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LATIN AMERICA WARMS UP TO US

President Barack Obama gets a warm goodbye-hug from one of the Calderon kids. Mexican President Felipe Calderon had a  bilateral  meeting with Obama who now  heads to the Summit of the Americas.

PHOTO: Mexico City, April 16, 2009. FROM White House Photo BY Peter Souza.

China talks include Tibet and the Impeccable

Highlights from Secy. Clinton's Remarks After Her Meeting With Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi

[Secy. remarked that they spoke about a range of diplomatic issues and then continued:]...
Minister Yang and I also spoke about areas where we do not agree, including human rights and Tibet. The promotion of human rights, as I have said many times before, is an essential aspect of American global foreign policy. It is part of our use and definition of smart power. And it’s essential in an era where we are emphasizing diplomacy and development...

I also raised our concerns about the recent incident involving the U.S. Navy ship Impeccable and the PRC vessels in the South China Sea. We both agreed that we should work to ensure that such incidents do not happen again in the future...There is no doubt that world events have given the United States and China a full and formidable agenda...
From responses to Press questions:
...With respect to the Impeccable, we have each stated our positions. But the important point of agreement coming out of my discussions with Minister Yang is that we must work hard in the future to avoid such incidents, and to avoid this particular incident having consequences that are unforeseen. And I appreciate the agreement that Minister Yang and I hold on this matter.

Re: Tibet
"Human rights is part of our comprehensive dialogue. It doesn't take a front seat or a back seat or a middle seat; it is part of the broad range of issues that we are discussing. But it is important to try to create a platform for actually seeing results from our human rights engagement. It’s also important, as I said in my remarks, that, you know, that the United States live up to our own ideals, something that sets us apart as an exemplar of human rights. So the Obama Administration is absolutely committed to a robust, comprehensive human rights agenda.

China responds to US Reps. on Tibet

The resolution put forward by a few anti-China members of the US House of Representatives disregards the history and current reality of Tibet, whitewashes the dark and backward history of old Tibet, touts Dalai who has been bent on activities aimed at splitting the motherland, and makes erroneous accusations against China’s ethnic and religious policy. Out of an ulterior motive, the resolution flatly confuses right and wrong. The Chinese Government and people are resolutely opposed to it, and will in no way allow those who attempt to mislead others and disrupt China-US relations succeed.

We urge relevant US congressmen to respect facts, abandon prejudices, exert their due morality and responsibility as political figures, and stop pushing forward relevant resolution.

-- Remarks by: Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ma Zhaoxu --

U.S. joins Inter-Continental verbal sparring on Tibet

U.S. Dept. of State Statement: Today marks the 50th anniversary of the 1959 Tibetan uprising. The United States respects the territorial integrity of the People’s Republic of China and considers Tibet to be part of China. At the same time, we are deeply concerned by the human rights situation in Tibetan areas.
We described those concerns in our just-released Annual Country Report on human rights practices in China. We concluded that China’s Government has acted against global human rights standards by significantly increasing cultural and religious repression in Tibetan areas.
We urge China to reconsider its policies in Tibet that have created tensions due to their harmful impact on Tibetan religion, culture, and livelihoods. We believe that substantive dialogue with the Dalai Lama’s representatives, consistent with the Dalai Lama’s commitment to disclaiming any intention to seek sovereignty or independence for Tibet, can lead to progress in bringing about solutions and can help achieve true and lasting stability in Tibet.

--- Statement from Robert Wood, Acting Department Spokesman, U.S. State Dept. ---

China reacts to Dalai Lama: 'Utter distortion of Tibet history'

Some Highlights from the Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, China:  On March 10, 1959, the Dalai Lama and his supporters started an armed rebellion in a desperate attempt to preserve Tibet's feudal serfdom and split the region from China.

On Tuesday, exactly 50 years later, the Dalai Lama claimed that Tibetans have been living in "hell on earth,"
as if the Tibet under the former feudal serfdom ruled by him were a heaven.

Unfortunately, the Dalai Lama has not only been on the wrong side of history, but also has got the history upside down. Miseries of "hell on earth" and "untold suffering" occurred nowhere but in the slavery Tibet symbolized by the Dalai Lama...
Why then such a distortion of historical facts by the so-called Nobel Peace Prize winner? Because it is only through the distortion of history could he deceive Western audiences and disguise his true intentions...just as the rebellion by the Dalai Lama clique failed disgracefully 50 years ago, fantasy of "Tibet Independence" is also doomed to failure, because of the firm opposition from the Chinese people, including the Tibetans in Tibet. 

Full Statement from Chinese News Agency

Hell on Earth -- Dalai Lama Issues Statement Today

The Dalai Lama issued a statement today, on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the Tibetan uprising against China. He said that: "Having occupied Tibet, the Chinese Communist government carried out a series of repressive and violent campaigns that have included 'democratic' reform, class struggle, communes, the Cultural Revolution, the imposition of martial law, and more recently the patriotic re-education and the strike hard campaigns. These thrust Tibetans into such depths of suffering and hardship that they literally experienced hell on earth."

Other highlights from the Dalai Lama's statement today:
Today is the fiftieth anniversary of the Tibetan people’s peaceful uprising against Communist China’s repression in Tibet. Since last March widespread peaceful protests have erupted across the whole of Tibet. Most of the participants were youths born and brought up after 1959, who have not seen or experienced a free Tibet.

As a human being my main commitment is in the promotion of human values; this is what I consider the key factor for a happy life at the individual level, family level and community level. As a religious practitioner, my second commitment is the promotion of inter-religious harmony. My third commitment is of course the issue of Tibet due to my being a Tibetan with the name of the ‘Dalai Lama’, but more importantly it is due to the trust that Tibetans both inside and outside Tibet have placed in me. These are the three important commitments, which I always keep in mind.

Since the occupation of Tibet, Communist China has been publishing distorted propaganda about Tibet and its people....I would like once again to urge our Chinese brothers and sisters not to be swayed by such propaganda... Tibetans should also continue to work for friendship with the Chinese people.

Full Statement by Dalai Lama

50th Years since Tibet Uprising: Clinton to Meet with Chinese Leader

Secy. Clinton will meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi.  Statement Pending about Tibet on 50th Anniversary of Uprising.

Highlights from Statement Today RE CHINA, TIBET -- U.S. Dept. of State, Robert Wood, Acting Department Spokesman
We remain concerned about the situation in Tibet, and we have been working hard to try to encourage an improvement of the situation for those who live in Tibet... The Secretary will be issuing a statement a little bit later today and I urge you to take a look at it.

Foreign Minister Yang [CHINA] arrives today. He is going to have a meeting and lunch with the Secretary tomorrow. He is also scheduled to meet with the – Treasury Secretary Geithner tomorrow as well...and  [later] he has – the minister has some meetings at the White House...

...with regard to Tibet is that we want to see a dialogue between the Chinese Government – a substantive dialogue between the Chinese Government and representatives of the Dalai Lama. We think it’s the best way to address some of these longstanding issues...I would be surprised if the subject didn’t come up in the meeting.