Bush suspends high-level U.S.-China contacts

Press, 22 June 1989, Page 8

Bush suspends high-level U.S.-China contacts

NZPA-Reuter Washington President George Bush, risking a wider rift in relations with China, has suspended high-level contacts between the two Governments and called for the postponement of international development loans to China.

Facing growing criticism in Congress that he has been too soft in protesting against the crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators in China, Mr Bush yesterday accepted the recommendations of United States Secretaiy of State, James Baker, in cutting off the contacts and calling for the loan postponement. The White House said Mr Bush, a former United States envoy to China with close personal ties to many Chinese officials, in-

cluding the senior leader, Deng Xiao-ping, acted “in response to the wave of

violence and reprisals by the Chinese authorities against those who have called for democracy.” The White House also urged clemency for 11 pro-democracy demonstrators sentenced to die for their role in the protests. Yesterday’s actions seemed likely to invoke ire in Peking which has already complained that the United States was meddling in its internal affairs.

Peking has been particularly incensed by Washington’s grant of

sanctuary to the Chinese dissident, Fang Lizhi, and his wife, who are facing arrest warrants. The two took refuge in the United States Embassey two weeks ago. Mr Bush had previously suspended military sales to China to protest at the Army’s slaughter of hundreds of pro-democracy demonstrators in Peking’s Tiananmen Square on June 4. Only last February, during a visit to China, Mr Bush spoke of his love for China and predicted “an increasingly rich fabric of relations” between the

two countries. He said that China had felt the "new breeze” of reform. “You’ve learned to bend and adapt to new ways and new ideas and reform,” he said. The White House said yesterday that Mr Bush was determined to retain "productive relations,” but this seemed to be a fading hope for the moment. Mr Baker told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee the aim was to preserve ties — “to the extent that we can.”

American officials have said that Mr Bush has only a limited ability to influence events in China and they had been discouraging expectations of further American sanctions and emphasised the need to preserve the relationship.. But the tone shifted swiftly yesterday. A White House spokesman, Marlin Fitzwater, warned that the execution of pro-democracy demonstrators “could only deepen the wounds of the past few weeks.” Both he and Mr Baker held the door open to

further sanctions. Earlier in the day, Mr Bush was criticised by a Conservative Senator, Gordon Humphrey, a New Hampshire Republican, for a weak response. “I think we looked like we • cared more about commercial contacts and commercial relations than we care about human rights,” Mr Humphrey said. The speaker of the House of Representatives, Thomas Foley, a Washington Democrat, said on Sunday it was time for Mr Bush to do more.