and in giving, each in our own nation, our
law enforcement officials the tools they need to cooperate and to
succeed.
The measure of our people's security includes not only their physical
safety, however, but, as we all know, their economic well-being. Our
two countries have led in opening markets around the world and we can be
pleased with our progress. Through GATT, the WTO, APEC, and literally
hundreds of smaller accords, we are moving to extend the reach of free
and fair trade. But we can do more, issue by issue, agreement by
agreement.
I am determined to work with Congress in my second term to move ahead
boldly on market-opening initiatives around the world. Decades from now
I want people to say that our generation rose to the challenge of
creating a new, open trading system for the 21st century. If we do,
more people will have good jobs and better lives as they share in
humanity's genius for progress. Over the long-term we can best advance
the security and prosperity we seek by expanding and strengthening not
only trade but the community of free nations.
The tide of democracy is now running strong and deep. Consider this:
In just the past few weeks, the people of Lithuania, Bulgaria, Romania,
Moldova, Nicaragua, and Thailand have freely elected their leaders -- a
prospect literally unimaginable not very long ago. In my own
hemisphere, every nation but one has raised freedom's flag. In central
Europe and in Russia, Ukraine, and the other New Independent States the
forces of reform have earned our respect and deserve our continued
support.
For the first time since the rise of nation states on the continent of
Europe, it is literally conceivable that we have an opportunity -- a
real and tangible opportunity -- to build a continent that is
democratic, undivided, and at peace. It has never been possible before,
and together we can achieve it now.
Now, I know that some people on both sides of the Pacific are concerned
that America's continuing involvement with Europe and our intense
renewed involvement with our neighbors in Latin America will lead to
disengagement from the Asia-Pacific region. They are wrong. Mr. Prime
Minister, if I could borrow your eloquent phrase -- at least I'm giving
you credit, as we politicians don't often do -- the United States does
not need to choose between our history and our geography. We need not
choose between Europe and Asia. In a global economy with global
security challenges, America must look to the East no less than to the
West. Our security demands it. After all, we fought three wars here in
living memory. The Cold War's last frontier lies now on the Korean
Peninsula. The region as a whole is in the midst of profound change.
So our security demands it.
Our prosperity requires it. One-third of our exports and more than 2
million American jobs depend upon our trade with Asia. Over the next
decade, Asia's remarkable growth will mean ever-expanding markets for
those who can compete in them. Our future cannot be secure if Asia's
future is in doubt.
As we enter the 21st century, there- fore, I say to you that America not
only has been, she is and will remain a Pacific power. We want
America's involvement and influence to provide the stability among
nations that is necessary for the people of the Asia-Pacific region to
make the routines of normal life a reality and to spur the economic
progress that will benefit all of us.
To meet those challenges of stability, we are now pursuing three
objectives -- stronger alliances, deeper engagement with China, and a
larger community of democracies. First, we share the view of almost
every nation in Asia that a strong American security presence remains
the bedrock for regional stability. We will maintain about 100,000
troops across the Pacific, just as we maintain about 100,000 troops in
Europe. We will keep them well-trained, well-equipped, and well-
prepared. We will continue to revitalize our core alliances both
bilaterally and regionally.
These efforts, let me say clearly, are not directed against any nation.
They are intended to advance security and stability for everyone so that
we can grow together and work together, all of us in the new century.
Our alliance with a democratic, prosperous Japan has been one of the
great achievements of the postwar period. Last spring, after more than
a year's hard study and work, Prime Minister Hashimoto and I signed a
new security charter. Japan's continued support for our military
presence and even closer links between our armed forces will enable us
to deepen our cooperation on behalf of peace and stability in this
region and beyond.
With our close ally in South Korea, we are working to reduce tensions on
the Korean Peninsula that threaten all of northeast Asia. We must give
new momentum now to the four-party peace talks that President Kim and I
proposed last spring. And we must continue our work to dismantle North
Korea's frozen nuclear program. We are reinforcing our security ties
with the Philippines and Thailand, while multiplying the power of our
troops through greater access to regional military facilities.
And finally and simply put, the defense links between the United States
and Australia have never been stronger in peacetime. Mr. Prime Minister
and members of Parliament, the agreements our foreign and defense
ministers signed this summer in Sydney authorized the largest exercises
involving our troops since World War II. American Marines will soon
begin training in northern Australia, and we are deepening our already
strong security cooperation. Today I say, again with utter confidence,
our alliance is not just for this time, it is for all time.
As we work nation to nation, let us continue to build a new architecture
for regional security as well -- an architecture through ASEAN that will
strengthen our ability to confront common challenges. Already this
effort is helping to diffuse tensions in the South China Sea and to
dispel distrust across the region. We must pursue it to its full
potential.
Our second stabilizing objective is deeper engagement with China. The
direction China takes in the years to come, the way it defines its
greatness in the future will help decide whether the next century is one
of conflict or cooperation. The emergence of a stable, an open, a
prosperous China, a strong China confident of its place in the world and
willing to assume its responsibilities as a great nation is in our
deepest interest.
True cooperation is both possible and plainly productive. We worked
closely with China to extend a nuclear non-proliferation treaty and to
secure the passage of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. We joined to
shore up peace in Cambodia and increase stability on the Korean
Peninsula. We're making progress together on some tough issues -- from
nuclear technology to intellectual property rights.
The United States and China will continue to have important differences,
especially in the area of human rights, and we will continue to discuss
them candidly. But by working together where possible and dealing with
our differences openly and respectfully when necessary, we can deepen
our dialogue and add to Asia's stability. I look forward to doing just
that when I meet for the fourth time with President Jiang in the
Philippines next week.
The third part of our work for stability is support for the advance of
democracy. Our two nations know that democracy comes in many forms.
Neither of us seeks to impose our own vision on others, but we also
share the conviction that some basic rights are universal and we have to
decide whether we believe that. I believe people everywhere aspire to
be treated with dignity, to give voice to their opinions, to choose
their own leaders. We have seen these dreams realized in the democratic
odyssey of the Asia-Pacific from Japan to South Korea to Thailand and
Mongolia.
In this century, we have sacrificed many of our sons and daughters, your
nation and ours, for the cause of freedom. And so we must continue to
speak for the cause of freedom in this new age of commerce and trade and
technology. We must push repressive regimes in places such as Burma to
pursue reconciliation and genuine political dialogue. We must assist
new democracies such as Cambodia by encouraging the development of
political parties and institutions.
We know that the freer and better educated people are, the more creative
they become, the better able they are to compete, the more able they are
to satisfy each other's deepest wants and needs. We can look at the
economic vitality of the Philippines, Thailand, Taiwan, and South Korea
to see the proof of this assertion.
As stability extends its reach and strengthens its grip, the Pacific may
finally be able to live up to its name. In Cambodia, farmers once again
till the land that had become horrific killing fields. In Vietnam,
schoolchildren can worry more about their exams than about the war.
From Bangkok to Manila, power is no longer used against the people; it
is in the hands of the people.
A generation ago, it was hard to imagine how rapidly freedom could come
to these nations, how rapidly their economies could grow. But freed
from the threat of war, unleashed by their new-found freedoms, the
people of this region have built among the greatest success stories the
world has ever seen. They have transformed economic wastelands into
powerful engines for growth and have enriched the lives of millions by
harnessing the technology of change. Today, the economies of the Asia-
Pacific are clearly the most dynamic on earth.
More than 7 million Americans trace their roots to Asia. Five of our
states touch the Pacific. We are inexorably linked to the promise of
the Asia-Pacific region. That is why in the first year of my term, I
sought to elevate the APEC forum that began right here in Canberra into
the first-ever meeting of Asia-Pacific leaders. At our inaugural summit
in Seattle, working closely with your former Prime Minister, Paul
Keating, we agreed to give this extraordinarily diverse region a common
goal -- to work as a community of nations committed to economic
integration.
