Tracking Number: 243129
Title: The US regrets China's announcement that it will boycott talks of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council on Middle East arms control because the Bush Administration's decision to sell up to 150 F-16 fighter aircraft to Taiwan. DoS Report. (920916)
Title: The US is investigating reports of the illegal export in 1985 of an electron beam mask generator by Toshiba to China. DoS Report. (920916)
Date: 19920916
Text:
STATE DEPARTMENT REPORT, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16
(Arms control, Toshiba-China, Somalia, Yugoslavia, POW/MIA information) (1520)
NEWS BRIEFING -- Spokesman Richard Boucher discussed the following topics:
U.S. REGRETS ARMS CONTROL TALKS BOYCOTT BY CHINA The United States regrets China's announcement it will boycott talks of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council on Middle East arms control because of the Bush administration's decision to sell up to 150 F-16 fighter aircraft to Taiwan.
Boucher noted that the Chinese government had previously indicated it would find it difficult to attend the five-power Middle East arms control talks if the United States proceeded with the sale.
"We find this regrettable," the spokesman said. "We reject China's linkage of the F-16 sale and the arms control process. We encourage China to reconsider its position and to remain engaged in the talks in keeping with the responsibilities China has as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council."
Boucher pointed out that U.S. arms sales "are conducted on the basis of stringent and careful review" and are subject to "careful legal requirements. They are reviewed so they do not upset the balance in the region, so that they do not constitute any sort of provocation," he said. Such sales "are fully in accord with the guidelines" worked out by the five-power group on conventional arms sales, he said. "We think that effort is worth pursuing."
The spokesman emphasized that sales of conventional arms "are in no way equivalent to the kinds of destabilizing sales of weapons of mass destruction and components for them that this group is designed in great part to prevent."
He told questioners he would "leave it to the Chinese to express what their intentions are" concerning their own plans for arms sales, adding "I don't have anything in particular to cite for you at this point." The permanent-five arms control mechanism was set up to deal with arms sales to the Middle East in the wake of Western concerns over Chinese missile sales to several Middle East countries.
Boucher pointed out that no date had been set for the next round of the so-called "Perm-5 talks," but he acknowledged they were generally expected to be held in Moscow this fall. Even before the president's announcement of the F-16 sale to Taiwan, "the Chinese were expressing an interest in seeing that put off from the fall to next spring," he noted.
"At this point, we'll have to talk to the other governments involved and decide what we do in terms of scheduling meetings and continuing the process," the spokesman said. "For our part, we think this is an important process. We think it's a process that should continue, and we think it's a process that should continue with Chinese participation," he said. "And we'll be working on all those goals."
Responding to a question, Boucher said the Chinese decision has had no apparent impact on the current round of multilateral talks being held in Moscow on Middle East arms control and security matters which are part of the overall Middle East peace process. "The Chinese are in Moscow. They spoke yesterday. They are participating," he said.
NNNN
File Identification: 09/16/92, POL305; 09/16/92, AEF312; 09/16/92, EPF316; 09/16/92, EUR303; 09/16/92, LDP313; 09/16/92, NEA302; 09/16/92, NAA302
Product Name: Wireless File
Product
Code: WF
Languages: Arabic
Keywords: CHINA-US RELATIONS; CHINA, PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF/Defense & Military; ARMS TRANSFERS; TAIWAN-US RELATIONS; TAIWAN/Defense & Military; MILITARY AIRCRAFT; UNITED
NATIONS-SECURITY COUNCIL; MIDDLE EAST/Defense & Military; ARMS CONTR
Keywords: CLASSIFIED INFORMATION; INFORMATION CONTROL; DEPARTMENT OF STATE; VIETNAM CONFLICT; PRISONERS OF WAR; MISSING IN ACTION; INVESTIGATIONS
Thematic Codes: 1EA
Target Areas: AF; AR; EA; EU; NE
PDQ Text Link: 243129
USIA Notes: *92091605.POL
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
