US urges China to soothe tensions

[October 30, 2010]  HANOI, Vietnam (AP) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Saturday urged China to soothe rising regional maritime tensions, press North Korea's reclusive leadership to improve ties with the South and provide assurances on its export of exotic metals key to the global high-tech industry.

Clinton put China on notice that the United States would not abandon its traditional role as the dominant Asia-Pacific power. And, she said the U.S. has a national interest in the resolution of competing claims over strategic and potentially oil-rich islands in the East and South China seas that have ratcheted up animosity between China and its wary neighbors.

As such, she proposed a three-way meeting between the U.S., China and Japan to ease a rift in Sino-Japanese relations over contested East China Sea islands -- known as the Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan, according to senior U.S. officials. That rift is the latest to arise between China and its neighbors over islands.

"It is in all of our interests for China and Japan to have stable and peaceful relations," Clinton told reporters. The United States, she said, is "more than willing to host a trilateral where we would bring Japan and China and their foreign ministers together where we would discuss a range of issues."

"We made very clear that we want the temperature to go down on this issue," said one senior official who was present at a meeting between Clinton and Chinese Foreign Minster Yang Jiechi on the sidelines of a summit of East Asian leaders in Vietnam.

Yang, the official said, told Clinton he would take the suggestion under advisement but made no commitments on whether China would accept U.S. mediation in the dispute that has plunged ties between Beijing and Tokyo to new lows. Japanese officials have said they would welcome a U.S. role if a trilateral meeting were well prepared, the official said.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a private diplomatic exchange between Clinton and Yang. They said no date for a three-way meeting was proposed.

A statement posted on the Chinese Foreign Ministry website said Yang told Clinton the United States should act with discretion and make no "wrong remarks" on the highly sensitive issue of the islands. He also reiterated Beijing's claim to the islands and said the U.S. should respect China's stance.

Clinton's meeting with Yang came before talks she will have later Saturday with Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo when she makes a brief visit to China's Hainan Island. The series of talks are aimed at boosting frayed U.S.-China ties ahead of a state visit to the U.S. by Chinese President Hu Jintao.

In addition to the island disputes, Clinton sought and received assurances from Yang that China will remain a supplier of exotic metals, known as rare earths, that are key to the global high-tech industry.

Clinton said Yang told her that "China has no intention of withholding these materials from the market. He said he wanted to make that very clear."

She also said that despite that assurance, the U.S. Japan and Europe would continue to look for other suppliers of rare earths.

"Although we are pleased with the clarification we received from the Chinese government, we still think that the world as a whole needs to find alternatives," she said.

Officials said Yang told Clinton that China would not use rare earths as a diplomatic, political or economic tool in dealing with other countries and that Beijing did not want their export to become an issue in its foreign relations.

There was no immediate comment from Chinese officials but China said earlier this week said that it would not use the exports of rare earths as a political bargaining chip.

Recent Chinese restrictions on the sale of rare earths have drawn international concern and prompted calls for nations to diversify the production of the minerals, which are needed to produce items such as cell phones, missiles and solar energy panels.

China now produces 97 percent of the world's supply after most of the industrialized world, including the United States, Japan and Europe, largely abandoned their production in favor of cheaper Chinese exports.

In her meeting with Yang, Clinton also asked China to use its influence with North Korea to keep the country from taking any provocative actions ahead of an upcoming G-20 summit that South Korea will be hosting next month.

[Associated Press; By MATTHEW LEE]

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