A year later in Jakarta, we made a historic commitment -- free trade and
investment in the region by 2020. Some said that was an illusory vision,
but already that vision is becoming a blueprint -- a blueprint taking
shape as concrete commitments. At next week's leaders meeting, Prime
Minister Howard and I hope and expect that APEC will give a boost to
specific market opening initiatives. For me, I hope that means
unshackling trade in computers, semiconductors, and telecommunications
-- the high-tech sectors of the future. We have an opportunity to set
an example for the rest of the world, and we ought to seize it. If we
do, the nations of the region will benefit -- those who provide the
services and those who receive them.
Progress, after all, is not yet everyone's partner, and we have a
responsibility to open the doors of opportunity to those who remain
outside the global economy. For example, some two-thirds of the people
on our planet have no access to a telephone. I found that hard to
believe when I saw so many of your fellow citizens with their cell
phones in their hands as I drove up and down your streets.
More than half the people of the world are two days' walk from a
telephone. They are totally disconnected from the communications and
information revolution that is the present vehicle for human progress
and possibility. If we add their creative energies to the mix which now
exists, of course they will gain skills and jobs and greater wealth, but
we also will benefit from the higher growth rates, from the expanded
markets, and from the increasing likelihood that those people will find
peaceful -- rather than warlike -- ways to release their energies. We
can do this if we have the courage not to retreat but instead to
compete.
At this year's meeting at APEC and everywhere I go, I also will deliver
again a simple, loud, and clear message: The United States is more
determined than ever to create an Asia-Pacific community of shared
efforts, shared benefits, and shared destiny. The interests that compel
our engagement have grown, not shrunk, and so has our commitment to a
Pacific future.
We know from our past that we can succeed, that we are equal to the
difficulties ahead. I began today by quoting Prime Minister Menzies, so
let me conclude by returning to his words. He said, The world needs
every scrap of democratic strength that can be found in it because
nobody, however optimistic, need underestimate the measure or the
character of danger that always confronts us. It is not merely our
privilege to be strong, it is our duty to be strong.
The world needs Australia. The world needs the United States. It needs
us together as partners and friends and allies. We have stood together
in the hard times as partners and friends. Let us stand together and
work together now for a new future of peace and possibility that extends
to our children and our grandchildren and to all the children of the
world.
May God bless Australia, the United States, and the great friendship
between our nations. Thank you very much.
(###)
ARTICLE 2:
The U.S. and Thailand: Making a Partnership Work for the Asia-Pacific
President Clinton
Address at Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, November 26,
1996 (introductory remarks deleted)
I am delighted and honored to be here today at a great center of
learning that is a living memorial to Thailand's glorious past, yet
which has a mission focused on the future; an institution that is
proudly and distinctively Asian, yet reaches out to the entire world.
And in the faces of the young people who are in this audience, we all
see the shining promise of tomorrow.
I thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak here today about the
future of the United States, Thailand, and the entire Asia-Pacific
region we will share in the 21st century. Three years ago, I took my
first trip as President overseas to Japan and Korea. Now, shortly after
my reelection, again my first trip is to Asia -- to Australia, the
Philippines, and Thailand. In Australia at APEC, in my meetings with
the leaders of China, South Korea, Japan, and your own nation, I have
reaffirmed America's commitment to the Asia-Pacific region. That
commitment is stronger than ever, because in the 21st century America's
future cannot be secure if Asia's future is in doubt.
I have wanted to visit Thailand for quite some time now, but I am
especially glad to be able to join you in this historic year as we
celebrate the life and work of His Majesty the King. The close ties
between our two nations go back to 1833, when America signed a treaty of
amity and commerce with the Kingdom of Siam. Those early bonds of
friendship have endured the test of time, anchored by our security
alliance, strengthened through our comradeship in Korea and Vietnam, and
kept sharp and ready through Cobra Gold -- the largest exercise
involving United States forces anywhere in Asia.
Our nations are partners in prosperity as well. We enjoyed some $18
billion in two-way trade last year alone. We've forged important
agreements in civil aviation, the protection of intellectual property,
and the tax treaty I was honored to witness just a few moments ago here
in Bangkok. More than ever, our people also are joined by ties of
culture and community. My country has been strengthened by the
contributions of literally tens of thousands of Americans of Thai
descent. And from Southern California to Houston to New York, our
culture has been greatly enriched by the graceful temples, the ancient
traditions, the exotic flavors of Thailand, which now have a home in the
United States.
Now we must deepen our partnership for the demands of the 21st century.
The United States and Thailand, for all the distance and differences
between us, share a common vision -- the dream of an Asia-Pacific region
where economic growth and democratic ideals are advancing steadily and
reinforcing one another. That dream is coming true here in Thailand
today -- to the benefit of your people, this region, and the world.
Consider just how much the world has changed since President Johnson
spoke here at Chula 30 years ago. The Cold War is over. ASEAN -- born
in the throes of the Vietnam war -- last year welcomed Vietnam as its
newest member. Thailand has become an economic powerhouse. The
economies of East Asia are the fastest-growing in the world. The new
global economy -- spurred on by continuous explosions in information
and technology -- is transforming the way we live and work and
communicate, collapsing the distances between us as the free flow of
goods and the free flow of ideas are bringing tremendous opportunities
for people throughout the world.
Of course, for all its promise, the 21st century will not be free of
peril. Aggressive rogue states, global crime networks, drug
traffickers, weapons proliferation, and terrorism -- all these will
continue to menace our security.
The nations most likely to succeed in this new world -- to succeed in
seizing the opportunities and meeting the threats of our time -- are
those that respond to the needs and aspirations of their people, promote
commerce and cooperation instead of conflict, and have the openness and
flexibility to harness the winds of change.
Thailand is proving that proposition every day. Yours has been the
world's fastest-growing economy over the last decade. You are laying
the groundwork for an Asia of the future, where ancient cultures are
linked by modern communications; where a vast and diverse region is
joined by values of hard work and enterprise and shared benefits. This
benefits the United States with more than 2 million jobs and 40% of our
trade now tied to the Asia-Pacific region.
In the face of this, some have argued that democracy actually hinders
economic growth in this region and in developing nations. But we need
look no further than the economic vitality of Thailand, the Philippines,
Taiwan, and South Korea to see that economic growth and democratic
development can go hand in hand. Indeed, in the information-based
economy of today and tomorrow, free market democracies have unique
advantages. Freedom and democracy strengthen the prospects for strong
and enduring economic progress.
A wave of democracy has swept the earth in recent years -- from Hungary
to Haiti to South Africa to Cambodia to Mongolia. More than half the
world's people now live under governments of their own choosing for the
first time in all of human history.
Here in Thailand, last week's elections were a further milestone in your
democratic journey. As always in elections, there were winners and
there were losers. I can say that; I have been a winner and a loser.
And, while losing is not as good as winning, whenever power is
transferred peacefully and democratically, everyone in that nation is a
winner.
The United States is proud to have supported democracy's march across
Asia. We do not seek to impose our vision of the world or any
particular form of government on others. But we do believe that freedom
and justice are the birthright of humankind. The citizens of Thailand,
Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, the Philippines, Thailand -- Taiwan --
show us that accountable government and the rule of law can thrive in an
Asian climate.
The people of Cambodia and Mongolia proved that change is possible in
difficult circumstances. The brave reformers in Burma led by Aung San
Suu Kyi remind us that these desires know no boundaries. Their
aspirations are universal because they are fundamentally human.
Every nation of the Asia-Pacific must preserve the best of its
traditions while pursuing the benefits of progress. But surely we can
all agree that human dignity and individual worth must never be
undervalued or abused. The United States will continue to stand with
those who stand for freedom in Asia and beyond. Doing so reflects not
only our ideals, it advances our interests. A nation that respects the
rights of its own people is far more likely to respect the rights of its
neighbors, to keep its word, to play by the rules, and to be a reliable
partner in diplomacy and trade and in the pursuit of peace and
stability.
It is in that pursuit that the United States will continue to maintain
our strong Pacific presence, with 100,000 American troops to safeguard
our common security. We are reinforcing our five core alliances here,
including our very special alliance with Thailand. We're helping Asia
build new security structures to promote stability and peace.
