Transcript: China-Related Excerpts of Powell CNN Interview
(Secretary of State discusses his past, Bush's upcoming China visit)Secretary of State Colin Powell, in an interview with CNN evening anchor Judy Woodruff August 1, commented on both his recent visit to China and President Bush's upcoming visit to that country.
When questioned concerning a television interview he gave while in China that was censored despite an agreement that it would air in its entirety, Powell replied that "it shows that [the Chinese] are not at a point where we think they ought to be with respect to this kind of openness in their society."
Powell said the censored portion of his interview essentially complimented the Chinese government for human rights improvements in the country, while also urging them to do more.
"You can speak that way to the Chinese leaders and let them know it, and they ought to let me speak that way to the Chinese people when I was given an opportunity," Powell said.
Powell said he thinks that when President Bush goes to China this fall, "he should have a full discussion with Chinese leaders of every item on our agenda: trade, human rights, proliferation of weapons to some of the least responsible states that are out there. And he should talk about everything that is on the agenda between two powerful nations, who should be moving forward into a non-threatening environment, where they can really cooperate on things where we have a common interest and disagree on things where we do not have a common interest."
Following is an excerpt of the State Department transcript:
(begin transcript)
Interview by Judy Woodruff of CNN
Secretary Colin L. Powell
Washington, DC
August 1, 2001. . .
QUESTION: All right. Mr. Secretary, on your trip to Asia while you were there, you spoke of China as a friend of the United States. There are others in the Administration, the President, the Secretary of Defense, who have referred to it as a strategic competitor. After this visit, which is it?
POWELL: I think it is not helpful to try to characterize the whole relationship by a single word or a single phrase. It is a complex relationship across a broad agenda and that is the real message that I delivered in China and come back with. There is a trading aspect to it, there is a security aspect to it, there is a human rights aspect to it, there is the Taiwan aspect to it. And so rather than try to capture it all in one phrase, either "friend" as opposed to, what, "enemy"? Or "strategic competitor" as opposed to, what, "strategic partner," which the previous administration used. I think you will see all of us starting to refer to this complex relationship.
And with respect to trading activities, they are coming into the World Trading Organization, we granted them normal trading relations, we are working hard. Our businesses are investing, 40 percent of their exports are coming to the United States. That is not an unfriendly relationship with respect to trade.
On their military activities, we want to see regular transparency in what they are doing, so we can sense whether or not their investment in their military is just modernization of the type one would expect, or is it something that is threatening and provocative.
On human rights, we speak out strongly. And where they have moved in a positive direction, there is no reason not to compliment them. But where they have not gone far enough, then we should speak out against their actions, and we have done that, and I did it repeatedly on my trip to China.
QUESTION: Well, while we were calling them "friend" at certain points, the Chinese censored an interview that you gave Chinese television. They did not air your comments on human rights, some very personal comments you made about your own background. How did you feel about that?
POWELL: I felt that they made a mistake, because they said that they would air the whole interview. And it shows that they are not at a point where we think they ought to be with respect to this kind of openness in their society. They did air the other 23-and-a-half minutes of the interview, so why take out this 30-second section where I essentially complimented them for what they have done but told them they have to do a lot more, "You should be more tolerant of religious differences and freedom of expression." So you can speak that way to the Chinese leaders and let them know it, and they ought to let me speak that way to the Chinese people when I was given an opportunity.
So they have done a lot in the last 25 years. There is a long way to go and we should encourage them to keep moving in that direction.
QUESTION: President Bush goes to China this fall. What exactly should be accomplished at that visit?
POWELL: I think he should have a full discussion with Chinese leaders of every item on our agenda: Trade, human rights, proliferation of weapons around to some of the least responsible states that are out there. And he should talk about everything that is on the agenda between two powerful nations, who should be moving forward into a non-threatening environment, where they can cooperate on things where we have a common interest and disagree on things where we do not have a common interest.
So I think it is going to be an excellent trip. They are looking forward to the President's visit. The President is looking forward to that visit. And it doesn't have to be characterized as, "we are going to see an enemy," or we are going to see this or we're going to see that. We are going to talk to the other powerful nation on a range of agenda items where we have an opportunity to cooperate and where we have an opportunity to disagree. And in the process of disagreeing, you don't have to have an enemy to disagree with; you have another nation that has a proud tradition and history and a system that is different from ours. And let's have discussions with that system. (end State Department transcript)
Released on August 3, 2001
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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