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Subscribe to RSSThe diplomatic push for Syria continues as the death toll in the country rises, forcing more than 230,000 Syrians to escape in the past 17 months. Meanwhile, China and the US remain divided over how to end the conflict. NBC's Ayman Moyheldin reports.
BEIJING -- China and the United States were divided on Wednesday over how to end the bloodshed in Syria and defuse tension in the South China Sea and other global troublespots, but stressed hope for steady ties as they navigate political transitions at home.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi vowed goodwill after talks which had been preceded by criticism from Beijing of Clinton's calls for a multilateral solution to the territorial disputes in the South and East China Seas.
Clinton told reporters that such disagreements did not have to hobble cooperation.
Jim Watson / Pool via Reuters
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks with Chinese President Hu Jintao at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday.
"I'm very proud of the strength and resilience that we have built into our relationship," she said after talks with Yang in the cavernous Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
"It makes it possible for us to talk about anything, and to find ways to tackle issues frankly and forthrightly," Clinton said, adding that the two sides would not see eye-to-eye on all the issues that are part of their vast relationship.
Chinese media: 'Many Chinese people dislike Hillary'
Yang also cast relations in a positive light, saying both sides could work together as long as "mutual respect for each other's core interests and major concerns" continues.
"History and facts have repeatedly proven that China and the United States have interwoven interests," said Yang.
Peter Navarro talks about his new documentary, "Death by China", which examines the relationship between the U.S. and China. Navarro talks about the trade imbalance between the two and why China has an unfair advantage.
The remarks underscored efforts by both sides to contain quarrels, especially as they focus on domestic politics. China's Communist Party is preoccupied with a once-in-a-decade leadership change over the coming months, while President Barack Obama is focused on a re-election fight culminating in November.
Praise, little consensus
Clinton praised China for helping to apply pressure on Iran over its nuclear activities, and Yang sounded a moderating note on Syria by balancing opposition to outside intervention with support for a "political transition."
"China is willing to maintain and strengthen dialogue, communication and coordination with the U.S.," Chinese President Hu Jintao told Clinton, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry's website.
Much at stake for US as tensions rise in troubled China Seas
"Maintaining stable development of Sino-U.S. economic and trade ties has an important impact on the two countries, as well as the revival and growth of the world economy."
Neither side gave ground on the South China Sea disputes, which have emerged as a persistent irritant, reflecting suspicions in Beijing that the Obama administration is seeking to curb Chinese influence.
China's claims over much of the South China Sea, including the Spratly and Paracel islands, have put it at loggerheads with Vietnam, the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations. A similar dispute has set China against Japan in the East China Sea.
China has been especially irked by the U.S.-backed proposals for a multilateral approach to resolving such disputes, preferring to negotiate separately with each of the far less powerful Asian claimants.
'Big enough for all of us': Clinton says US can work with China in Pacific
A U.S. official told traveling reporters that Vice President Xi Jinping, who is overwhelmingly likely to succeed Hu as president, had to cancel his meeting with Clinton. Vice Premier Li Keqiang would meet her instead, said the official.
Xi canceled an earlier meeting with Singapore's prime minister, a sign his absence was not a snub at Clinton.
"We hope people will not make unnecessary speculation," Yang said of Xi's absence.
'Fishing for advantage'
The overseas edition of state mouthpiece the People's Daily laid out China's concerns ahead of Clinton's meetings, suggesting the United States was seeking to gain leverage from China's tensions with Japan and Southeast Asian countries.
"The United States' recent conduct concerning the Diaoyu islands and South China Sea issues cannot but create the suspicion that it is attempting to sow discord in order to fish for advantage," said a front-page commentary in the paper, which broadly reflects official thinking.
China's market is at 2009 lows. CNBC panel discusses whether the slowdown is good or bad for the U.S. markets.
China and Japan have rival claims to the uninhabited Diaoyu islands -- called Senkaku in Japan -- and surrounding fishing areas and potentially rich gas deposits.
"Regarding the South China Sea, the position of the Chinese government has been consistent and clear cut. China has sovereignty over the islands in the South China Sea and their adjacent waters," Yang, the foreign minister, told reporters.
"Nowhere else do China and the United States share more converging interests and interact more frequently than in the Asia-Pacific region," he said.
Pacific micro-nations cash in on US-China aid rivalry
Clinton repeated that the United States took no position on the contending claims but wanted China and Southeast Asian states to agree on a code of conduct to avoid flare-ups.