But let me be clear: Our presence is not aimed against anyone or any
nation. Its aim is to benefit everyone and every nation through greater
security and stability for all.
Safeguarding stability, we know now, requires more than military
strength. In a world grown closer, both the rewards of cooperation and
the costs of conflict have risen dramatically. Just yesterday, we saw
a real result of working together, as the APEC leaders -- with strong
support from Thailand -- enforced early completion of an information
technology agreement which would cut to zero the tariffs on products
from semiconductors to soft- ware by the year 2000.
Imagine the benefits to the students in this auditorium and those just
outside and in booming countries the world over as ideas become even
more open and accessible to people -- as the Information Revolution
spreads to even more eager minds. Imagine the even greater benefits
which will come to that one-half of the world's population which,
believe it or not, is still two days' walk from the nearest telephone.
They cannot participate in this world we are trying to imagine and
create unless we all join together to spread the benefits of the
Information Revolution to everyone and to do it now.
But let us not be blind to the fact that as barriers crumble and borders
blur and progress spreads quickly, so, too, can trouble spread quickly
in this new world. We have only to look at the spread of environmental
degradation, HIV and AIDS, weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, drug
trafficking, and the rise of organized crime. These forces of
destruction defy traditional defenses, just as traditional barriers can
no longer keep out ideas, information, and truth. No nation is immune
to the forces of destruction and none can defeat these threats alone.
Therefore, we must work together. The United States is working with
Thailand to ease the toll that economic growth has taken on your
environment. Many American environmental companies are working here for
a healthier future not only in Thailand, but beyond your borders. Our
embassy here is our regional headquarters for working on issues such as
air pollution and climate change throughout the area. Thailand is
helping to lead the way. Recently you became the first developing
nation to ban the production and import of refrigerators with ozone-
destroying CFCs, and I thank you for that.
We also are working with Thailand to help stop the terrible AIDS
epidemic, now spreading faster in Asia than in any other region of the
world. Again, Thailand stands on the very front lines, setting a strong
example in promoting AIDS prevention. But even with declining rates of
infection, the public health problem is enormous. We in America will
do our part by promoting dramatic increases in research and development
of new drugs. I am happy to say that in our country in the last four
years, the average life expectancy for those with HIV and AIDS has more
than doubled. We will continue to do our part, but you must continue to
work as only you can, here as well.
The United States Agency for International Development helped launch the
Thai Women of Tomorrow Project to assist young women in finding better
prospects than the prostitution that puts their lives at risk. The
First Lady visited that project the day before yesterday when she
traveled to Chaing Mai to see the project started by faculty members at
Chaing Mai University. Of course, this is important to try to turn
these young women and their families away from destructive life habits.
But as the First Lady has said all over the world, it is not enough to
protect women and girls from those who would exploit them; we must all
work together to open wide the positive doors of opportunity so that
every person in every free society can contribute and share in its
progress.
Our cooperation is nowhere more essential than in the fight against the
increasingly interconnected and global forces of organized crime. Left
unchecked, these criminal conglomerates, multinational masters of the
underworld, will distort free economies, derail fragile democracies, and
debilitate our societies with corruption and violence and drugs.
Thailand and the United States are close and committed partners in the
fight against drugs. We cannot afford to rest in the struggle, because
the lives of too many millions of our young people are at stake.
Thailand is setting a strong example for other nations. With the help
of Their Majesties, the King and Queen, you have helped to give farmers
the opportunity to give up the cultivation of opium in favor of other
more productive crops. You have drafted money laundering legislation
which we hope will soon be passed. You have helped to deter drug
trafficking through your country by toughening your northern border
patrols.
Our extensive cooperation in law enforcement is clearly paying off. In
1994, Operation Tiger Trap dealt a crippling blow to a major trafficking
network in Burma -- enabling the arrest of 14 drug kingpins, two of whom
have now been extradited to the United States. In all your work in this
area, Thailand is sending a clear signal to drug lords: We will fight
you; we are determined to stop you. And America has a clear signal to
Thailand: We will stand with you all the way.
On behalf of General Barry McCaffrey, who leads our nation's antidrug
effort and who is with me today, and all those children whose lives we
are helping to save, I thank the Thai Government and the people of
Thailand for moving away from the scourge of narcotics.
We know we must do more to fight illegal drugs at the source. Burma has
long been the world's number-one producer of opium and heroin and now is
also making methamphetamines. The role of drugs in Burma's economic and
political life and the regime's refusal to honor its own pledge to move
to multiparty democracy are really two sides of the same coin, for both
represent the absence of the rule of law. Every nation has an interest
in promoting true political dialogue in Burma -- a dialogue that will
lead to a real fight against crime, corruption, and narcotics, and to a
government more acceptable to its people.
Whether we are fighting drugs, combating AIDS, trying to open bright new
futures for our children, or working to protect the planet we share,
Thailand and the United States are making our partnership work for our
people. For we both know we have much more to gain from standing
together than by going it alone. And we both appreciate how much can be
achieved when dialogue and democracy are the life blood of two nations'
relations with each other, when policies are made through consensus, not
coercion, and when people everywhere are given the tools and the chance
to make the most of their own lives.
Working together, the United States and Thailand can help lead the way
to an Asia-Pacific region in which economic success and greater freedom
advance together and support one another; a region in which growing
opportunity is matched and strengthened by increasing freedom,
stability, and security.
We still have challenges to meet. We still have opportunities to seize.
We still have much to learn from one another. But I am confident we
will do all these things, because we know that by working together and
working with others we can build a Pacific community based on shared
interests, shared values, and shared dreams.
It is my great honor, therefore, to be here today to reaffirm America's
enduring engagement in the Asia- Pacific and our lasting and proud
friendship with Thailand. Thank you very much.
(###)
ARTICLE 3:
The United States and China: Building a New Era of Cooperation for a
New Century
Secretary Christopher
Address at Fudan University, Shanghai, China, November 21, 1996
Good morning. President Yang, thank you very much for that nice
introduction. Vice Mayor Zhao, honored guests: I am delighted to be
here today. It really gives me great pleasure to be at this center
which has played such a valuable role in promoting the study of American
history, culture, and foreign policy. I am honored to meet with the
scholars and students of Fudan University, one of China's most
distinguished institutions of intellectual achievement. Here in this
city where East and West have long met and mixed, you are helping to
shape a modern China with growing links to the wider world.
On behalf of President Clinton, I have come to this great city to speak
to you about the challenges now facing our two nations. My message is
clear: Now more than ever before, the American and Chinese peoples can
and must work together to advance our interests. Like all great
nations, we will no doubt at times have divergent views. But history
has given our two countries a remarkable opportunity -- the opportunity
to build a new era of cooperation for a new century. It is an
opportunity which we simply must seize.
The shape of the world is changing almost as dramatically as this city's
skyline. Today, the Cold War is over, the risk of global nuclear
conflict has been greatly reduced, and the free flow of goods and ideas
is bringing to life the concept of a global village. But just as all
nations can benefit from the promise of this new world, no nation is
immune to its perils. We all have a great stake in building peace and
prosperity and in confronting threats that respect no borders -- threats
such as terrorism and drug trafficking, disease, and environmental
destruction.
To meet these challenges most effectively, China and the United States
must act together -- must act in concert. Some have argued that with
the Cold War's end, the strategic importance of the United States-China
relationship has somehow diminished. I believe they have it exactly
backwards. As a new century begins, the importance of strengthening the
ties between the United States and China will grow even stronger.
Last May, I proposed that we deepen our cooperation by developing a more
regular dialogue, including meetings at the highest level. During the
last few months, contact between our government officials has
intensified across a broad range of issues -- a healthy sign of
maturing relations. Yesterday in Beijing, I had the opportunity to meet
with President Jiang Zemin; Premier Li Peng; and my counterpart, Vice
Premier Qian Qichen. And just three days from now, President Clinton
and President Jiang will meet at the APEC Leaders' Meeting in the
Philippines.
