The China Syndrome: The Bush Administration’s Credibility Meltdown

The Center for Security Policy today decried a pattern of obfuscation and misrepresentation with which the Bush Administration is conducting its foreign policy, particularly with respect to China.

On 20 June 1989, President Bush announced that he was cutting off all "high-level exchanges of government officials" with Beijing "in response to the wave of violence and reprisals by the Chinese authorities against those who have called for democracy." Yesterday, a White House statement contended that resuming a dialogue with the Chinese through the Scowcroft-Eagleburger mission to China in July was designed "to personally underscore the United States’ shock and concern about the violence in Tiananmen Square."

"Trying to have it both ways is rapidly emerging as a trademark of the Bush-Baker foreign policy," said Frank J. Gaffney, Jr., director of the Center. "It is of a piece with the Administration’s claim that it has imposed — and continues to retain — meaningful sanctions against China when, in fact, the sanctions were of little consequence to begin with and have dwindled further in significance in recent months."

In addition, the Bush Administration is clearly prepared to dissemble with the press and the American people on its foreign policy objectives and actions. For example, it is now clear that barely two weeks after Secretary of State James Baker testified on Capitol Hill that all high-level U.S.-Soviet contacts were being suspended in response to the June Tiananmen Square Massacre, his deputy, Lawrence Eagleburger, was enroute to Beijing with the President’s National Security Advisor. Then, on 10 December in the course of an appearance on This Week with David Brinkley, Secretary Baker further dissembled by saying that the 9 December Scowcroft-Eagleburger trip to China was "The first time we’ve had high level United States officials go to the People’s Republic of China."

Gaffney added, "This evidence of retreat and clumsy ‘secret diplomacy’ is making a mockery of U.S. policy toward China, with potentially devastating consequences for those who would rid themselves of tyrannical communist regimes in the PRC — and, for that matter, elsewhere in the communist world."

The Center for Security Policy believes the Bush Administration must adopt a policy of candor with respect to its conduct of foreign affairs and national security. For its part, Congress should consider immediately upon its return in January steps needed to forestall further erosion of U.S. credibility in dealing with China. High on the congressional agenda — in addition to overturning President Bush’s vetoes of earlier measures designed to penalize Chinese repression and protect its potential victims — should be legislation blocking Beijing’s launch of two Hughes satellites on the Long March rocket and any early resumption of World Bank lending to the PRC.