"The United States does not take a position on competing territorial claims ... but we believe the nations of the region should work collaboratively to resolve disputes without coercion, without intimidation and certainly without the use of force," she said in Jakarta on Tuesday.
"That is why we encourage ASEAN and China to make meaningful progress toward finalizing a comprehensive code of conduct in order to establish rules of the road and clear procedures for peacefully addressing disagreements."
Richard Engel spent two weeks in North Korea and got a rare and revealing look inside this very closed country.
Reigning in North Korea
The Obama administration also wants greater Chinese cooperation on other international problems, including reining in the North Korean and Iranian nuclear programs and finding a solution to the Syria crisis.
China backs a "political transition" in Syria to end worsening bloodshed after 18 months of unrest, Yang said while repeating Beijing's opposition to forceful foreign intervention in the crisis.
As Clinton preps for Asia-Pacific tour, is North Korea capable of reform?
Clinton said it was "no secret" the U.S. government was disappointed by the positions of China and Russia on Syria, and she reiterated that the best course of action remained tough U.N. Security Council action.
Yang also said his government opposed the efforts of any country, including Iran, to develop nuclear weapons. Tehran denies having such ambitions.
Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Leave a Comment:
Giving China the most privileged nation trade status was the biggest mistake in US history. Or maybe it was treason, not a mistake. Our politicians have sold American People to the slave traders of international capital holders, making sure everybody in the world works for peanuts and they skim off all the profits.
"China, US divided on Syria, sea spat, but vow goodwill"
Translation: "We will gladly give you all of our taxpayers hard earned money to play nice and be our friends! Really, they don't mind because they never do anything about it, they are so stupid that they think voting us out like musical chairs will ever really do anything (suckers)! If they were smart, they'd try us in a court of law and hang us for treason because of we do the bidding of our corporate masters and not the will of the people that actually voted for us based on the lies that we told them when we were campaigning! A little taxation without representation never hurts either because we give you their money while we cut the programs the taxes are suppose to pay for!"
China has cleverly planned and manipulated our government and free enterprise system by using the lust and greed of corporations and our so called representatives in their favor. Yes, one could say teason was/is involved. Soon, they will be the world power, as so called leaders like Obama or Romney sell out to these world invaders.
If our government wanted the upper hand it would begin carefully manipulating them as they do us, and begin by making it more difficult to do business in the USA, which in-turn would increase domestic opportunity. but instead, our indebtedness to China continues to skyrocket.
why dont people rally over this stuff? instead we get occupy protesters who have no real agenda and just want a place to plop their box for the night.
The Chinese have a special disdain for Mrs. Clinton, ever since her husband "Accidentally" bombed their embassy during his Presidency (1999 Belgrade).
The future problem in the South China Sea is totally over resources, oil, and natural gas. It is actually in our interests for China to get them. It's better for us and our economy that the country that produces so much of our products get them. It is also in our interest to let the county that holds so much of US economic debt take them. The island and surrounding seas have no value without those resources. In this case might will make right. China's has the military to take what they want and the gravitas to take it. It will boil down to boots on the ground and ships in the area. The other countries haven't the ability of fight for it and it is none of our business.
The leaders in China are retiring, and so is Mrs.Clinton. Furthermore, we don't even know who is our next President. What are they talking about anyway? Is it like "Don't do anything funny until the power transition"?
Perhaps China, Japan and the other Pacific Rim countries will form a consortium that would give all concerned a piece of the action. I remember the history of the region, yet perhaps a level of trust can still be generated between all concerned. It would be nice to see the gas fields and fisheries managed in such a way that both energy needs and the environment are happy. One bit of advice, do not allow those corporate oil thieves from the States take over and RUIN everything.
@glenn,
That is the approach being backed by the US. However, the animosity in the region still remains with the Vietnamese hating the Chinese (their traditional enemies with whom they fought a border war after the US war), both Koreas, all of SE Asia, and the Chinese hating Japan because of WWII, all of Asia suspicious of US intentions and ability to maintain its attention span in the region. And let's not forget Russia waiting on the sidelines to try to stir up trouble between China and others in the region.
The basic problems are threefold: 1) China would like to declare some maritime areas such as the Yellow Sea as territorial waters in order to secure its borders better. 2) None of the players has any significant oil and all the manufacturing countries, including China, Japan, Vietnam, and South Korea need massive uninterrupted supplies of oil and natural gas to keep their economies going. And 3) Fisheries are becoming more and more important as a source of protein due to vast overfishing, especially by the Japanese.
