Extracts. Chinese Defense Minister: US Must Apologize Chinese Defense Minister Chi Haotian said the US should face reality, and bear responsibility for the recent collision between the Chinese and US planes. "The US should apologize to the Chinese people and take effective measures to avoid another similar matter from happening," said Chi, also vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission and a state councilor. He told visiting Brazilian Defense Minister Graldo Magela Da Cruz Quintao that for many years, US surveillance planes have frequently flown close to Chinese coastal areas for reconnaissance. And it is justified and conforming to international practice for Chinese planes to track and monitor them. Chi said the direct cause of the collision was that the US plane violated flight rules, and veered suddenly at the Chinese planes from a wide angle. He said human life is the most important thing in the world, and the Chinese government is very concerned about the missing pilot, and will continue to search for and rescue him. On bilateral relations, Chi said China and Brazil have expanded their cooperation in political, economic, military and cultural fields since the two countries forged diplomatic ties in 1974, and the two countries have maintained sound cooperation in dealing with international affairs. He expressed gratitude for the support of the Brazilian government to China on the issues of human rights and Taiwan. Bilateral military relations have developed smoothly, Chi said, adding that it conforms to the fundamental interests of the people of the two countries. "We hold a positive attitude to developing cooperation between the two armed forces in all fields, and are ready to work with Brazil for this purpose," he added. Quintao said his China tour coincides with Chinese President Jiang Zemin's Latin American trip, and Brazil will be very honored to welcome Jiang in a few days. He said Brazil seeks multi-polarity, opposes hegemonism, and safeguards world peace, and Brazil and China should strengthen cooperation. He expressed the belief that the visit will further military relations between Brazil and China. **** President Jiang Starts State Visit to Argentina President Jiang Starts State Visit to Argentina Chinese President Jiang Zemin <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/leaders/jzm/jzmhome.htm> arrived in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/argentina.html> Saturday afternoon for a state visit at the invitation of Argentine President Fernando de la Rua. Argentina is the second-leg of Jiang's six-nation tour to Latin America and his first tour to the country. President Jiang's special plane touched down Saturday afternoon. The Chinese head of state and his delegation were honored at a welcome ceremony hosted by Argentine President Fernando de la Rua. Chinese Ambassador to Argentina Zhang Shaying Zhang's wife Li Ning and Chinese people residing here also gathered at the airport to welcome Jiang. Jiang's entourage who arrived aboard the same plane included Jiang's wife Wang Yeping, Vice-Premier Qian Qichen <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/leaders/Qianqichen.htm> and his wife Zhou Hanqiong, Minister in charge of the State Development Planning Commission Zeng Peiyan, Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation Shi Guangsheng, Special Assistant Hua Jianmin, Vice-Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, Deputy Director of the General Office of the Communist Party of China£¨CPC£©Central Committee and Director of the Central Guard Bureau You Xigui and Deputy Director of the Policy Research Office of the CPC Central Committee Wang Huning. In a written speech distributed at the airport, President Jiang highly commended the achievements made by the diligent and brave Argentine people in safeguarding sovereignty, developing economy and pursuing social progress. Geographically apart from the other, China and Argentina enjoys long-standing friendship, Jiang said. He particularly mentioned the continuous growth of bilateral cooperation in political, economic and trade, scientific and technological and cultural areas after the two countries forged diplomatic ties in 1972. "The Chinese government is committed to the further development of its ties with Argentina," Jiang said. Jiang expressed the hope that the visit will strengthen dialogue, enhance trust, promote cooperation and achieve common development. He also expressed the belief that the visit will lift the existing friendly and cooperative bilateral relations up to a new level. President Jiang came here after concluding a state visit to Chile <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/chile.html> earlier today. After Argentina, Jiang will visit Uruguay <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/uruguay.html> , Brazil <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/brazil.html> , Cuba <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/cuba.html> and Venezuela <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/venezuela.html> . Chronology: Major Events in Sino-Argentine Relations The following are major events in Sino-Argentine relations since 1972: 1972 -- February 19, China and Argentina established diplomatic relations. 1980 -- Argentine President Jorge Rafael Videla visited China. 1985 -- Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang visited Argentina. 1988 -- Argentine President Raul Ricardo Alfonsin visited China. May 1990 -- Chinese President Yang Shangkun paid a state visit to Argentina at the invitation of his Argentine counterpart Carlos Saul Menem. The two sides signed a plan to carry out cultural exchanges between 1990-1992. November 14-16, 1990 -- Argentine President Carlos Saul Menem paid a state visit to China. During his visit, the two sides signed Sino-Argentine consulate treaty and other agreements. July 13, 1993 -- Beijing <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/province/beijing.html> and Buenos Aries, capitals of the two countries, became sister cities and the Beijing-Buenos Aries mixed commission was found. April 20-24, 1994 -- The Chinese Communist Party delegation, headed by Hu Jintao <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/leaders/vpresident.html> , member of the Standing Committee of the party 's Politburo, paid an official visit to Argentina. That was the party's highest level delegation to visit Argentina since the two countries established diplomatic relations. November 14-18, 1994 -- Qiao Shi, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) of China paid a good-will visit to Argentina, the first ever visit to the country by the chairman of Chinese NPC Standing Committee since the two countries established diplomatic relations 22 years ago. October 