China urges ties despite Pentagon blunder

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BEIJING, China -- Beijing has stressed the importance of military ties with the United States despite a Pentagon blunder that revoked military contacts with China.

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A Pentagon spokesman said on Wednesday that U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had ordered all military ties between China and the United States be suspended.

But two hours later, another Pentagon spokesman said the order was an error and had "misinterpreted" Rumsfeld's intention to subject bilateral contacts with Beijing to a case-by-case review.

In the retracted memo, Rumsfeld was quoted as directing the "suspension of all Department of Defense programs, contacts and activities with the People's Republic of China until further notice."

The strict ban covered virtually everything, including working meetings and social contacts with Chinese officials both in China and at the Chinese embassy in Washington.

However, the ban didn't apply to Hong Kong.

Tense times

The blunder comes at a tense time for China and the United States.

It comes one day after the Bush administration said it would go ahead with a missile defense system that China opposes and follows a protracted diplomatic standoff after a U.S. spy plane collided with a Chinese fighter jet in April.

China has said that U.S. President George W. Bush's missile defense plan could spark off a new arms race.

Ties were further strained after Bush pledged to continue helping Taiwan defend itself. China regards Taiwan as a renegade province that must be reunited with the mainland, by force if necessary.

The United States also said on Tuesday that 600,000 black berets destined for the U.S. Army won't be made in China.

China still keen

But despite the recent setbacks, a Chinese official made it clear on Thursday that Beijing still wants to maintain relations with the United States.

"China-U.S. military to military ties are an important component of the bilateral relationship," a Foreign Ministry official said. "Military to military exchanges have always been two-way and based on equality and consultation."

The official added China had noted the Pentagon comments but had not yet received formal word from the United States.

According to the Pentagon, Rumsfeld meant to say he wanted a case-by-case review of contacts with China while the U.S. continues to negotiate over the return of its stranded surveillance aircraft.

Meanwhile, China's state-run People's Daily newspaper was less subtle in its response. It reported the incident under the headline "What a mess! US revises order on China exchanges in 2 hours".

Washington and Beijing have been cautiously rebuilding a military relationship that ground to a halt after U.S. warplanes bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade during the NATO Kosovo campaign in May, 1999.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN's Military Affairs Correspondent contributed to this report

Reuters contributed to this report.

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U.S. Department of Defense
 • Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld
U.S. Embassy of the People's Republic of China

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