DATE=7/25/1999 TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT TITLE=U-S - CHINA (L-UPDATE) NUMBER=2-252123 BYLINE=NICK SIMEONE DATELINE=SINGAPORE CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: Secretary of State Madeleine Albright says the United States and China still have a way to go before relations can get back to normal in the wake of NATO's accidental bombing of Beijing's embassy in Belgrade. She made the comments to reporters after meeting in Singapore Sunday with Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan. Correspondent Nick Simeone reports. TEXT: Nearly three months after the NATO bombing, Secretary Albright told reporters Sino-American relations are still not on a normal footing but that her talks on the sidelines of a meeting of Asian foreign ministers helped to ease tensions. /// ALBRIGHT ACT /// Obviously, I can not speak for the foreign minister, but I believe the meeting has helped us to move back in the right direction of engaging on the hard issues, whether or not there is agreement, while searching for areas of common ground. /// end act /// Her meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Tang was the highest level contact Washington and Beijing have had since the NATO bombing, an accident that China has yet to consider resolved and one that continues to bedevil Sino-American relations. Secretary Albright says Washington wants to get the matter over with, and a senior administration official who just ended talks in Beijing says the Chinese do as well. In a measure of some progress, China is agreeing to see a number of envoys sent by Washington. Another will return next week to continue discussions on possible humanitarian compensation. The bombing killed three Chinese nationals. At a working lunch on the sidelines of the ASEAN foreign ministers' meeting, a number of security issues that have sent tremors through Asia came up, including Beijing's threats to use force against Taiwan, following Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui's announcement that he would deal with the mainland on a state-to-state basis. Secretary Albright repeated U-S support for a one-China policy and appealed to Foreign Minister Tang to resolve the dispute with Taiwan peacefully. /// SECOND ALBRIGHT ACT /// Foreign Minister Tang indicated that they were listening very carefully to what Mr. Lee was saying, that they also wished to have a peaceful resolution but they also reiterated their standard position which is that they do not renounce the use of force. /// END ACT /// At his own news conference, the Chinese Foreign minister told reporters he delivered a warning to Washington to be very careful not to say or do anything that may fan the flames of Taiwan independence. (signed) NEB/NJS/WTW 25-Jul-1999 12:57 PM LOC (25-Jul-1999 1657 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America .
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