These meetings have one overriding purpose: to reach new understandings
that will bring concrete benefits to the citizens of both countries and
the citizens of the world. The United States is convinced that by
expanding our cooperation at every level -- global, regional, and
bilateral -- we will advance our shared interests. Let me outline
briefly why.
First, I want to talk about the need for the United States and China to
work together on the international stage in dealing with global events.
Our great nations share a weighty, heavy responsibility: As nuclear
powers, as permanent members of the UN Security Council, and as two of
the world's biggest economies, we simply must lead. We have a common
stake in building and upholding an international system that promotes
peace and security and prosperity around the globe.
Nowhere has cooperation been more crucial than in our efforts to halt
the spread of weapons of mass destruction. The last few years
demonstrate just how much the U.S. and China can accomplish when we work
together. Together, we helped ensure the indefinite and unconditional
extension of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and together helped
achieve one of the landmarks of this current period, namely the
conclusion of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. These two giant steps
have made our citizens safer. Americans and Chinese will be even more
secure if we can redouble our efforts to end the production of fissile
material for nuclear bombs, if we can work together to join the global
convention to ban chemical weapons and to strengthen the ability of the
international community to detect and stop illicit nuclear programs.
While the United States and China have worked side by side to reach
important understandings on non-proliferation, much remains to be done.
Indeed, in my meetings yesterday in Beijing we advanced our work
together toward this goal. The new regular dialogue that we will have
between officials from the United States and China on non-proliferation
and arms control issues will facilitate further progress. We have a
shared interest in preventing the introduction of sensitive technologies
into volatile regions such as South Asia and the Persian Gulf. Let me
be particularly clear on one point: Countries such as Iran that sponsor
terror and work against peace cannot be trusted to respect international
norms or safeguards. Their attempts to acquire nuclear and chemical
weapons and missile technology threaten the interests of both of our
countries and, indeed, of all their neighbors. We must work together to
stop them.
Both of our countries will also benefit from an effective global
coalition against terrorists, international criminals, and drug
traffickers. In his speech at the UN last September, President Clinton
called on all nations to deny sanctuary to those global predators in the
narcotics and terrorism field and to ratify the conventions that prevent
and punish terrorism. In addition, China and the United States should
forge strong ties between our law enforcement officials to fight common
foes such as the drug lords in Burma whose traffic in heroin threatens
citizens from Shanghai to San Francisco.
China and the United States have an immense stake in building an open
global trading system for the 21st century. Together, our two nations
account for almost one-third of the global trade and output. For both
of our nations, exports are increasingly important to our economic
growth. We can both profit by joining to establish and uphold rules
that will open markets and will make trade fairer than it is now.
The United States actively supports China's entry into the World Trade
Organization -- WTO -- on commercially meaningful terms. We welcome
China's commitment not to introduce new laws or policies that would be
inconsistent with its WTO obligations. We are prepared to negotiate
intensively to achieve a WTO accession package on the basis of effective
market access commitments by China and adherence to WTO rules.
Our economic growth and well-being are also dependent upon responsibly
managing our natural resources. For the United States and China,
choosing between economic growth and environmental protection is what
President Clinton has called "a false choice, an unnecessary choice."
Both are vitally important and both are mutually reinforcing.
Our nations must demonstrate global leadership on these critical
environmental challenges; perhaps the most dangerous current one is
climate change. The United States and China are leading producers of
greenhouse gases. These gases threaten to raise sea levels, damage our
crop production, and spread deadly disease. As two nations at different
stages of development, we will shoulder our responsibilities in somewhat
different ways, but we should agree to act together and to act now --
globally, regionally, and bilaterally. That is why we are jointly
promoting renewable energy sources and energy efficiency. Most
important for the long term -- and especially to great cities such as
Shanghai -- we are exploring new energy technologies that are less
harmful to the world's atmosphere. On a wide range of environmental
issues -- saving fisheries, controlling toxic chemicals, preserving
forests -- our two countries have recently expanded our environmental
dialogue. We do this to spur progress through the Sustainable
Development Forum which is led by Vice President Gore and Premier Li
Peng.
Let me now turn to the second broad area for cooperation between the
United States and China, namely, the important regional interests that
we share as great Pacific nations.
Across an ocean where terrible conflicts have given way now to more
peaceful relations between nations, today's hard-earned security and
prosperity depend upon maintaining and strengthening stability in this
region. We have had significant successes. We have joined together to
ensure a non-nuclear Korean Peninsula -- and we are working with China
to push forward four-party talks to try to ensure permanent peace on the
Korean Peninsula. In Southeast Asia, our two countries have worked
together with the United Nations to promote peace and reconciliation in
Cambodia.
Throughout the Asia-Pacific region, America's continuing military
presence makes a vital contribution to stability. Some in your country
have suggested that our presence here in the Asia-Pacific region is
designed to contain China. They are simply wrong about that. We
believe that our security presence advances the interests not only of
the United States, but of China and all the countries of the region.
For this reason, the United States will remain a Pacific power in the
next century no less than in the last century. In the wake of the Cold
War, the United States has taken steps to reinvigorate our relationships
across the Pacific. We believe that our five alliances in this region
reinforce peace and benefit all nations -- including China. So do
broader contacts between the militaries of the United States and China.
My nation looks forward to increased exchanges between our armed
services, regular defense minister meetings such as the one that will
take place between Minister Chi and my colleague Secretary Perry next
month, and more port calls such as the one paid by the USS Fort McHenry
to Shanghai last February. The United States and China also will gain
from the success of new regional security dialogues such as the ASEAN
Regional Forum. These dialogues encourage meaningful talks, they defuse
tension, and they promote confidence-building measures.
The United States also is committed to working with China to promote
regional economic growth and prosperity. When the original 12 members
of APEC met in Canberra in 1989, they recognized that the best way to
sustain Asia's dynamism was to ensure that the economies of the APEC
countries would grow together. And now today's APEC members conduct
almost 70% of their trade with each other. This week in the
Philippines, the United States, China, and all the other APEC economies
will set out plans that will lead to the elimination of all barriers to
trade and investment in this region by the year 2020. We also will work
on plans for economic and environmental cooperation throughout the
region. China and the United States, as APEC's two largest members,
have a special responsibility to turn these plans into forthright
action.
Our ability to advance these regional and global goals ultimately rests
on a strong U.S.-Chinese bilateral relationship -- and that is the third
matter that I want to touch on briefly today.
Here in Shanghai almost 25 years ago, the People's Republic of China and
the United States of America -- nations too long separated by mistrust
and suspicion -- took a historic step. We agreed to advance common
strategic goals and broaden ties between our people. Since then,
relations between our nations have been guided by the set of principles
set out in the Shanghai Communique and the two communiques that followed
in 1978 and 1982.
As I have said many times, the United States is firmly committed to
expanding our relationship within the context of our "one China" policy
as embodied in these three communiques. We believe that the P.R.C. and
Taiwan must act to resolve their differences between themselves. At the
same time, we have a strong interest in the peaceful resolution of the
issues between Taipei and Beijing. We believe that the P.R.C. and
Taiwan share that interest in a peaceful resolution of these issues. We
have emphasized to both Taipei and Beijing the importance of avoiding
provocative actions or unilateral measures that would alter the status
quo or pose a threat to peaceful resolution of the outstanding issues.
We are encouraged that both sides have taken steps to reduce tensions in
the Taiwan Strait. We hope that the P.R.C. and Taiwan will soon resume
a cross-Strait dialogue that can help build trust and settle
differences.
Both China and the United States also have vital interests in a smooth
and successful transition of Hong Kong from Britain to China. More than
40,000 U.S. citizens call Hong Kong home, and American investments total
more than $13 billion in Hong Kong. We have welcomed China's pledge to
maintain Hong Kong's unique autonomy, to allow its open economy to
flourish, and to respect its traditions of law and individual freedoms.