2-5,1995 -- Argentine President Carlos Saul Menem paid a state visit to China. The two governments signed an agreement worth 200 million U.S. dollars on economic cooperation between enterprises of the two countries. January 26-29,1996 -- Chinese Vice Premier Zhu Rongji <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/leaders/Zhurongji.htm> paid an official visit to Argentina to enhance mutual understanding and strengthen the contact between the two countries' high-ranking officials. May 15-17, 1997 -- Chinese Vice-Premier Li Langqing paid an official visit to Argentina. During his visit, the two countries signed a series of agreements on loan and investment. September 19-22, 1998 -- A government delegation led by Chinese Vice-Premier Wu Bangguo <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/leaders/Wubangguo.htm> paid an official visit to Argentina. March 11, 2000 -- Argentina and China signed in Buenos Aires an agreement on China's admission into the World Trade Organization ( WTO). The document was signed by Argentine Deputy Foreign Minister Horacio Chighizola and Chinese Deputy Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation Minister Sun Zhenyu. May 10, 2000 -- Chinese Vice President Hu Jintao, also a standing committee member of the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee, met with former President of Argentina and President of the Justicialist Party Carlos Saul Menem in Beijing. May 26, 2000 -- Argentine Consulate General opened in Shanghai <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/province/Shanghai.html> . September 10-14, 2000 -- Argentine President Fernando de la Rua paid a five-day state visit to China at the invitation of Chinese President Jiang Zemin. The two heads of state held formal talks to exchange views on bilateral ties and issues of common concern. China and Argentina signed an agreement on cultural exchange and cooperation between the two countries, and a memorandum of understanding between China Radio International (CRI) and an Argentine internet company. **** Tunisian Paper Condemns US Hegemony over Plane Collision Tunisia <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/tunisia.html> 's Ashrouq daily on Saturday condemned the US hegemony policy while commenting on the collision between a US spy plane and a Chinese military jet over South China Sea on April 1. A commentary carried by the paper praised the stance of the Chinese government and people on the issue and their demand the US apologize for the incident as a precondition to solve the current Sino-US standoff. "The Americans tried, from the beginning, to dictate their terms and give their orders as if China were Grenada or a small country shivering and surrendering just because America is raging," the commentary said. "We, the Arabs, had been humiliated by the Americans. In occupied Palestine, for instance, Israel <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/israel.html> is attacking the innocent and unarmed Palestinians," it added. "When the Palestinians revolt against the Israeli aggressions, the US urges them to adopt self-restraint and end violence, blaming them for the daily clashes with the Israeli troops," the commentary noted. In Iraq <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/iraq.html> , US planes patrolling the no-fly zones continued violations against the sovereignty of an independent country, it said, adding that what really the Americans want is that the Iraqis should not talk about the violations of their sovereignty and that they have no right to defend their homeland, otherwise they are regarded as having endangered the lives of the US pilots. "Such US policies made us see its ignorance in the field of state sovereignty and national independence," it said. "The Palestinians and Iraqi people, whose sovereignty and rights are violated, have the right to demand the US to apologize," it concluded. After the mid-air collision, the damaged US spy plane landed in China's Hainan <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/province/hainan.html> Island without getting permission from Chinese authorities. The pilot of the downed Chinese jet is still missing. **** US Must Apologize to China for Air Collision: Iranian Daily The United States must apologize to China for the incident caused by a US spy plane, the Iranian newspaper Tehran Times said on April 7. In an signed article entitled "US must apologize to China," the paper said that the US expression of "regret" over the missing of a Chinese pilot, whose plane collided with a US spy plane last Sunday, is inadequate. In response to the incident, the US Secretary of State Colin Powell simply called it "tragic" and did not even hint that his country should apologize, the article said. It pointed out that Washington must apologize for this undiplomatic incident caused by the US spy plane.¡¡ It also noted that the mishandling of this incident has shown the inexperience of the US President George W. Bush's administration in its foreign policies. This is not the first time that the US has violated the territorial integrity of other countries, it stressed, saying that US planes have done so in the past, causing loss of life and property damage. On April 1, a US EP-3 surveillance plane bumped into a Chinese jet fighter off the coast of Hainan Island in the South China Sea. The Chinese fighter crashed and its pilot is still missing. The US spy plane landed in China's Hainan island without permission.¡¡ China demands an official apology from the US for the collision. **** Russia Urges Israel Not to Build New Settlements on West Bank Russia <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/russia.html> on April 7called on Israel <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/israel.html> to give up its plans of building new and expanding existing Jewish settlements on the West Bank of the Jordan <http://web3.