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Relations With Foreign Countries

Multilateral Diplomacy Unprecedentedly Dynamic

The year 2000 witnessed unprecedented dynamic multilateral diplomacy by China. The UN Millenium Summit was a grand meeting at the turn of the century. President Jiang Zemin led a delegation to the meeting and delivered an important speech, expounding China’s proposition on establishment of a new international political and economic order.

At China’s suggestion, heads of state of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council successfully held their first meeting, leaving a mark of far-reaching significance in the history of the United Nations. At the meeting, Jiang posed principles that the five permanent members of the UN Security Council should observe under the new circumstances. During the interim, Jiang also met with more than 20 foreign leaders. Prior to this, NPC Chairman Li Peng participated in the Conference of Presiding Officers of National Parliaments at the United Nations and delivered an important speech. Focusing on expounding China’s basic views on international situation, Li suggested that contacts between parliaments of various countries be strengthened thus to promote extensive international cooperation.

President Jiang led a delegation to the Eighth Informal APEC Summit in Brunei, during which, centering on the subject of globalization and its influence, Jiang elaborated China’s views on the globalization and the new economy. He pointed out that the gap between the rich and the poor should be narrowed in order to enable all members of the international community to benefit from globalization. He proposed that mutually beneficial cooperation be enhanced to explore development opportunities and realize common prosperity. Jiang’s speech drew great attention from various parties and was constructive for the success of the meeting and the sound development of the Asian-Pacific economic organization.

Premier Zhu Rongji’s participation in the Third Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) was another major event in China’s multilateral diplomacy. Zhu and other foreign leaders present at the meeting jointly discussed matters concerning cooperation between Asia and Europe in the new century. China’s proposition on the establishment of a new international political and economic order was included in documents of the meeting, demonstrating the important role of China in the ASEM. This meeting laid a good foundation for building up a new Asia-Europe partnership in the new century.

China has been active in supporting disarmament in the world and maintaining international strategic balance. The sessions of the 55th UN General Assembly and the UN Committee on Disarmament and International Security once again passed, with overwhelming majority, the draft resolution on maintaining and abiding by the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, which was jointly posed by China, Russia, Belorussia and Kyrgyzstan. This fully mirrors the will and resolve of the international community for safeguarding the global strategic balance and stability.

China has been consistently opposed to hegemony and power politics in multilateral diplomacy and firmly safeguarded national sovereignty and dignity. China has foiled on 10 occasions the US anti-China draft resolutions at sessions of the UN Commission on Human Rights. This fully demonstrates that the practice to interfere with internal affairs of other countries under the pretext of human rights finds no support.

China has unswervingly pursued an independent foreign policy of peace and has always been an active force in maintaining world peace and promoting common development of international community. With the development of China’s economy and improvement of its comprehensive national strength, China is bound to play its due role increasingly in the international affairs.

In the new century, China’s diplomatic undertakings will contribute unremitting efforts to domestic modernization drive, reunification of the motherland, world peace, international cooperation and common development. In 2001, China’s diplomacy will also be dynamic. Early in the year, the Bo’ao Forum for Asia was successfully held at Bo’ao, Hainan Province, and in May, the Third Asia-Europe Foreign Ministers Meeting was held in Beijing. Shanghai will host the Sixth Shanghai Five Summit in June and the Ninth Informal APEC Summit in October. Around the APEC meeting, leaders from APEC member countries will pay visits to China. The important visits, both inbound and outbound, this year will help strengthen relations between China and other countries, enhance mutual understanding and trust, accelerate exchanges and contacts, and promote peace, cooperation and development in the Asia-Pacific region and the world at large.