These guarantees are crucial to Hong Kong's continued dynamism -- and to
the prosperity of China as a whole. As that vital date approaches -- as
July 1, 1997 approaches -- the world will look on with great interest
and watch as China, we all hope, will respect its commitments to Hong
Kong and to these important principles that will guide Hong Kong in the
future.
China and the U.S. also stand to gain from the sustained economic growth
that brings prosperity to every province of your nation. For two
decades now, America's actions have reflected our deep interest in the
success of China's efforts to lift the living standards of its people.
The United States has supported multilateral assistance to help China
meet basic human needs. American foundations have helped China promote
education and health. And American universities have helped educate
almost 200,000 Chinese students -- some of whom, I'm sure, are here in
the audience today.
Here in Shanghai, the economic benefits of our relationship are readily
apparent. About 2,000 American companies have contracted to invest
almost $4 billion in this city alone, more than anywhere else in China.
From aerospace and computers to capital markets and life insurance, our
businesses and workers are turning Shanghai into an engine of growth and
innovation not just for China and the United States but for the world as
a whole.
These economic links have already made America your largest export
market and China one of our most important customers. Now we can expand
those links by cooperating to meet future needs in agriculture, energy,
and infrastructure -- areas where American know-how is unrivaled. We
must work together to widen market access in China and open new
opportunities for consumers and workers. We must consolidate the gains
that we have already made, by strengthening the protection of
intellectual property. Economic piracy poses a threat not just to
American businesses but to China's software, film, and music industries
as well. By upholding its commitments to protect intellectual property,
China will enhance its ability to attract foreign investment in the
future.
Our work in these and other areas is bringing together our business
representatives, scientists, legal experts, and scholars -- in person
and on the Internet. Last year, more than 400,000 Americans came to
China. Speaking of Americans in China, I am very pleased and proud to
have with me today Ambassador James Sasser and his wife, Mary.
Ambassador Sasser was a leading U.S. senator for 18 years, a member of
the President's party, and now is our ambassador to China. Please join
me in giving a hand to Ambassador Sasser. The flow of visitors has
grown in both directions, and last year more than 160,000 Chinese
visited the United States. From the Chinese officials who visit
America's small towns to the Hollywood producers who flock to the
Shanghai Film Festival, we are building a human bridge across the
Pacific, enriching our countries and cultures with new ideas and new
products. Strengthening these links will deepen our understanding and
our trust and will enable our ties of friendship to grow even stronger.
In all the areas that I have discussed today -- global, regional, and
bilateral -- one lesson stands out: Containment and confrontation will
hurt both of our nations; cooperation and dialogue on the other hand
will best advance our mutual interests. It is that spirit of
cooperation and commitment that infuses my country's approach to our
relationship. Cooperation, of course, is a two-way street: If we are
to produce concrete results, China must also do its part.
The United States and China will continue to face profound differences,
some rooted in history, others in tradition and circumstance. During my
meetings yesterday in Beijing, we discussed our disagreements quite
openly and quite candidly. We have a responsibility to ourselves and to
the world to manage those differences constructively and to approach
them in ways that do not undermine our ability to achieve our important
common goals.
In recent years, our nations have had divergent views about democracy
and the freedoms enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The United States tries to live up to these principles by fighting
injustice at home and speaking up for all those who are persecuted for
seeking to exercise universal rights -- wherever they may live. While
we recognize that each nation must find its own path consistent with its
own history, we believe that these ideals of the Universal Declaration
reflect the values not just of the United States but of countries and
cultures all over the world.
Americans promote individual freedoms and the rule of law not only
because they reflect our ideals but because we believe they advance our
common interest in security and prosperity. History shows that nations
with accountable governments and open societies make better neighbors.
Nations that respect the rule of law and encourage the free flow of
information provide a stable, predictable, and efficient climate for
investment. Those that give their people a greater stake in their
future are more likely to enjoy economic growth over the long term.
China's recent efforts to invest authority in its people through legal
and administrative reforms and village elections are a positive step in
that direction.
For more than two centuries, Americans and Chinese have reached out to
each other across a wide geographic and cultural divide. Many of my
country's finest entrepreneurs, architects, scientists, and artists have
come from your shores to shape our society and drive our economy. At
times, the results have been nothing short of brilliant. Americans, in
turn, have made contributions to China, whether building factories that
provide jobs or bringing ideas that open new opportunities. Yet too
often in our history, distance and difference have blinded us to our
common hopes and interests, creating distorted images of each other that
drive us apart.
Each of us still has much to learn. But technology has shrunk the miles
between us and given us new insight into one another's lives. We know
each other better now than ever before. In a world where barriers are
falling and borders are blurring, our nations are united by increasingly
shared opportunities and challenges.
The United States strongly supports China's development as a secure,
open, and successful nation. We welcome its emergence as a strong and
responsible member of the international community. Now, on the brink of
a new century, our nations have a chance to establish a broad and
durable set of ties for the new era.
As we meet together in this city "above the ocean" that links our great
lands, let us rededicate ourselves to advancing shared goals. If we
unite ourselves in common purpose, we can create a new era of promise.
History has given us this priceless opportunity, and we must and will
meet the challenge.
(###)
ARTICLE 4:
Strengthening U.S. China Ties
Secretary Christopher
Opening remarks at press conference following meetings with Chinese
leaders, Beijing, China, November 20, 1996
Good evening. Today I held an intensive series of meetings with
President Jiang Zemin, Premier Li Peng, and Vice Premier Qian Qichen.
These meetings reflect the importance that both the United States and
China attach to strengthening our relationship. I was particularly
pleased that we had time to discuss at some length the strategic basis
for the ties between the United States and China. Indeed, our two
nations do share many important interests, which we can best advance by
working together. I intend to elaborate on these common goals in my
speech tomorrow in Shanghai.
Our talks today also helped prepare for the meeting between our two
presidents this Sunday at the APEC meeting in the Philippines.
President Clinton looks forward to building on the positive momentum we
have established in recent months and to setting the stage for further
progress during his second term in office.
In today's meetings, the United States and China reached some specific
understandings in several important areas. Let me go through them and
highlight them for you tonight.
First, in the broadest terms, both sides agreed that a healthy
relationship between the United States and China is in the interests of
both countries -- also, in the interest of the Asia-Pacific region and
to the world as a whole. We are both pleased with the recent progress
we have made, and we look to strengthen further our relationship.
Second, both sides agreed to expand high-level contacts. We agreed that
further discussions on this topic will be held by our two presidents in
the Philippines.
Third, on non-proliferation, we discussed several important areas, and I
want to take time to go through them one by one with you. On nuclear
non-proliferation, we agreed that both sides will work for early
implementation of the 1985 U.S.-China Agreement for Peaceful Nuclear
Cooperation. This will require establishing the basis for putting the
agreement into practice. I am encouraged that China has agreed to
formulate and adopt comprehensive nationwide regulations on nuclear
export control. Both sides reiterated that we will fulfill our previous
obligations, including the May 11, 1996 Chinese commitment not to
provide assistance to unsafeguarded nuclear facilities -- a very
important commitment on their part. The Chinese also indicated that
they are studying the question of joining the Zangger NPT Suppliers
Committee and that they will take into account U.S. concerns regarding
sensitive nuclear related transfers. I made clear our strong concerns
about nuclear cooperation with Iran. As we move forward on nuclear non-
proliferation, the United States is prepared to consider, as consistent
with U.S. law, further steps in the area of peaceful nuclear
cooperation, even in advance of our full implementation of the 1985
agreement.
On missile non-proliferation -- a very important but distinct area --
the United States and China reiterated their commitment to the October
1994 Joint Statement on Missile Proliferation that I signed with Vice
Premier Qian Qichen. In our meeting today, the Chinese Government
reaffirmed its commitment to the guidelines and parameters of the MTCR -
- the Missile Technology Control Regime.
On chemical weapons, the United States and China agreed to seek
ratification of the Chemical Weapons Convention by the end of April 1997
so that both of our nations can be original parties to the Convention.
