CHINA: Both leaders attempt to gloss over the impasse at a press conference, Miriam Donohoe reports from Beijing
President Bush failed yesterday in his mission to strike an arms control deal with China which would halt the sale of weapons by Beijing to so-called rogue states.
The US leader had hoped to make progress on securing agreement during his brief visit to China to prevent the sale of missile and nuclear technology to nations hostile to the US, especially the three he has labelled "an axis of evil", North Korea, Iran and Iraq.
"My government hopes that China will strongly oppose the proliferation of missiles and other deadly technologies," Mr Bush said after arriving in Beijing on the final leg of a three-nation Asian tour.
China denies breaking any non-proliferation agreements and wants the US to lift sanctions on Chinese entities for violating such pacts.
After a news conference hosted by Mr Bush and President Jiang Zemin, the US National Security Adviser, Ms Condoleeza Rice, told reporters that both sides had failed to reach an agreement on the arms issue and were not expected to do so during the rest of the visit, which ends today. "The talks are getting a little bit better but it's going to take a while," she said.
Both leaders attempted to gloss over the impasse at a post-meeting press conference in the Great Hall of the People.
While masking clear differences on proliferation, Taiwan, and human rights, the two leaders stressed that bilateral ties were on the mend since China declared its support for the US-led war on terrorism.
Mr Bush was fulsome in his praise of China for its co-operation in its anti-terrorist campaign.
It was also clear yesterday that Mr Bush did not secure the blessing of the Chinese leadership to attack Iraq.
In a long-winded answer to a question about whether China supported the use of all necessary means to topple the Iraqi regime of President Saddam Hussein, Mr Jiang said: "The important thing is that peace is to be valued.
"Let me conclude by quoting a Chinese proverb: more haste, less speed," he said.
"Despite the fact that sometimes you will have problems that cry out for immediate solution, patience is sometimes also necessary."
Mr Bush said he had told Mr Jiang the US would not necessarily use force against every target in the war on terror.
"My point is that not every theatre in the war against terror needs to be resolved with force. Some theatres can be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue, and the Chinese government can be very helpful," he said.
Mr Bush said there had been no change in Washington's policy towards Taiwan, which China claims as a renegade province, and he said the people of China should be free to choose how they live and worship.
In a clear reference to human rights and freedom of expression he said: "China's future is for the Chinese people to decide, yet no nation is exempt from the demands of human dignity." He added: "All the world's people, including the people of China, should be free to choose how they live, how they worship, and how they work."
Arriving from South Korea where he expressed support for President Kim Dae-jung's "sunshine policy" of reconciliation with North Korea, Mr Bush said the US was willing to meet the government of the North's leader, Mr Kim Jong-il.
He asked Mr Jiang to convey that message to the North Korean leader. Mr Jiang said later he hoped that contacts between the US and North Korea would be resumed.
Meanwhile, South Korea said Mr Bush had eased worries that his tough stance would upset a fragile peace with North Korea on the dangerously armed last frontier of the Cold War.
Mr Bush has invited Mr Jiang and his Vice-President and heir apparent, Mr Hu Jintao, to visit the US in October - invitations that both Chinese leaders have accepted.
The visits will boost Mr Hu's political standing in the run-up to a leadership handover in China and consolidate Mr Jiang's legacy as the leader who stabilised ties with a major trade and investment partner before he retires as leader of the Communist Party this autumn.
At a banquet late last night, Mr Jiang serenaded his guests with the Italian classic O Sole Mio and in a display of hospitality unthinkable last year danced with three leading US ladies - Ms Laura Bush, Ms Rice and the wife of the US ambassador, Mr Clark Randt - as the People's Liberation Army band played The Eyes of Texas Are Upon You, Moon River, and other tunes.