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/jordan.html> River. The Russian Foreign Ministry in a statement expressed great concern about the Israeli cabinet's approval of the plans to expand the Maale Adoumim and Alfe Menashe settlements in the West Bank region by 700 units. "Such unilateral actions, which run counter to the norms of international law, only fan the flame of Palestinian-Israeli conflict and make it harder to overcome the crisis, normalize the situation and resume the peace process in the Middle East," the statement said. "This act cannot but cause more concerns of the international community, especially the rising escalation of tensions in the Palestinian territories," the document noted. Russia, "which has consistently opposed to building new and expanding the existing Jewish settlements, calls on the Israeli government to stop this practice," it said. **** Egypt, Iraq Sign Contracts Under UN Oil-for-Food Program Egypt <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/egypt.html> and Iraq <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/iraq.html> have signed several contracts on exports of Egyptian commodities to Iraq under the UN oil-for-food program, the Middle East News Agency reported on April 7. Mokhtar Khatab, Egyptian minister of public enterprises, said that the contracts were signed during an Egyptian products fair held last week in Iraq's capital of Baghdad and included a deal on exporting 5,299 minibuses, trucks and buses to Iraq. Khatab said that Egypt will also export 100,000 tons of reinforced iron, 700 tractors, large amount of ceramics and construction materials to the sanctions-stricken country. He expected that the trade between Egypt and Iraq would see a " remarkable" boom in the coming years, saying that Egypt has planned to hold a construction materials fair in Baghdad in May. Egypt is Iraq's largest trade partner in the Arab world and the fifth largest in the world. Their trade volume is expected to exceed 2 billion US dollars in 2001 after they signed a free trade agreement in January, Egyptian officials said. **** UAE Condemns Israeli Aggressions on Palestinians The United Arab Emirates <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/uae.html> (UAE) on April 7 condemned the Israel <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/israel.html> i aggressions against the Palestinians and also blamed the United States <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/usa.html> for not taking necessary measures to stop Israel from killing Palestinian civilians. During a meeting with a US congressional delegation, UAE Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Sultan Bin Zayed al Nahyan said that " the (US) policy of condoning (Israeli) gross human rights violations is politically and morally objectionable," the official WAM news agency reported. Sheikh Sultan criticized the US for vetoing a United Nations resolution on sending an observer force to protect the Palestinians under Israeli occupation. He pointed out that the US public opinion has been misled as a result of Western unfair media coverage of the Palestinian Intifada (uprising), expressing hope that the US congressional delegation would depict a correct picture of the pains of the Palestinians. "Distortion has prevailed as a result of unfair coverage intended to serve ulterior motives and disguise the Israeli aggressions on Palestinians," he stressed. Expressing confidence in the implementation of the relevant UN resolutions on the Middle East conflict, Sheikh Sultan said that truth would triumph someday and that nobody would be misled anymore over the Israeli aggressions against the Palestinians. More than 450 people, most of them Palestinians, have been killed and thousands of others wounded in the clashes between the Palestinians and Israeli troops since last September. **** Chinese President Urges Unity, Cooperation Among Developing Nations Chinese President Jiang Zemin <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/leaders/jzm/jzmhome.htm> Friday urged the world's developing countries to strengthen their unity and cooperation so as to establish a new international political and economic order. In an address here to the U.N. Economic and Social Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, Jiang said developing countries should boost unity and make joint efforts to set up a just and rational new international political and economic order. He pointed out that new competition, confrontation and challenges have made the world develop in an inharmonious way and the democratization of international relations is far from being realized. "The unfair and irrational international political and economic order has remained unchanged and has become even worse in certain aspects." Therefore, he said, developing countries are facing more arduous tasks in safeguarding their state sovereignty, security and interests. And while enjoying greater opportunity for development, they also confront challenges that must be dealt with seriously. Jiang called on developing countries to accelerate democratization in the international relations, promote reform in the world economic, financial and trade systems, defend their own legitimate rights and interests and win the right for equal development. To enhance consultation and South-South cooperation is an important means for developing countries to face the changes in the international situation and improve their overall strength and international status, the Chinese president added. "Developing countries should actively participate in the South- North dialogue on the basis of equality and mutual benefit in an effort to improve South-North relations," he said. He also asked developed countries to take into consideration the interests of developing countries and work together with them to solve their problems such as lack of fund, heavy debt and backward technology. Developed and developing countries should respect each other, carry out dialogue, seek common points while reserving differences and strive for common development, Jiang said. The Chinese president also appealed to developing countries to tap their own potential for further development. Jiang is on a six-nation Latin America tour, which will also take him to Argentina <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/argentina.html> , Uruguay <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/uruguay.html> , Brazil <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/brazil.html> , Cuba <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/cuba.html> and Venezuela <http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/data/venezuela.html> . **** NPC Vice-Chairman Meets IPPF Delegation Vice-Chairman Jiang Chunyun of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress met with a delegation with the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) in Beijing <http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/province/beijing.html> on April 7. Jiang, who is also President of the China Family Planning Association (CFPA), expressed gratitude for IPPF's support to China's family planning work including both personnel training and project assistance. The delegation arrived in Beijing Friday to give an overall assessment of China's family planning work over the past three years. _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki Phone +358-40-7177941 Fax +358-9-7591081 http://www.kominf.pp.fi General class struggle news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe mails to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Geopolitical news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________
