Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton has showed interest in strengthening its ties with China as the country rapidly develops, over-shadowing the rest of the Pacific nations with his growth.
A mere two days after the former Secretary of State, Condoleezza RiceCondoleezza Rice bashed Obama on his foreign policy, especially while mentioning the free trade agreements China has signed in a single year as compared to those by the U.S, Hillary Clinton played down the perception of a U.S- China rivalry as she arrived at the small Pacific outpost of the Cook Island for this year’s Pacific Islands Forum.
Clinton introduced her visit as a long haul, to the gathering that comprised of representatives from 16 independent states including, New Zealand and Australia, while telling them that the Pacific is big enough for all of them as well as the U.S.
"We think it is important for the Pacific Island nations to have good relationships with as many partners as possible, and that includes China as well as the United States," Clinton told a news conference with New Zealand Prime Minister John Key. "We want to see more international development projects that include the participation of China," Clinton said, with a mention of disaster relief, maritime security and preserving bio-diversity.
"We think that there's a great opportunity to work with China and we're going to be looking for more ways to do that," she said according to a report by Business Standard.
Also present at the Pacific forum was Cui Tiankai, Vice Foreign Minister for China, who insisted that Beijing’s presence in the region is not due to geo-political influence. "We are here to work with island countries to achieve sustainable development, because both China and the Pacific island countries belong to the rank of developing countries, Tinakai told reporters before Clinton made her remarks.
"Although we are far away geographically, although we have different national conditions....we are faced with very similar tasks of achieving sustainable development, of improving the lives of our peoples."
Clinton is due for a visit to China next week; however, despite her willingness to work with China she highlighted the benefits of the “American model of Partnership”, during times when China has dramatically accelerated its diplomacy and foreign assistance.
Nonetheless, Clinton’s visit to China has been viewed by some analysts as another effort of United States to stir trouble in the region as Beijing’s influence expands.
