China said on Saturday it would not let Osama bin Laden enter its
territory across the 70km border it shares with Afghanistan.
"I
don't think this is a possibility," a Foreign Ministry spokesman
said.
Meanwhile, President Jiang Zemin had discussed a global campaign
against terrorism with French President Jacques Chirac for the
second time this week.
The two leaders spoke by telephone on Thursday, two days after Mr.
Jiang discussed last week's attacks in separate calls with Mr.
Chirac, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Russian President
Vladimir Putin.
"The two sides again exchanged opinions on counter-terrorism and
protecting world peace," Xinhua
said.
However, China and France share the view, as does Russia, that any
decision on retaliation for the terrorist strikes should involve
the United Nations Security Council.
Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan said on Thursday that Beijing was
willing to help the United States in its war against terrorism.
Mr. Tang met US Vice-President Dick Cheney at the White House and
said later that China sent its condolences for the attacks.
"I've also made clear our desire and our readiness to further
deepen our co-operation with the US, including over
anti-terrorism," he said.
Mr. Tang later met the children of two Chinese victims, Zheng
Yuguang and Yang Shuyin, who were passengers on American Airlines
Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon.
Mr. Tang expressed "the anger that the leadership, the Chinese
Government and Chinese people have been feeling about the terrorist
attacks in Washington, DC, and New York".
"The Chinese Government and the Chinese people's hearts go out to
you and your parents," Mr. Tang said at a hotel in Washington where
he met the victims' relatives, Zheng Shidong and Zheng Rui, and her
husband, Wan Li.
(China Daily
09/23/2001)