North Korea's famine and its potential to cause havoc on the Chinese border are straining Beijing's friendship with Pyongyang. But China worries that a major U.S. role in negotiations between North Korea and South Korea could mean a greater American presence on the peninsula after reunification. In what some are calling a major breakthrough, China's foreign minister told Secretary of State Madeleine Albright several weeks ago that China was willing to stop giving Iran anti-ship cruise missiles and nuclear aid. While welcoming the progress, senior U.S. officials say the commitment must be clear, extensive, and in writing. In China, environmental protection takes a back seat to economic growth.
China needs to do much more, Washington says, to decrease greenhouse gas emissions.
Beijing gets pollution-fighting money from the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, Japan, and other governments, including token amounts from America. The Chinese are looking for more financial aid from Washington, plus an understanding that their cleanup cannot occur overnight. For China, potential benefits of cooperation with the U.S. military are many, including professionalization of its own ranks through contact with the world's most advanced fighting force. If his trip goes well, Jiang himself will get a huge boost on the home front, completing the final stage of his long rise up from Communist Party apparatchik. He waited for a state visit for some time.