It all comes down to RESPECT and TRUST, when one side or the other lose it, it's differnt story!
Diplomacy: The art of saying "Nice doggie" until you can find a big stick.
How to end the bloodshed... let's see, where is Syria again? Oh yeah, it's in the middle east...
The only way to end the bloodshed would be boarder-to-boarder carpet bombardment for 2 straight weeks, followed by a month of drone patrols, and finally send in the flamethrowers to finish off anything that moves.
Then, and only then, there will be no more bloodshed in Syria.
Why? Syria is a middle eastern country, and slaughtering each other is simply what they do over there. It is a 4000 year old way of life. They enjoy it, it's part of their cultural identity. Without it, they would not be able to survive.
How to end the bloodshed in Syria:
(1) Put all the people you know are friendly, peace-loving Syrians on boats in the Mediterranean Sea.
(2) Kill everyone that's left on land.
(3) Sink the boats.
bill.....
perfect...............
@denver bill, @IATramp, @Indigo, et alia
So your best shot is genocide?????? Why would anyone want to have anything to do with a country that even contained people with your opinion? You would not be good next door neighbors, methinks.
@Indigo- Rage: Wow! That is a lot of rage you expressed in your post. I think most of us know where you are coming from. But, with that said, we must remember most people in the Middle East only want what we have in the West.
The problem in the ME is how they are ruled (notice I did not say governed?). Qaddafi was in power in Lybia since '69, the Assad family in Syria since '70, Mubarek in Egypt took power in '81, toss in Saddam - from '79 to 2003. We dumped him but the majority of his people wished they had. These were/are brtual dictatorships that aimed at securing absolute power, money, property and, they hoped, a glorious place in history.
For all its faults, the above is one reason why decomcracy is still better than long-term dictatorships that hand the reigns of power to their sons. Every four years we get to decide who will govern us, sometimes we screw up and give a president eight years, but we at least know that is as far as it goes. And, wheras we have checks and balances, dictatorships have only one - a disgruntled populace. Call me naive, but if the ME had democracy they might not be a hotbed for such violence. Their being so tribal and secular is their own paradox in coping with democracy because democracy would better accommodate those differences. Isn't America a mishmash of ethnicity and religion? It may not be perfect here, but we can at least cast ballots rather than fire bullets when choosing a leader.
In summary, we need not carpet bomb, fly the drones and bring in the flamethrowers totally annihilate those people, for too many innocent, peace-seeking people would die. What is the solution there? Let's ask God.
Yep. And they are too stupid to realize they don't have to fight for it. All the have to do is cross our borders and they get it for free.
Many Americanc don't like China.
@denverbil 2: But, you and I and 300 million other Americans do not want that (cross our borders) as a solution. So, they need to stay where they are and figure it out for themselves.
GUARDIAN : GOD Unites All Races Denominations In All Nations... Man is the reason for atrocities, greed, slavery, and hatred.... when God is not in the equation, man tries to become one...
We are always trying to blame other's; people, countries, religions, guns...etc... when we learn to accept, share and allow for differrences man may have chance... to live in peace!
yep dave, i think i will help you spread the word....now where did i park my unicorn?....................:)
ahhhhhhhh.... probably in the gararge...
