Is Hillary Clinton's trip to China an act of impetuosity?
Is Hillary Clinton's trip to China an act of impetuosity?
That's been the question among some in the Chinese capital as word of the Secretary of State's impending visit leaked out this week, before being confirmed Thursday (www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2009/02/116159.htm). The reason: no one is exactly sure what Clinton will discuss in Beijing, which she will visit this month as part of a four-country Asian swing, or why she's making the trip so soon after taking office.
'It shouldn't be just a get-to-know-you session because all the people involved know each other already,' says Tao Wenzhao, a senior fellow at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. 'But it's not exactly clear what she'll be bringing to discuss.'
The sense of impulsive action is reinforced by Washington insiders, who say the trip was thrown together at the last minute, partly because the secretary wanted to show that the State Department - and not President Obama's National Security Council - is in charge of the region. 'It's good she's going there, of course, but her department still hasn't had many officials confirmed or appointed and there's a bit of a sense of disarray,' said a member of a non-governmental organization with close ties to the new administration.
The two countries, of course, have a wealth of issues to keep leaders busy, from reforming the global financial system to finding a way to stem global warming. But the Obama administration takes office with a rare opportunity to move China-U.S. relations to a new level of cooperation.
Since normalizing diplomatic ties 30 year ago, the two superpowers have successfully managed a series of problems: human rights to trade, Taiwan to intellectual property rights. But they've had few positive issues to link them. Now, after eight years of improving relations under the George W. Bush administration, the new team could offer a new vision.
'We could see a new start without the old burdens of the past,' said Yan Xuetong, a professor of American studies at Tsinghua University. 'We have a good foundation but we need to build on it.'
One area of growing discussion is the environment─both sides have already agreed to a 10-year cooperation plan. (LINK: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121381420315685383.html). There's much to like about this as a focus: certainly the new Obama administration is making it much more of a priority than the old Bush team. But so far, China has not made a serious commitment to spending the money it would take to make a serious dent in emissions. It is also hard to see how it might do so given the current downturn, which is pushing Beijing to spend money on economic stimulus. |
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