In addition, on the issue of advanced conventional arms, the United
States stressed the risk that is posed for the stability of the Persian
Gulf by the sale of such arms to Iran.
Our discussion, generally, on non-proliferation has advanced our
cooperation in this area of vital interest. But we agreed we must do
more to achieve our goals. I am very pleased that China has agreed to
establish regular dialogues on global security, non-proliferation, and
arms control.
I have taken some time to go through these issues on non-proliferation
because, although they are technical, they are of very high importance,
and those of you who have a special interest in this area will receive
some briefings and further information after I have finished.
Now, fourth, and turning to trade, I indicated that the United States
continues to support Chinese accession to the World Trade Organization
on commercially meaningful terms. We look forward to intensifying our
discussions toward this goal that we share with the Chinese. In
addition, we discussed several areas of bilateral cooperation, including
effective implementation of our agreements on intellectual property
rights.
Fifth, we had useful talks about the future of Hong Kong. China
confirmed its intention to honor its commitment under the 1984 United
Kingdom-P.R.C. Joint Declaration. I made clear our support for a
successful transition that would preserve Hong Kong's high degree of
autonomy, its distinct economic and legal systems, civil liberties, and
democratic development.
We also had good discussions today -- reassuring discussions --
concerning the basis for our Consulate General to continue operations in
Hong Kong after July 1, 1997. China indicated its willingness to
provide as much protection to our officials and citizens as currently
exists in Hong Kong. I must say, this is a considerable reassurance to
me on that point.
Sixth, we agreed to bolster our cooperation in law enforcement in
combating illegal drugs and in deterring alien smuggling. I extended an
invitation to the Vice Minister for Public Security to visit Washington,
DC, in the near future.
Seventh and lastly, on the environment, we reviewed the progress we made
in recent weeks in several areas of importance to both countries,
including climate change, fisheries, and toxic chemicals. I made clear
that Vice President Gore looks forward to strengthening our forum on
sustainable development, which he will chair jointly with Premier Li
Peng. Of course, the United States and China continue to have areas of
difference, which we discussed today openly and candidly.
On human rights, I raised the full range of our concerns, including the
treatment of those who express their views peacefully, along with
raising also the situation in Tibet. The United States will continue to
speak out on the area of human rights in China and around the rest of
the world. The ideals that guide our actions reflect not just American
ideals but universal aspirations.
As always, we discussed the situation with respect to Taiwan. We noted
a welcome reduction in the tensions in the Taiwan Strait in the last
several months. We will continue to urge both Beijing and Taipei to
pursue the resolution of their differences on a peaceful basis and to
resume at an early time the cross-Strait dialogue.
We also had an opportunity today, because we had more time than usual,
to discuss several regional and global issues of great interest and
importance to both nations and to the region. These included, most
prominently, the Korean Peninsula, where China has recently confirmed
its willingness to participate in four-party talks. Other topics that
we discussed of that character today included South Asia, the Middle
East, and the forthcoming APEC meetings.
In sum, we made useful progress today. We are committed -- both of our
nations -- to developing our long-term cooperation and intensifying our
exchanges. To that end, I have invited Vice Premier Qian Qichen to
visit Washington at a time to be determined along with my successor. In
order to deepen our strategic dialogue, we have also agreed to establish
regular exchanges between officials responsible for regional affairs and
for policy planning. My 16 meetings over the last four years with Vice
Premier Qian Qichen -- four a year, approximately -- have helped
advance, I believe, the common interests of the peoples of both
countries. I thank him for his unfailing courtesy and for his
professionalism. He has shown me a good deal of courtesy, and he has
always been able and professional in all of the 16 meetings we have had
over a four-year period. I also want to thank President Jiang Zemin and
Premier Li Peng for their hospitality and their courtesy for meeting
with me at considerable length today and for their expressions of
appreciation for me. Thank you.
(###)
ARTICLE 5:
A Pacific Future of Prosperity and Stability: Sustaining APEC's
Remarkable Momentum
Secretary Christopher
Intervention at APEC Ministerial Meeting, Manila, Philippines, November
22, 1996
Secretary Siazon, excellencies, colleagues, and friends: I would like
to pay tribute to President Ramos, Secretary Siazon, Secretary Bautista,
and their many colleagues for their hard work during the last year.
Thanks to the skillful leadership of President Ramos, I am confident
that the agreements our leaders will reach in Subic Bay will sustain the
remarkable momentum APEC has generated over the last three years.
This is the kind of leadership we have come to expect from Asia's newest
tiger. During the last decade, the Philippines has demonstrated that
democracy and free markets reinforce one another. In the 10 years since
the People Power Revolution, the Philippines has achieved rapid growth,
rising living standards, and broad political participation. I salute
the Philippine people for the inspiring and instructive example they
have set.
The recent success of the Philippines is one dramatic element of Asia's
broader transformation. With the Cold War over, these lands of age-old
tradition and new-found dynamism are together poised to enter an
unprecedented era of security, stability, and prosperity. When
President Clinton took office, he understood America's enormous stake in
the success of this transformation. He saw the need for the United
States to remain a Pacific power in the next century no less than in the
last. And he made a strategic choice to deepen America's engagement in
the Asia-Pacific region.
President Clinton also recognized APEC's potential to forge patterns of
integration and cooperation in this new era. That is why, three years
ago, he brought our leaders together for the first time. Years from
now, we may look back on the Blake Island meeting as the moment when the
leaders of this diverse region began to shape a common identity and
purpose. Two years ago in Bogor, the leaders declared the historic goal
of free and open trade in the Asia-Pacific region by 2010 for developed
economies and by 2020 for developing ones. Last year in Osaka, the
leaders issued the Action Agenda that is our practical blueprint for
carrying out those commitments.
As we gather here in Manila, we have reached an important new phase in
APEC's evolution. Blake Island gave us our vision, Bogor our goal, and
Osaka our blueprint. Now we must begin to take specific, concrete steps
that will open up our economies and help lift the lives and living
standards of our peoples.
Our individual action plans for liberalizing trade and investment will
take each of our economies step by step toward our 2010/2020 goal.
Although they are only the first installments in this process, they plan
significant openings in our markets for goods and services. I
congratulate member economies for taking such encouraging first steps.
The U.S. individual action plan reflects -- and will reinforce -- the
openness of our economy. It explains how we have already met the Bogor
objectives in half of the 14 agreed-upon issue areas and the steps we
are taking in the remaining areas. Our action plan identifies where we
already exceed the global commitments we made in the Uruguay Round. It
also includes proposals on information technology and open skies, which
I will address later, and an initiative to ease business travel. The
United States will offer 10-year multiple-entry visas to short-term
business visitors from any APEC economy that offers American business
travelers reciprocal treatment.
Last year in Osaka, we established two core principles --
comprehensiveness and comparability -- to guide APEC's process of
liberalization. We must adhere to these principles if we are to meet
our 2010/2020 commitments and benefit all our economies.
Comprehensiveness means that we will ultimately open up every sector of
our economies, from agriculture to civil aviation. Given our region's
economic diversity, the pace and sequencing of our actions will vary.
But the bottom line is clear: If even one member economy protects a
single sector, others will be denied economic opportunities. Other
members may then be emboldened to protect their most important sector.
That is why our goal of comprehensive liberalization is so important.
Our second principle, comparability, recognizes that we are not expected
to take identical steps toward free and open trade because of our
different starting points. But this principle does commit each of us to
do our fair share -- to make similar efforts at each step of the way as
we move forward to meet our common goals. A key task for the next year
is ensuring that our individual action plans will accomplish this
objective.
Beyond our individual action plans, the Manila Action Plan describes our
collective actions to facilitate trade and investment. It calls on us
to reduce the cost of doing business by eliminating administrative
burdens and overcoming technical barriers. Already we have made
progress in simplifying and harmonizing customs procedures, putting us
on target to establish a regionwide electronic customs system by 2000.
We are also reducing the cost of compliance with the disparate standards
and technical regulations of our 18 economies. And we have published
business guides on government procurement, intellectual property rights,
and foreign investment regimes.