The only people who advocate opening our borders to any and all immigrants are Ron/Rand Paul's Libertarians and their Tea Party followers who failed to read the Libertarian Platform. ( www.lp.org/platform )
BWAHHAHAHAHA! YES! Let's ask that psychopath. The one who:
"So God said to Noah, "I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth." Genesis 6:13
"But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare." 2 Peter 3:10
"The nations were angry; and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great--and for destroying those who destroy the earth." Rev 11:18
"The LORD is a jealous God, filled with vengeance and wrath. He takes revenge on all who oppose him and furiously destroys his enemies! The LORD is slow to get angry, but his power is great, and he never lets the guilty go unpunished. He displays his power in the whirlwind and the storm. The billowing clouds are the dust beneath his feet. At his command the oceans and rivers dry up, the lush pastures of Bashan and Carmel fade, and the green forests of Lebanon wilt. In his presence the mountains quake, and the hills melt away; the earth trembles, and its people are destroyed. Who can stand before his fierce anger? Who can survive his burning fury? His rage blazes forth like fire, and the mountains crumble to dust in his presence. The LORD is good. When trouble comes, he is a strong refuge. And he knows everyone who trusts in him. But he sweeps away his enemies in an overwhelming flood. He pursues his foes into the darkness of night. " Nahum 1:2-8
"I have wiped out many nations, devastating their fortress walls and towers. Their cities are now deserted; their streets are in silent ruin. There are no survivors to even tell what happened. I thought, 'Surely they will have reverence for me now! Surely they will listen to my warnings, so I won't need to strike again.' But no; however much I punish them, they continue their evil practices from dawn till dusk and dusk till dawn." So now the LORD says: "Be patient; the time is coming soon when I will stand up and accuse these evil nations. For it is my decision to gather together the kingdoms of the earth and pour out my fiercest anger and fury on them. All the earth will be devoured by the fire of my jealousy. "On that day I will purify the lips of all people, so that everyone will be able to worship the LORD together. My scattered people who live beyond the rivers of Ethiopia will come to present their offerings." Zephaniah 3:6-10
Maybe I did ask God, seems he's already spoken on the subject and agrees. After all, what does the death of the body matter, innocent or otherwise -
"Don't be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell." - Matthew 10:28
@Indigo-Rage: Don't take my "Let's ask God" comment amiss. What I meant by that is this problem is too great for any human or group of humans to solve.
Nothing new or newsworthy in that article.
It all comes down to diplomacy. Now that we aren't acting like schoolyard bullies we can start making inroads trying to solve some of the most important and difficult problems we face in the Middle East and SE Asia to a certain degree.
It's amazing what you can do when other nations don't feel like they're dealing with an arrogant gaggle of bullies. That is how we came across to other countries when Bush was President.
The Chinese laugh at Obama. That's a fact. I live part time in China and Obama is a joke over there.
jim,
and that differs from the thinking people here, how exactly?............................:)
Oh yes, US and China vow good will over China seas and Syria...and if you leave a tooth under your pillow you will get some money in the morning and we all can sing kum ba ya...really..And by the way, I dont like Hillary either.
Translation: as long as China gets it's way, there is strength and resilience in the relationship.
That bunch of sly dogs is creeping ever closer in it's ultimate plan to own this country and operate it by remote control.
Meanwhile, nobody seems to be paying much attention. We are too busy giving away the store domestically and internationally.
They don't "like" Hillary?
Who actually does?
The guy in back take order for P.F Chang's
Stop buying made in china products. Its hard but doable. Start small. Go on line and you will find many things are still made in the usa. I've been doing it for years and its really not that hard. Pay a little more now or pay alot more later.
Those of you claiming we sold out to the greed of corporations have very closed minds or maybe you're just not educated.
The American consumer demanded cheap goods. Period. The huge majority of consumers refuse to pay for quality merchandise. Therefore, you have Wal-Mart, Home Depot, etc... Corporations had no choice than to move production to cheaper areas of the world. First it was Mexico, then China. Soon it will move to other countries where labor rates are cheapest. It wasn't corporations, it's the consumer that started the snowball.
If we didn't OWE China so much money China would be singing a different tune. We the people are now enslaved to China for generations to come.
Yes, and over what? A lot of cheap goods and a government gone berserk spending money we don't have.
Unfortuantly you nailed it.
Of course OBAMA wants to have "goodwill" toward China ....OBAMA wants this country to be just as COMMUNIST AS China is!!! OBAMA IS A LYING, CORRUPT, BACK STABBING SOB that needs to be sent packing!!
If China is smart it would take a hint that US "diplomacy" is always a disaster waiting to happen. Take it from Iraq, Israel, Afghanistan, Vietnam, S. American countries, Africans countries etc etc, "US diplomacy" is a shorthand for brutal world domination.
It's probably just a matter of time before we go to war with China in an attempt to wipe the debt slate clean. The Pacific island termoil are a good enough excuse as any.
Well said... and they are smart enough to have witnessed history of this, even before America ...
The U.S. and China do have alot in common. Both countrys seemingly have the same business and in both country's these business' treat their employee's like renewable resources. Both Governments believe the people are put here to work for the government and sacrifice for the government and that government is good and people are evil. Both country's are without God.
I just think the Chinese are using the Led Zepplin approach to Hillary...............a big legg'd woman, aint got no soul.............
