Talks on a free trade area between China and Singapore could
suffer setbacks because of Lee Hsien Loong's visit to Taiwan.
An official from China's Ministry of Commerce said trade ties
had been hampered by the Singaporean leader's visit.
"His visit has dampened the mood to negotiate the free trade
area between the two countries," said the unnamed official.
Reports have speculated that the FTA talks will be delayed or
cancelled because of Lee's visit, which took place between July 10
and 13.
The Chinese Government has expressed its strong disapproval of
the visit.
On July 11, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said that
whatever pretext the Singaporean leader used for the visit, it
would damage China's core interests and the political foundation
for China-Singapore relations. It has offended 1.3 billion Chinese
people and the Singaporean side has to take responsibility for the
consequences, Zhang said.
She said the Taiwan question directly affected China's
sovereignty and territorial integrity.
"We are firmly opposed to official exchanges in any form between
the Taiwan authorities and countries that have diplomatic relations
with the People's Republic of China," she said.
The official response indicates a bitter pill for Singapore to
swallow.
Analysts have been split over whether the diplomatic spat
between China and Singapore will affect trade or business ties or
whether China's action is symbolic.
Xu Ningning, an expert on China's trade and economic relations
in Southeast Asia, said the impact on the talks was
unavoidable.
Singapore has been pushing the talks forward with China, but
China has been slow to respond because its own free trade area
negotiations with the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian
Nations), which includes Singapore, has not finished, Xu said.
Singapore expected separate talks would help forge an area
between the two countries before one was finalized between China
and the ASEAN.
China and ASEAN's 10 members reached an agreement in November
2002 that outlined a framework for negotiating and establishing a
free trade area by 2010.
Chinese officials have promised areas with single ASEAN members
could be set up when negotiations with the ASEAN have finished.
In fact a pact with Singapore would be less beneficial to China
than one with the ASEAN as a whole, Xu said.
"But for Singapore, a free trade pact with China would be the
next most important after theirs with the United States," Xu
said.
China is Singapore's second-largest trading partner, with trade
of nearly US$40 billion last year.
China is actively participating in regional economic
co-operation, the ministry official said.
New progress has been in negotiations between China and
ASEAN.
(China Daily August 3, 2004)