For the people of East Asia, it will affect their relations with the region s major power. For the people of China, it holds out the hope of more open contact with the world of freedom. In short, this will be among the most serious decisions our government will make this year. Trade with China will promote freedom. The case for trade is not just monetary, but moral - not just a matter of commerce, but a matter of conviction.
Economic freedom creates habits of liberty.
And habits of liberty create expectations of democracy. Trade with China serves our own national interest, as well as the security interests of China s neighbors. China is not our strategic partner. But neither is it our enemy. When both China and Taiwan are members of the WTO, both will need to apply global rules to their trade, including trade with one another, and the prospects for cross-straits relations should improve.