The Manila Action Plan also calls for a fresh approach to the other,
complementary half of APEC's agenda -- economic and technical
cooperation. Our cooperation has already extended to more than 320
activities in 13 different areas. As we look ahead, we must focus on
six key areas -- human resources, capital markets, infrastructure,
technology, the environment, and small- and medium-sized enterprises.
In each area, we must concentrate on achieving concrete outcomes by a
fixed deadline. And in each, we must make the private sector a full
partner in shaping our specific goals.
Our first goal is to develop our human resources. Our highly skilled
work forces have propelled our economies to the vanguard of the global
information revolution. But if we are to preserve our leadership, their
skills must keep pace with technological change. That will mean putting
into action this year's labor ministers' agenda for preparing the
workforce for the 21st century. It will also mean expanding the
Internet database that provides government and business with critical
information on the regional labor market.
Improving human resources also means implementing the APEC Education
Initiative, which was adopted at President Clinton's urging on Blake
Island. This year, two U.S.-led projects have begun moving us toward
our goal of increased regional cooperation in higher education.
The APEC Education Foundation, which I proposed two years ago in
Jakarta, has begun raising funds and is now preparing to make its first
grants. The Foundation will promote research, scholarship, and academic
exchanges among our economies. I am pleased to announce that former
Prime Ministers Anand of Thailand and Miyazawa of Japan, as well as
former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Thomas Foley, have
agreed to serve on the Foundation's Board of Governors. Here in Manila,
we will launch EduNet, a multimedia telecommunications network created
by the University of Washington in Seattle. EduNet will enable APEC
study centers scattered around the Pacific Rim to share information,
coordinate research, and hold classes -- all done through the Internet.
The second goal of our cooperation is to foster efficient and stable
capital markets. Massive investments are needed to sustain this
region's pace- setting economic growth. We have begun to identify the
most successful policies to help strengthen financial markets and
promote private financing for large projects. To attract more foreign
capital, APEC economies must make transparent rules that build investor
confidence. We must also develop common measures to combat money
laundering.
Our third goal is to strengthen the infrastructure of our economies.
For all the past success of APEC economies, serious gaps in the region's
airports, harbors, and highways threaten to hold back future economic
growth. If we are to meet these huge needs efficiently, we must foster
effective public-private partnerships -- a goal that the United States
and Indonesia highlighted at our successful meeting in July.
Our fourth goal is to harness technologies of the future. Computers,
software, fax machines, and modems have driven the Asia-Pacific region's
rapid economic growth. As the region becomes ever more integrated, our
economies will need constantly to sharpen existing technologies and
invent new ones. That is why we are cooperating to improve our
scientific education and research. And here in the Philippines, we have
established a center for sharing technology among small and medium-sized
enterprises within APEC.
The fifth goal is to promote environmentally sound growth. As President
Clinton has often said and so many other APEC leaders also believe,
pitting economic growth against environmental protection is a false
choice. They are both necessary, and they are closely linked. At
President Clinton's suggestion, APEC environment ministers recently
adopted an action program that includes initiatives for clean technology
and production, clean oceans and seas, and sustainable cities. U.S.
support for these goals is another example of our determination to place
environmental issues in the mainstream of American foreign policy, and
we look forward to making progress on them with our partners in the
region.
The sixth and final goal of our cooperation is to ensure that our small
and medium-sized enterprises fully participate in the economic dynamism
of the region. Across our economies, they are engines of growth and
catalysts for innovation. They are also our principal source of new
jobs. That is why we want to encourage the exchange of information on
trade and investment opportunities across our economies -- and why we
would like APEC to help draw these firms into the world of Internet
commerce.
Our cooperation in these six core areas will solidify the foundation for
sustained economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region. In APEC's
cooperation efforts, no less than in our liberalization efforts, we must
concentrate on achieving concrete results by a fixed deadline. That is
why our efforts this year to heighten the engagement of the private
sector are so important. It knows the needs of the marketplace, and we
need it to work with us to shape realistic objectives.
After all, one of the critical tests of APEC's success will be whether
its work has practical relevance to the business community. Two years
ago, I proposed establishing the APEC Business Council as a permanent
forum for business participation within APEC. This past year, the
Council has come into its own with a very useful inaugural report.
Today, I would like to make two recommendations that can directly
benefit the private sector in each of our economies. By moving ahead
in these areas, we can show the business community that APEC means
business.
First, APEC should address the problem of conflicting professional
standards among our economies. If we truly want to work together to
build our skyscrapers and freeways with maximum efficiency, then
architects and engineers from Seoul must be able to work as easily in
Singapore, Santiago, and Seattle as they do at home. Governments cannot
solve this problem alone. In fields such as law, engineering, and
architecture, the experts themselves play the key role in determining
the standards for their licenses. I urge the APEC Business Council to
work with private sector professional groups to develop mutual
recognition agreements based on existing standards.
Second, APEC economies, individually and collectively, should modernize
their policies on civil aviation. The telecommunications revolution has
bridged the vast distances that separate the Pacific Rim nations. But
we are short-circuiting this revolution by holding on to outdated
policies in civil aviation. We are impeding business travel, harming
productivity, and undermining growth. For our part, the United States
will pursue open skies agreements with every APEC economy. We are
working hard to reach an agreement with Japan, and we urge our APEC
partners to liberalize their aviation agreements with each other.
The 1990s have been a defining decade in the evolution of the global
trading system, and, during this time, APEC has emerged as a leading
force for liberalization. Three years ago, APEC stepped forward to
ensure the successful conclusion of the Uruguay Round. Now, at next
month's first meeting of World Trade Organization ministers in
Singapore, we once again have the opportunity -- and the responsibility
-- to lead.
At the Singapore ministerial, liberalizing trade in information-
technology products should top the agenda. APEC economies lead the
world in these industries of the future, and we share a critical
interest in reducing barriers to trade in the computer and
telecommunications industries.
The United States believes that at Subic Bay, APEC leaders should call
for the WTO's swift conclusion of the Information Technology Agreement
by Singapore. The ITA would eliminate all tariffs on computers,
software, semiconductors, and telecommunications equipment -- a global
market that generates more than a half-trillion dollars in trade every
year. The agreement will dramatically lower costs and raise
productivity for every business and individual in the world that uses
information technology.
APEC must also show leadership on the WTO's efforts to conclude the
Basic Telecommunications Services Agreement. I urge all APEC members to
come forward with new and better offers to ensure a successful
conclusion of negotiations by the February deadline. With this
agreement, the world's schools and businesses can build their own on-
ramps to the Information Superhighway and take full part in today's
global community.
Beyond information technology, the Singapore ministerial can also give
our economies a chance to promote the full implementation of commitments
made in the Uruguay Round. Last July, APEC trade ministers showed
leadership by pledging that all our economies would be fully up to date
in implementing our commitments by the time of the Singapore meeting.
We must also push hard to conclude the Uruguay Round's "unfinished
business" in 1997, especially in financial services.
In Singapore, we must also take up government procurement. APEC
economies have massive infrastructure requirements and need fair
competition from low-cost, high-quality global suppliers. We must honor
the pledge made last year in Osaka to contribute to global progress on
this issue. The United States believes APEC should support a WTO
agreement to increase transparency in government procurement. At the
same time, we should intensify our work within APEC to adopt a set of
principles to promote fair practices in government procurement, as I
urged last year in Osaka.
Finally, we should begin in Singapore a dialogue on the relationship
between trade and core labor standards. The United States recognizes
that different countries have different economic situations, including
different wage rates and that labor standards are set in the ILO. We do
not propose to interfere with those established standards. But workers
everywhere should know that trade expansion will take into account their
concerns. Such a discussion can only reinforce support for our trade
goals.