Opposing Confrontation on the Issue of Human Rights

The 57th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights was convened on March 19, 2001. Ambassador Qiao Zonghuai, head of Chinese delegation, reiterated that China had all along stood for narrowing and eliminating differences through dialogue and opposed confrontation and politicization of the human rights issue at the UN’s session on human rights. However, some Western countries, driven by domestic political needs, again engaged in political confrontation at this UN session on human rights. Qiao pointed out that the UN Commission on Human Rights should adopt an active attitude and work in an open manner so as to improve and protect human rights in a just and effective way. He raised the proposals at the session on advocating the principles of equality, democracy and mutual respect, discarding the Cold War mentality, replacing confrontation with dialogue and paying much attention to the economic, social and cultural rights.

In light of the US persistent practice of wantonly interfering in the internal affairs of China under the pretext of human rights issue at the UN’s session on human rights, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Zhu Bangzao pointed out that China firmly opposes the United States interfering in its internal affairs by making use of the human rights issue. It is the 1.2 billion Chinese people who have the right to comment on whether the human rights situation in China has turned worse or improved.

He noted that the human rights situation in China is now at a most promising stage. The fundamental rights of the Chinese people, including the freedom of speech, association and religious belief, have been fully guaranteed. This has not only been to the satisfaction of the masses of Chinese people, but has also been universally acknowledged by the international community.

Zhu pointed out, the Chinese Government has always attached great importance to cooperation with the United Nations human rights organization. China hoped that the UN High Commissioner Office for Human Rights could abide by the principle of objectiveness and justness and work with the Chinese side to push forward the cooperation established between the two sides on the basis of equality and mutual respect.

In 2001, the United States once again issued a report making charges against other countries, including China, concerning domestic human rights conditions. Mentioning more than 100 developing countries, the report did not touch at all on the serious human rights problems inside the United States. It is a typical practice of pursuing a double standard on the human rights issue.

In February 2001, the Information Office of the State Council published an article entitled “US Human Rights Record in 2000”. This is the second time that China has published such an article against the US annual country reports on human rights.

The article pointed out that the US Country Reports on Human Rights Practices made unwarranted charges against more than 190 countries and regions, including China, for their human rights conditions and accused these countries of fabricated abuses, but had nothing to say about America’s own serious infringements of human rights. This merely served to expose the true face of the United States, showing it to be a defender of power politics rather than human rights.

With a large number of living examples, including the American general election, the article exploded the myth of American democracy and revealed in an all-round way real facts about the United States characterized by rampant violence, arbitrary judicial system, widening gap between rich and poor, deteriorating situation of workers’ economic and social rights, gender discrimination, maltreatment of children, prevailing racial discrimination, ill treatment of minorities, and waging war frequently and brutally infringing upon human rights of other countries.

The article pointed out that the promotion of human rights is the common task of all nations in the world. “China would like to offer this advice to the US Government: Abandon your old ways and make a new start, take effective measures to improve the human rights record in your own country, take steps to promote international cooperation in human rights, and stop ordering other countries on the pretext of safeguarding human rights.”

Engaging in confrontation in the issue of human rights will go nowhere. China has always maintained that problems and differences should be properly solved through international cooperation, dialogue and exchanges.

 Pursuing the Independent Foreign Policy of Peace Continuously to Create a More Peaceful and Friendly International Environment  

In 2001, China’s diplomacy faces new situation and tasks. China will continue to pursue an independent foreign policy of peace, striving to create a more peaceful and friendly international environment for its modernization drive. It will intensify the struggle against “Taiwan independence” and separatism in the international realm to push forward the cause of reunification of the motherland, and will also make greater contribution to maintaining world peace and promoting the common development of humanity.

As the host, China will do its best for the success of various important international meetings to be held in China, such as the Ninth APEC Informal Summit in Shanghai, the Sixth Shanghai Five Summit and the Third Asia-Europe Foreign Ministers Meeting. China will be more active in multilateral diplomacy and strengthen its work with the United Nations and other multilateral organizations, striving for its accession to the WTO at an early date. It will also get more involved in the international economic, trade, financial, and scientific and technological cooperation.

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