US-Taiwan ties: Powell reiterates `one China'

US Secretary of State Colin Powell says in an interview to be released next week that the US government stands by its "one China" policy but that the US is concerned about military threats directed toward Taiwan. In the interview, to be published in the Aug. 8 issue of the Far Eastern Economic Review, Powell says: "With respect to Taiwan, there's only one administration view and we all express it in pretty much the same way. We support our `one China' policy and the associated aspects of it -- the three communiques and the Taiwan Relations Act, the US law that guides the manner in which we provide military support to Taiwan. "The Chinese government is constantly asking us about this and seeking reassurance and we have made it clear to them that even though we may undertake arms sales to Taiwan from time to time, those arms sales are for the purpose of making sure that the Taiwanese are able to defend themselves and are in no way an attempt to move away from our `one China' policy. We're absolutely firm on this and there's no disagreement anywhere within the administration."