Let me conclude by observing that the United States has a great stake in
APEC's success in part because America has truly become an Asia-Pacific
nation. Almost 10 million Asian-Pacific Americans have enriched our
culture, enlarged our economy, and enlivened our democracy. When
Americans of all heritages look across the ocean that links us, we see a
future of opportunity. That is why more and more companies find
themselves equally at home from San Francisco to Shanghai, more and more
American state governors and mayors look to Asia for economic
partnerships, and more and more of our students enroll at each other's
universities and learn each other's languages.
The United States is committed to helping APEC succeed in shaping a
Pacific future of prosperity and stability. We have made historic
commitments that will bring our economies and our peoples together. I
am confident that we will meet them. Thank you very much.
(###)
ARTICLE 6:
Launching a New Phase in APEC's Evolution
Secretary Christopher, Secretary of Commerce Mickey Kantor, Ambassador
Charlene Barshefsky
Opening statements at joint press conference, Manila, Philippines,
November 23, 1996
Secretary Christopher. Good afternoon. About an hour ago, we concluded
a very successful APEC Ministerial Meeting. I believe that here in
Manila, we have prepared a new and important phase in APEC's evolution
that our leaders will launch when they meet on Monday at Subic Bay.
When President Clinton first brought the APEC leaders together at Blake
Island, some three years ago, they embraced a far-reaching vision of
economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. Two years ago in
Bogor, our leaders committed to reach a common goal of free trade and
investment by 2010 and 2020 in the 18 diverse APEC economies. Last year
in Osaka, we agreed on an Action Plan, and now, here in Manila, we've
agreed on specific steps that each of our member nations and economies
will take to carry out the original vision looking all the way back
three years to Blake Island. The APEC economies have each agreed to
take a series of steps that represent the first installment toward
meeting our fundamental 2010 and 2020 commitments.
Over the next several years, our Individual Action Plans will produce
important openings in each APEC economy -- openings that will mean new
opportunities for new investment, trade, growth, and jobs. We've also
agreed to sharpen the focus of APEC's significant agenda of economic and
technical cooperation. We'll concentrate our efforts in six core areas:
human resources, capital markets, infrastructure, technology, the
environment, and small and medium-sized enterprises. In each area, we
will work toward concrete outcomes by a fixed deadline. And, in
connection with this, we'll enlist the advice and technical support of
the private sector to ensure that our work makes a direct and positive
impact on the APEC business environment.
In this connection, let me say that President Ramos has made a very
significant contribution by emphasizing that APEC means business. Since
the very beginning of my own involvement in the APEC process, I've
stressed that the critical test of APEC's success is whether it has a
practical relevance to the private sector. I believe this message is
certainly getting through to the business communities, and we're
beginning to see the concrete benefits of our work to knock down
barriers and to promote trade liberalization throughout the Asia-Pacific
region.
Over the last three years, APEC has emerged as a strong force for global
as well as regional liberalization. That's why the consensus the APEC
ministers reached on the Information Technology Agreement today is such
an important one. Yesterday, I believe many of you were there when we
witnessed the power of technology to bring us together when we
participated in the launch of EduNet, an interactive medium that brought
home the importance of information technology to regional cooperation.
Concluding an Information Technology Agreement is a top priority that
the United States shares with many of its trading partners, and my
colleague, Ambassador Barshefsky, has been working very hard to achieve
this.
What happened today at APEC is another achievement by her, and in a
moment I'll ask her to report to all of you where we stand, what the
agreement at APEC means, how it will be significant as we move into
Singapore.
Let me conclude by observing that the value of these APEC meetings is
even greater than the specific steps that the member economies agreed to
take. These meetings afford an opportunity for our foreign ministers
and trade ministers to come together to exchange views, to forge a new
consensus on various issues, and to move forward as we shape the Pacific
community and draw all of our economies closer together. President
Clinton will build on our work in his meeting with the other APEC
leaders here in Manila tomorrow and at Subic Bay on Monday.
Now with that opening statement, please let me turn to Ambassador
Barshefsky and then Secretary Kantor.
Ambassador Barshefsky. Thank you very much. The endorsement today by
APEC member economies of working to conclude an ITA by Singapore -- and
may I say that this was not merely consensus, this was unanimity among
the APEC member economies -- is an extremely important step. This
unanimity was our primary objective with respect to the trade portions
of the ministerial, and I believe that the clear intention of the
ministerial declaration will provide a very significant boost to ongoing
negotiations in Geneva with respect to the ITA. We -- that is, the
United States -- have identified the ITA as a priority for this APEC
meeting because of its significance to the APEC member economies which
comprise about 80% of global trade in ITA products. ITA production
worldwide in 1995 was $1 trillion. Exports in international trade in IT
products was, in 1995, a half-trillion dollars, and APEC represents
about 80% of that global trade. This is one reason why unanimity
ultimately was achieved. The interest of the APEC member economies in
free and open trade in this sector is quite clear.
Let me say also that this is a sector that is growing at an astonishing
rate. In 1990, global trade was about $350 billion in IT products. In
1995, it was a half-trillion -- by the year 2000, it should be $800
billion. This rapid growth exceeds the rate of growth in any other
sector in any of our member economies. So this is clearly an important
area for APEC, and the unanimity reached today with respect to APEC's
desire that these negotiations come to a successful conclusion by
Singapore attests to the importance of this sector to each of our
economies and to global growth in general.
Let me also say that we achieved, I think, important results with
respect to the Individual Action Plans by APEC members as well as with
respect to the Collective Action Plans. With respect to the Individual
Action Plans, of particular interest to the United States is a very
excellent offer by Indonesia to further reduce its tariffs, on an MFN
basis, particularly in sectors of substantial interest to the United
States, for example, for scientific equipment, pulp and paper products,
and automotive parts. The tariff reductions that Indonesia has put
forward in its Individual Action Plan are very significant -- about a
60% reduction on the average shortly after the turn of the century. So,
we applaud that plan as well as many of the individual items in many of
the other plans.
On the collective action side, among the most dramatic is expanded
Internet access to various customs and other tariff data bases; we were
treated to a demonstration at a ministerial lunch. It is anticipated
that having these broad-based regional data bases on the Internet will
help businesses cut transaction costs and time by a significant amount,
enhancing the commercial relations among the members and enhancing the
profitability of businesses dealing within the APEC region.
So we're very pleased with the outcome of this ministerial, and may I
also say that we applaud the leadership demonstrated by the Philippines
and by President Ramos in helping the ministers bring this session of
APEC to such a successful conclusion. And with that, may I introduce
Secretary Kantor.
Secretary Kantor. Thank you, Ambassador Barshefsky. Of all my
introductions, that was the shortest but the most welcome. Thank you,
Secretary Christopher.
I would just like to put this very quickly into some context here. The
President's first trip as President, of course, was to Japan -- to this
region. His first trip as President-elect is to this region -- and with
good reason. What we're talking about, of course, are the most dynamic
economies on earth. When you combine the U.S.-Canada-Mexico-Chile free
trade area with our other 14 partners in Asia, what we have are the most
dynamic economies on the earth, representing well over 2 billion people,
$16 trillion in income a year, 50% of the world's GDP, and 50% of the
world's trade.
So it is of necessity that we're here in a modern world, globalized and
interdependent, where economic security clearly has become inextricably
entwined with national security interests -- where growth and prosperity
are foundations for stability and security and must be mutually ensured
and where the opportunities that we are presented with can be achieved
only by corresponding responsibility. And what you see is that --
through the leadership of Secretary Christopher and Ambassador
Barshefsky, working under the President's direction -- we've been able
to take the next giant step.
If you remember when we were in Seattle where the President called the
APEC leaders together at Blake Island -- when we established the goals
of Bogor, then the Action Plan at Osaka, and now we find ourselves in
Manila with these Action Plans -- collective and individual -- and trade
facilitation measures, with business inextricably involved, intimately
involved in what we're doing -- I think you can see great progress has
been made. Sometimes, we're somewhat cynical about what's been
achieved. The fact is that, if you look back, there has been tremendous
progress made by APEC, and I believe it has a very bright and prosperous
future for all of us.
(###)
[END DISPATCH VOL. 7, NO. 48]
(###)
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