Beijing – Led by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard L. Berman (D-CA), a bipartisan delegation of members of Congress discussed an array of issues of interest to both China and the United States, ranging from regional security concerns to the environment.

“The bilateral relationship has made remarkable progress over the last thirty years,” Berman said, “and our two sides share a common commitment to build a positive and cooperative relationship for the 21st century.”

“However,” he noted, “in spite of our common agenda, there remains work to be done on some serious issues – first and foremost, on stopping the spread of nuclear weapons in the Middle East and the Korean Peninsula.”

Berman and his colleagues pressed Chinese leaders to continue working closely with the international community to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapons capability.

“A nuclear weapons-capable Iran would be a threat to security and stability in the Persian Gulf and beyond,” Berman said. “By continuing to enrich uranium, Iran is flouting the will of the international community, as expressed in numerous UN Security Council resolutions supported by both the US and China.

“The clock is ticking on Iran to engage in serious dialogue regarding this matter,” Berman added. “If it does not respond to our offer of engagement by early this fall, I believe the international community, including China, must move to impose tougher economic measures to change Iran’s policies. In my meetings, I have emphasized to leaders here that China and the United States share a common goal of preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability and ensuring that peace and stability are maintained in the Middle East. I also urged the Chinese that we must continue to work in close cooperation with each other and our partners in the Security Council to convince Tehran to change direction before it’s too late."

But Berman and his colleagues also expressed “deep disappointment” with recent multi-billion-dollar energy deals signed with Iran by Chinese state-owned companies. “This is exactly the wrong signal to send to Iran at a time when Tehran continues to enrich uranium in defiance of the international community,” Berman said.

In late April Berman introduced the Iran Refined Petroleum Sanctions Act (H.R. 2194), bipartisan legislation that would bar from the U.S. market companies that are involved in exporting refined petroleum products to Iran or in helping Iran increase or maintain its existing domestic refining capacity. He has held off bringing the bill up for consideration before the Foreign Affairs Committee in order to give the Obama Administration and its international partners time to work on diplomacy with Iran.

Regarding North Korea, Berman said “North Korea’s continued refusal to live up to its commitments to cease its nuclear activities and permanently dismantle its nuclear facilities puts the security of both China and the United States at risk. North Korea must return to the Six Party Talks without delay and without conditions.

“The United States and China share the same goal of a denuclearized Korean Peninsula and agree that the multilateral talks are the best way forward to achieve this goal," Berman noted. "The North Korean nuclear issue has been an area of positive cooperation between the U.S. and China, and I expect that it will continue to be in the future.”

Berman and his colleagues met with NPC Standing Committee Chairman Wu Bangguo,Vice Premier Wang Qishan, NPC Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Li Zhaoxing, Foreign Affairs Minister Yang Jiechi and Commerce Minister Chen Deming. Among the topics they discussed in addition to nuclear nonproliferation were protection of intellectual property (IP) rights, respect for human rights and the rule of law.

“China’s efforts to stop intellectual property theft have been weak and ineffective,” Berman said. “Hundreds of websites provide downloads and links to pirated movies, recordings and games. And sales of ‘hard goods’ such as illegally duplicated CDs and DVDs continue at close to ninety percent of what they were before China launched its vaunted anti-piracy campaign. It’s time for more serious action.”


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