China's contingent in the UN deployment in Darfur will be
comprised of an engineering unit that will assist the African Union
(AU) force already in place, the Foreign Ministry said
yesterday.
The detachment will help implement the "Annan peace plan," which
provides for a joint UN-AU operation in Darfur, ministry
spokeswoman Jiang Yu told a news conference, although no details on
numbers or deployment dates were provided.
"China is willing to work with the rest of the international
community for peace and stability in Darfur at an early date,"
Jiang said. She encouraged all parties to refrain from escalating
matters but to focus on moving the "Annan plan" forward.
Earlier claims from Washington on Monday had put Beijing's
contribution at 300 engineers that would help stem the violence
thought to have killed 200,000 since 2003. ?
"We see this as a positive development, and we appreciate
China's contribution in the international effort to stop the
violence in Darfur," US State Department press officer Gonzalo
Gallegos said on Monday.
Breaking the deadlock, Sudan agreed recently to a "heavy support
package" for the AU troops in Darfur that would include some 3,500
military and police personnel being provided by the UN.
Responding to questions on China's arms sales to African
countries, Jiang said China consistently maintained a prudent and
responsible attitude toward arms exports by only selling weapons to
sovereign states rather than to other entities or individuals.
She added that China verifies the intended purpose of the
weapons, and requires importing nations not to sell the arms on to
third-parties.
China strictly abides by UN resolutions and does not sell
weapons to countries under UN arms embargoes, she added, pointing
out that China's arms exports to Africa were limited.
Turning to the Yasukuni Shrine issue, Jiang urged Japan to
strictly abide by the consensus reached between the two countries
on overcoming political barriers in bilateral relations.
Commenting on Japanese Prime Minister Shinto Abe's offering to
the shrine, Jiang asked Japan to respect its neighbors'
sentiments.
Although he did not pay homage at the shrine personally, Abe
sent a masakaki plant for the annual spring festival in late April,
Kyodo News Agency reported. This comes as his first direct show of
respect at Yasukuni since assuming office last year.
It also fits Abe's strategy of remaining ambiguous toward the
shrine that sparked anger across Asia when former Prime Minister
Junichiro Koizumi paid repeated visits there.
Japanese media reported that Abe personally forked out 50,000
yen (US$417) for the plant, considered divine in Shintoism. Abe has
refused to confirm or deny the offering, simply stating that "as
I've said before, I want to continue to have the feeling of paying
respect to and praying for the souls of those who died fighting for
their country."
The move was deplored by the South Korean Foreign Ministry as
"very regrettable" and as "running counter to establishing a
correct perception of history, which serves as the basis of
regional peace and stability."
In another development, Jiang said the US Commission on
International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is ignorant about and
prejudiced toward China.
Expressing very strong dissatisfaction at the USCIRF's report on
religious freedom in China, Jiang accused the USCIRF of maintaining
a skewed vision of the country and attacking its policy on religion
and ethnic minorities.
A USCIRF report issued last week criticized the way some
developing countries, including China, handle religious affairs.
Jiang reprimanded the USCIRF of using religion as a pretext to
delve into other nations' internal affairs.
"It is obvious that the Chinese government protects the freedom
of religious belief of its citizens according to the law, and
Chinese citizens enjoy full religious freedom protected by law,"
she said.
Jiang further used this platform to criticize some organizations
that hide behind petty excuses to boycott the upcoming Beijing Olympics. The Chinese government and
its people have been building up toward the Olympics for years, and
any moves aimed at belittling these preparations are contrary to
the Olympic spirit. ?
Jiang also announced that Premier Wen Jiabao would address the annual board
meeting of the African Development Bank (ADB) in Shanghai next
week.
It will be the first time the annual board meeting of the ADB,
to run on May 16 and 17, has been held in Asia and the second time
outside Africa. In 2001, Spain hosted the annual event.
On the heels of the Beijing Summit of the China-Africa Cooperation
Forum held in November 2006, this is the second successive
major Africa-related event hosted by China.
Themed "African and Asia: Partners in Development," the meeting
will address the areas of infrastructure development in Africa,
regional integrity and poverty relief.
Chaired by the People's Bank of China President, Zhou Xiaochuan,
the meeting will gather around 2,000 people, including finance
ministers and governors of the central banks of member states,
representatives of the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund
and other regional development finance organizations and
non-governmental organizations.
On the meeting's sidelines will be held a series of business
seminars, each seeking to outline further potential areas of
cooperation between China and Africa.
Founded in 1964, the ADB has 77 members from Africa, America,
Europe and Asia with China joining in 1985.
Jiang also announced that: Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh
Triet would pay his first state visit to China from May 15 to 18
after taking office in June 2006; Rwandan President Paul Kagame
will visit from May 13 to 18; and Foreign Minister of Cote d'Ivoire
Youssouf Bakayoko from May 9 to 14.
(China Daily, Xinhua News Agency May 9, 2007)
