By Stephen Kaufman
Staff Writer
Washington — The United States and China say they will work toward a successful outcome to the December 7–18 climate change summit in Copenhagen and in support of Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen’s call for a comprehensive agreement, President Obama told reporters in Beijing. “As the two largest consumers and producers of energy, there can be no solution to this challenge without the efforts of both China and the United States,” Obama said November 17 in a joint statement with Chinese President Hu Jintao. During their talks, the two leaders made progress on the climate change issue, Obama said. Along with a series of joint initiatives on clean energy, China and the United States agreed to work together to make the Copenhagen conference a success. “Our aim there, in support of what Prime Minister Rasmussen of Denmark is trying to achieve, is not a partial accord or a political declaration, but rather an accord that covers all of the issues in the negotiations, and one that has immediate operational effect,” Obama said. “This kind of comprehensive agreement would be an important step forward in the effort to rally the world around a solution to our climate challenge. And we agreed that each of us would take significant mitigation actions and stand behind these commitments.” In a November 17 joint statement issued by the two governments, they recognized that climate change is “one of the greatest challenges of our time” and “a vigorous response is necessary.” They said, “International cooperation is indispensable in responding to this challenge.” Both countries, “consistent with their national circumstances,” resolved to “take significant mitigation actions” and “recognize the important role that their countries play in promoting a sustainable outcome that will strengthen the world’s ability to combat climate change.” An agreement, while taking into account the different responsibilities and capabilities within the global community, should be transparent and “include emission reduction targets of developed countries and nationally appropriate mitigation actions of developing countries,” the joint statement said. It should also substantially increase financial assistance to developing countries, promote the development of clean energy technology, and pay particular attention to those most vulnerable to climate change. SHARED COMMITMENT TO STOP NUCLEAR PROLIFERATION In their joint statement, both countries “underlined their commitment to the eventual realization of a world free of nuclear weapons,” and the two leaders discussed ongoing efforts to prevent or dissuade North Korea and Iran from developing nuclear arsenals. Obama said China, the United States and other members of the international community are “unified” in their view that Iran must provide assurances that its nuclear activities are “peaceful and transparent.” “Iran has an opportunity to present and demonstrate its peaceful intentions, but if it fails to take this opportunity there will be consequences,” Obama said. With North Korea, the United States and China agree that it is important to resume the Six Party Talks, which also include South Korea, Japan and Russia, “as soon as possible,” with the goal of achieving the “verifiable elimination” of its nuclear weapons program. In the joint statement, the Chinese government welcomed the start of “high-level contacts” between the United States and North Korea, which are expected to occur before the end of 2009 with a visit to Pyongyang by Ambassador Stephen Bosworth, but both sides “expressed the hope that the multilateral mechanism of the Six Party Talks would convene at an early date.” The statement also reaffirmed Iran’s right to a peaceful nuclear program and called on Iran to respond favorably to a proposal by the International Atomic Energy Agency that would allow it to have access to uranium that is enriched in another country. Along with cooperation on a range of international agreements designed to increase nuclear security and stop proliferation, the statement said, China “attaches importance to the U.S. initiative to hold a nuclear security summit in April 2010 and will actively participate in the preparations for the summit.” HUMAN RIGHTS DIALOGUE SCHEDULED FOR 2010 President Obama said he spoke to President Hu about human rights, saying the principle that men and women possess fundamental rights is universal and “should be available to all peoples, to all ethnic and religious minorities.” “Our two countries agreed to continue to move this discussion forward in a human rights dialogue that is scheduled for early next year,” he said. The joint statement said the dialogue will be held in Washington before the end of February. It acknowledged that the countries “have differences” on the issue, but that the dialogue would address them “in the spirit of equality and mutual respect, as well as promoting and protecting human rights consistent with international human rights instruments.” President Obama also repeated the strong U.S. commitment to a one-China policy, with respect for “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China.” He welcomed “the steps that the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan have already taken to relax tensions and build ties across the Taiwan Strait.” He also urged the Chinese government to resume a dialogue with representatives of the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. At a November 17 press briefing in Beijing, Jeff Bader, the senior director for Asian affairs at the U.S. National Security Council, said President Obama’s engagement with the Chinese public and President Hu on the human rights issue “was as direct a discussion … as I’ve seen by any high-level visitor with the Chinese,” based on his more than 30 years of involvement in the U.S.-China relationship. At a November 16 town hall meeting in Shanghai, Obama had publicly discussed universal human rights, including freedom of expression and the rights of minorities, with Chinese students. (See “Societies Free of Internet Censorship Are Stronger, Obama Says.”) In his private discussions with President Hu, Obama “was equally candid in describing human rights as a core, a fundamental, bedrock principle of U.S. foreign policy; [and] made it clear that we will speak directly to the Chinese about it publicly and privately,” Bader said. The president’s comments on Tibet were “a deliberate and a clear statement” of his emphasis on the need to protect religious freedom and the rights of ethnic minorities, he said. Bader added that in President Obama’s human rights and democracy discussions with China and other countries, he acknowledges that both are “a constantly unfinished project” and that the United States has had its own shortcomings. “He starts with the premise that the U.S. example is persuasive if we have our own house in order,” Bader said, and “it’s not something in the past where we’re done with it.” But by using the United States as an example, President Obama is “talking about things that the Chinese should be looking at themselves,” Bader said. The full text of the U.S.-China joint statement is available on America.gov. |
