PFP says US-China relations vital to cross-strait ties

A new strategic partnership between the US and China at a time when Washington is poised to attack Iraq could harm cross-strait relations, PFP legislative whip Lin Yu-fang (林郁芳) said yesterday.

Lin said the government should monitor the situation closely in case Washington makes concessions in its cross-strait policies in return for Beijing's support for action against Iraq.

Lin, who is also director of Tamkang University's International Affairs and Strategic Research Institute, said that as long as Beijing does not veto a resolution on Iraq and allows Washington to have a legitimate rationale behind any military action, the US will be indebted to Beijing.

That would make it easier for China to gain concessions in the cross-strait issue, he said.

PFP Legislator Sun Ta-chian (孫大千) seconded Lin's opinion, saying that since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the US has increasingly associated itself with Beijing, urging the Chinese authorities to use their influence in Pyongyang and soliciting Beijing's support for action in Iraq.