OK lets see , I use to work in a carpet mill years ago when I went school , there mills every where , and then all of the sudden , they all went to South America , I do not think the South Americans came and took these mills , It was the companies decided to go so they can make more money , and in the case of China , its the same thing , Wall Mart use to advertise , Buy here , Made in America , and now every thing is made in China , I did not see Chinese troops at Wall Mart forcing them to go to China , it the American companies that did this to us , because they are too damn GREEDY , and the Chinese lend us money , so what so bad about some body lending us money , I love the banks that lend me money , and let see here !!! you got our EUROPEANS allies and our best friends , that always want our money , we borrow so we can give them and other countries money , we go to war with them , they end up with all the loots from the war , and all the OIL contracts , they kick the Chinese and the Russians companies out and take over , and then we have our dearest friends the Saudis , Qataris and the Gulf States, they support Alqaida and finance them to attack us every where , but they still our friends , WOW !!!!! I thought we are smarter than that , but sorry , we are talking about our politicians , they do not care about the American people , they care about their reelections and pockets .
Welcome to the, " United Socialists of America". You do not bite the hand that feeds you.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,397645,00.html
General Motors is becoming China Motors - YouTube
All planned out. In early 1970’s both political parties endorsed and released “Workforce 2000” plans starting with the Fortune 500 companies. Workforce 2000 and NAFTA is Americas contribution to the new global economy. Jack Welch, then CEO of GE designed the model and the rest of the big leaguers followed in his foot steps. He started sending “Low Tech” devices like toasters and coffee makers over to get the Chinese farmers to get them out of their fields. Look where they are today. I remember it well working for a large aerospace company in So. Cal.
We attended a four hour presentation on how America was going to change. “Workforce 2000”. We were to become a service oriented country. How labor intensive work was going to be out sourced. How Chinas average pay scale was a whopping .35 cents per day. The man hours it took us to build one large airplane would be an equivalent cost to the most expensive BMW motorcar. Were all our stock holders and board of directors excited. The Demographics of America were also explained. Guess what? The Hispanic communities was going to be the major population in the LA basin area. That’s right. See where we are today. All part of the plan and don’t forget, all endorsed by both political parties. Then the whipshooding began. Jack Welch implemented a theme called, “Keeping the Ideas Coming”. Ref. March Fortune 500 article. With the threat, or inevitable loss of our jobs, he started a manipulation cooptation strategy to pick the employees brains and make them think they could compete and save their jobs/asses. The CEO’s, corporate leaders and politicians are raking in all the benefits.
So when I hear and read about this new economy BS, remember our government has it all under control. The part I have trouble with is if people are not working and or making half of what they use to make, income tax revenue will drop as well. How dose a tax system expect to sustain and pay for basic services, afford a healthcare program and frequent handouts to the world in trouble?
In 1992 United Auto Workers union, (UAW) predicted that only 4% of the American workers will be represented by a union. Police, fire services and a few more government jobs will be represented to show the world America is still labor friendly.
As Americans Change so to speak and our earning power diminishes Americans will eventually take what they can get. Just like other third world counties did. Its Americas turn to become the stepchild.
And now Obama has brought in Jeffrey Immelt CEO from GE. Immelt cut his teeth under Jack Welch and Harry Stonesypher. GE was the model corporation which has led to American’s loosing their jobs. And now a Muslim in charge of Homeland Security. Amazing how everything predicted is coming to pass.
Wal-Mart has become the new commissary to America.
Our future holds, “Beans, Blankets and Bullets
Obama is not divided with China over Syria. How can anyone say that? Obama is letting his own city suffer under violence - Chicago. Of course, he would let a foreign country suffer violence. He just won't help people being shot at.
oh goody Hillary fixed it all, just like we all knew she would, so now what? get on her broom and headed to the DNC? maybe she can fix the no papers / no fears bus. how come they aren't in the news by the way? ....no good way to spin it perhaps ..?........................:)
Oh come on people..she's doing a good job by any objective standard. It's not her job to make nice with the Chinese.
The article seemed to evidence some confusion between the South China Sea disputes between a bunch of countries, in which China is being rather militarily obnoxious, and the Senkaku/Diaoyu/Tiaoyutai dispute, which is NOT in the South China Sea, and where China has not taken a militarily offensive position (probably there, unlike in the South China Sea, they actually have the moral high ground, sort of). These are two different disputes in two different parts of the region.
Clarifying the various island disputes news outlets always seem to be getting confused. Rival claimants are in parentheses. Current (hot) disputes are highlighted.
