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To: Charles R who wrote (5506)	7/23/1999 1:44:00 PM
From: DJBEINO	Respond to of 9582

Taiwan Reassures U.S. On China Frictions By Alice Hung TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan reassured a U.S. emissary Friday it had no plans to pursue independence and never meant to cause a row with China by asserting itself as a ''state.'' ''(Our) mainland policy of promoting constructive dialogue and genuine exchange has not changed,'' President Lee Teng-hui told Richard Bush, head of the organization that handles Washington's unofficial ties with Taipei. Lee nonetheless stood firm on his controversial view that contacts between Taipei and Beijing must be conducted on a ''special state-to-state'' basis, saying this reflected the voice of his people. ''This demonstrates the respect of public will in a democracy,'' Lee said. He urged Beijing to ''calm down and contemplate'' the meaning of his remarks. Lee's explosive statement, dubbed a ''two-state theory'' in Taiwan, sparked a political firestorm across the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan officials had said this meant the Nationalist government was abandoning the ''one China'' policy, which helped underpin East Asian stability for decades. The move infuriated China, which responded with threats to invade Taiwan, and set off alarm bells in Washington, Tokyo and the rest of the region. Bush, head of the Washington-based American Institute in Taiwan, was sent by President Clinton to express concern over Taipei's provocative move. Clinton has reiterated Washington's support for the ''one China'' concept and called for a peaceful solution to the row. Bush, who also met with Vice President Lien Chan, Premier Vincent Siew and other cabinet officials, gave no details of the discussion, saying only: ''They are meetings between friends.'' As part of a two-pronged bid to defuse the crisis, Clinton has also sent Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Stanley Roth to Beijing for consultations with Chinese officials. While sticking to the ''state-to-state'' wording, Taiwan officials in recent days have sought to calm the row by saying Lee's new view of mainland ties, announced on July 9, signaled no shift in its policy toward China. Friday, Mainland Affairs Council Chairman Su Chi held out hope the historic autumn visit by senior China envoy Wang Daohan would take place as planned, saying Taipei's door was always open for dialogue with Beijing. ''We can talk about anything. Even if they don't agree with us, we can talk about it,'' Su said. Foreign Minister Jason Hu said Taipei had not set out to damage an already tense relationship with China and that it did not want to aggravate frictions in U.S.-China ties, which worsened after NATO's May bombing of Beijing's embassy in Yugoslavia. ''We have no intention of hurting relations between the United States and Chinese Communists when their ties are at a low point, nor do we want to damage our interaction with the United States,'' Hu said. Officials reiterated that Taiwan was not seeking outright independence -- something that communist China suspects and promises to prevent with a military assault. Taipei has said it backed away from ''one China'' because Beijing was using it to promote itself as a superior sovereign entity and further isolate Taiwan's government. Taipei has diplomatic ties with fewer than 30 countries. The United States sent two aircraft carrier battle groups to the Taiwan Strait in 1996 as China staged menacing war games and missile tests ahead of Taiwan's first direct presidential election. Beijing was attempting to scare the island's voters away from the idea of independence. Defense Secretary William Cohen said earlier this week he had no intention of repeating that, at least for the moment. dailynews.yahoo.com