Will U.S.-China ties lift after APEC?

The Yomiuri Shimbun, Asia News Network, Tokyo

The Shanghai summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum ended Sunday after adopting a statement that calls for international cooperation to fight terrorism. It was a great achievement that 20 countries and territories of the Pacific Rim -- with their diversified religions and political systems -- could agree on a common stance against terrorism.

We hope that the measures to counter terrorism incorporated into the statement, such as the one aimed at eradicating funds for terrorist groups, will be put into practice without fail.

But the statement stopped short of sanctioning direct support for the U.S.-led military campaign against the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan. Instead the statement emphasized the role the United Nations could play in the war against terrorism. This can be taken as reflecting APEC's consideration to Indonesia and other Islamic countries and concern about the U.S. taking a one-nation approach to the situation.

For U.S. President George W. Bush, attendance at the APEC summit was his first foreign visit since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on his country. Of note during his stay in Shanghai was his summit meeting with Chinese President Jiang Zemin.

In their first summit meeting, the two leaders agreed to establish a constructive and cooperative relationship between their countries. This marked a great mending of the bilateral relationship, which had been unstable since the inauguration of the Bush administration in January.

In pursuing a foreign policy that prioritizes establishing an international network to fight terrorism, Bush has no alternative but to shift to an engagement policy vis-a-vis principal countries. Cooperation with China is part of this diplomatic strategy.

China supports the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan on condition that it does not inflict damage to civilians. And it should be noted that it is very rare for Beijing to back U.S. military action.

The Chinese leadership is giving top priority to relations with the United States. In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, the Chinese leadership may well have felt it better to improve relations with Washington as much as possible.

For China to achieve economic development, which is its biggest national goal, Beijing recognizes that it is crucial to stabilize its relations with Washington. The importance of doing so is paramount given the scheduled change in Chinese leadership next year.

Even if the terrorist attacks served as a catalyst to make the two countries work together toward cooperation, their stance of mutual cooperation could be interpreted as a "marriage of convenience" when taking into consideration such differences.

Also discussed at the APEC summit measures were ways to cope with the danger of a global recession, which has been growing stronger in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.

For APEC, whose existence had been eclipsed by the Asian economic crisis in 1997, the Shanghai summit meeting could mean its rebirth. But a real rejuvenation of APEC requires the establishment of a well-balanced relationship among Japan, the U.S. and China -- the three key members of APEC.