YELLOW SEA/EASTERN CHINA SEA
- Socotra (South Korea vs China)
- Kuril Islands (Japan vs Russia)*
- Dokto (Japan vs South Korea)*
- Senkakus (Taiwan, China, Japan)*
SOUTH CHINA SEA
- Hibernia (Indonesia vs Australia)
- Karang Unarang (Malaysia vs Indonesia)
- Sipidan/Ligitan (Malaysia vs Indonesia)
- Macclesfield (Taiwan, China, Philippines, Vietnam)
- Paracels (China, Taiwan, Vietnam)
- Scarborough (Philippines, China, Taiwan)
- Spratlys (China, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei)*
- Tasman Sea atolls (Japan vs Australia)
Good post, @California.
I would also add that this is coming at a time when the Communist civilian leadership is being rocked by scandals, the Chinese economy is slowing dramatically in reaction to the world financial situation, and the Chinese military is still rock-solid xenophobic and is modernizing rapidly. The Chinese civiian leadership is scared of the Chinese military and wants to portray itself as solidly resstant to American influence. But at the same time the Chinese civilian leadrship klnows that if the Chinese economy slows (as it is currently doing) in a way similar to Japan in the 1990's that there will be huge ciil unrest that could make the Maoist days look like child's play. An beneath it all, there is the simple fact that China has no significant oil or natural gas resources and its coal is rapidly dwindling. Without a reliable supply of oil, the Chinese economy is doomed in the long term. The last time a country found itself in such a position --- a major industrial country, lacking in resources, and facing civil disruption --- was when Japan was cut off from oil, rubber, and scrap metal prior to WWII. They quickly (in less than three years) reached the point where the military took over and they sought to take by military force the raw materials that they lacked.
Whenever dealing with the country known as china, be prepared tp be lied to, to be bullied, to be manipulated and most of all to be threatened in some manner or other.
china is one of, if not the most murdereous, land stealing, dishonorable, cheatling nation on the face of this earth.
And their greatest acheivement is their continuous exporting of toxic products and poisoned products to other nations.
They could care less about how many pets or people get sick from their tainted products, and they also rip off every nation that imports to them with their out of balance tariffs they impose on every nation that wants to export to them all the while holding the usa hostage with their export tariffs to this crumbling nation of ours, on top of that, we have a president who is afraid of china and afraid to stand up to them on this matter.
Great post Jim... Finally some one willing to speak the truth!!!!!
Bullcarpy, Jim.
Bush caved to China on all fronts for 8 years. Obama has since put human rights, trade issues and territorial agitation back onto the agenda with them, forcing them to back down on various issues - including the dissident we actually managed to get them to allow to leave the country after sheltering him in our own embassy. Y'all love to make things up about Obama, to discredit him, even where your "claims" fly in the face of all reality.
@Jim,.
Don't get out much or read the newspapers? What China is objecting to is the increasing military influence and presence in the Pacific region. Doesn't sound like we have a President who is afraid to stand up to China. I think you have Obama confused with Bush Jr who constantly cut out military presence in the Pacific and allowed China to use a double-currency standard to manipulate trade balances to be about 8 times what they should have been.
Yes, China has had trouble regularing a manufacturing/export sector that has been growing at a pace never before seen in the world. And there are unscrupulous individuals who cut corners in the name of profits. But this hasn't been aimed at the US --- most of the toxic products sold werte sold in China to Chinese. And the Chinese government has long required that any foreign company doing business in China take responsibility for the quality of all the products they have made in China --- beit wallboard, toys, etc. It is the importers (Americans) who allowed the quality of these products to drop to the levels of being toxic and dangerous.
As one exampole of how poorly informed your post is --- both the Chinese government and the American government (including the CDCP) have investigated the pet products that are killing dogs and cats here. They have narrowed it down to chicken jerky that was made to American specifications by Chinese companies. But they have never been able to identify the problem so far. Americans don't want to see their pets die and the Chinese don't want to see a significant product segment get trashed. Both countries are still looking for the problem, both here and in China, but so far both have come up empty-handed. Sometimes things just happen and no one is trying to screw anyone else. There doesn't have to be some sort of Chinese conspiracy to poison American pets. Sometimes bad things just happen and take a while to straighten out.
I would also point out that when illegal Chinese dumping of solar panels destroyed the American solar panel industry (including Solyndra and the German solar panel instustries) that Obama's people had trade scanctions in place within eight months that continue to this day. We lost about half our solar panel industry, but that is now recovering briskly due to stringent tarrffs imposed on China. The tariffs were so harsh that I seriously doubt that anyone in China thinks that Obama is afraid of China. (And it appears that Solyndra and other solar manufacturers may yet emerge from bankruptcy as a viable company as a result.
