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Jiang quiet on N. Korea ahead of summit
By CNN Senior China Analyst Willy Wo-Lap Lam
(CNN) -- Chinese President Jiang Zemin has underscored the benefits to be reaped by China and the U.S. through close cooperation in fighting terrorism. Speaking in Houston one day before his much-awaited summit with counterpart George W. Bush, Jiang said China would "strengthen cooperation with the U.S. to confront the common challenges of terrorism [and] the spread of weapons of mass destruction." Friday's summit, in Bush's private ranch in Crawford, Texas, is set to be dominated by discussions of ways to contain efforts by North Korea and Iraq to develop nuclear, chemical and biological weapons. While speaking at the George Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas, Jiang accentuated the common concerns of both countries while steering clear of their differences on issues including the war against terrorism. "Both China and the United States are victims of terrorism and the Chinese and Americans have stood together and carried out effective cooperation in the war against terror," the official Xinhua news agency quoted Jiang as saying. "China will continue to step up consultation and cooperation with the U.S. on counter-terrorism and join the rest of the world in the concerted fight against this common scourge." Since arriving in the U.S. on Tuesday, however, Jiang and entourage members such as Vice-Premier Qian Qichen have been reticent about what Beijing is prepared to do to rein in North Korea, a quasi-ally that has benefited for decades from Chinese aid in food, fuel and technology. While speaking at Houston, Jiang also dwelled on potentials for Sino-U.S. cooperation in areas including trade, energy, education, technology and environment science. "Let us keep up our good work, increase our understanding, expand our consensus and enhance our cooperation so as to build an even better future for China-U.S. relations," he added. On Taiwan, a perennial irritant to bilateral ties, Jiang also appeared to be sticking to a moderate approach. "We shall try to promote peaceful reunification between both sides of the [Taiwan] Strait based on the greatest sincerity and taking the greatest efforts," the president said in Houston. Jiang, who is also Chairman of China's Central Military Commission, did not cite the possibility of the military option. He warned, however, that Taiwan independence would pose a grave threat to regional stability -- and that this would not benefit the U.S. either. Diplomatic analysts in Beijing and Washington said the Jiang team would try to link Chinese cooperation with the U.S. on the Iraq and North Korean questions with American concessions on the Taiwan front. U.S. administration officials, however, have stressed that it is unlikely Bush will go beyond repeating Washington's long-standing stand on the one-China principle.
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