Your statement about China imposing "export tariffs" is pure nonsense. No country imposes export tariffs to do anything except to slow or eliminate exports of some good. We, for example, have export tariffs that suppress the export of some military technology. Why would China impose export tariffs? That would be really stupid since it would only hurt their exports. What the Chinese government does is exactly the opposite --- they engage in dumping (selling exports below the cost of manufacture (as they did with 2nd and 3rd generation solar panels) or place import tariffs that cause goods coming from other countries to cost relatively more.
Screeds like yours are just the ranting of seriously ininformed people. At least you spelled Tariffs correctly. LOL
In terms of military clashes and tensions over the island disputes,
- Spratlys (China, everybody else) - Chinese PLAN and Philippines Navy forces have had tense stand-offs and even a collision. Chinese military deployment. US does not favor the Chinese position but otherwise can't decide which of the 7 other claimants it does favor. This is considered to be a potential military flashpoint.
- Senkakus (Japan, China, Taiwan) - Taiwanese Coast Guard stood off with Japan Defense Forces and prefectural police forces as late as August, 2012. Some incidents were reported as clashes between China and Japan, but those reports appear to to have confused flags. VIolent protests in three capitals. US is officially neutral and trying hard not to get involved. Despite the protests, this doesn't seem to be a potential military flashpoint.
- Kurils (Japan, Russia) - Russia recently started strengthening military defenses against Japan, including deployment of anti-aircraft missile batteries. US officially supports Japan over Russia. Doubtful the two sides would really fight each other over the islands, but, with Putin, who knows.
- Doktos/Laincourts (Japan, two Koreas) - South Korea appears to be following through on Marine deployment plans against Japan. North Korea is a wildcard. Diplomatic contact between Seoul and Tokyo have pretty much collapsed. Violent protests in two capitals. US is officially neutral but signaling support for South Korea over Japan. This is considered to be a potentially volatile military flashpoint.
One point about the Kurils. Putin spent a lot of political capital on Assad in Syria. The reason is that the Russian naval base at Targus, Syria is Russia's only overseas military base and the only thing that makes the Black Sea Fleet viable in the event of hostilities. Now it is looking like Russia will lose the Targus base pretty soon. That means that Russia's only assured warm water naval ports would be in the Russian Maritime. You can pretty much look for Putin to start utting a huge amount of pressure on Japan to cede the Kurils so the Russians can use the islands for naval forces. It is looking like Putin is currently spending a lot of political capital on painting the Japanese to be the bad guys in this dispute.
Thanks Chris.. Great observation.. which would explain why this is the only one of the Japanese island disputes the US has taken a side on, against Russia. I guess I have to consider that the Kurils can be a fight then, too, which is really scary.
IMO, there's no way that China will be willing to go to war over the Senkakus, so I'm discounting the riskiness of that particular conflict quite a bit. They'll shout about it, sure, and there will be protests, but the only real risk of an actual clash is between Taiwan and Japan, which would just be hilarious and over in about five minutes, with neither side prepared to expend the domestic political capital necessary to wage a war.. not to mention Taiwan's almost total lack of military capacity.
I can easily picture an incident between Japan and Korea over the Dokdos - I mean, they've basically already expelled or withdrawn each other's ambassadors, people are torching themselves alive outside embassies and tossing firebombs at legations (not very well reported, whereas one minor incident of some Chinese guy ripping off a flag from a Japanese official vehicle in Beijing was widely reported, but, I guess, conflicts that don't involve China don't sell papers). The simple reality is that it would be political suicide for any South Korean leader to be seen to back down over this issue, so either Japan has to blink or this one can get very ugly... and a huge test for the US to keep two allies within the American security umbrella from shooting at each other.
What I don't understand is why three separate conflicts involve Japan with three different countries have come to a head at the same time... For some reason, right wingers there have become empowered in a way they haven't in decades.
Separately, I believe that the Spratlys are the scariest of the island disputes (China versus 7 claimants)... and the only one that really has the potential to become a superpower (US and China) flashpoint, in my opinion. I believe this is the only one of the disputes that China has escalated to the status "core" territories.. which means that politically it has little scope to back down, whereas I believe it will blink of the Senkakus.