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Knowing the Games are coming could take China's mind off Taiwan and lead to improved human rights, Bush administration officials say.
Compiled from Times wires
© St. Petersburg Times, published July 11, 2001
WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration, uncertain that it could effectively oppose the Chinese bid for the 2008 Olympics, has decided to remain silent on the issue. But in doing so it has come to believe that there could be advantages for the United States if Beijing prevails.
A victory for Beijing in the vote to be held by the International Olympic Committee in Moscow on Friday could make the Chinese government more hesitant to use military force against Taiwan in the coming seven years and could encourage an improvement in its human rights behavior, according to a report by the New York Times based on administration sources.
In some ways the memory of the boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics hangs over the administration's calculations. Policymakers suggest that the prize of the Olympic Games and the fear of a boycott, similar to the one called by President Jimmy Carter after the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, would probably ride high in the minds of Chinese leaders.
The New York Times quoted an administration official as saying that the Chinese clearly want to showcase China with the Olympics and that they don't want to jeopardize that the way the Soviets did.
Bush officials acknowledge that Beijing's oft-stated goal of reuniting Taiwan with the mainland -- separated since the civil war of the 1940s -- is more important to the Chinese government than the Olympics. But, they also say that being chosen for the 2008 Games could provide a brake on any drastic action, according to the New York Times.
Taiwan has said it supports the Beijing bid, apparently as a way of buying time in the standoff between the two governments.
The administration has argued that it is taking a neutral position on the host country for 2008, on the grounds that the U.S. government has no vote on the International Olympic Committee.
But the White House could make known its displeasure with Beijing's selection if it so choses. Among the considerations in not voicing opposition was the fear of further stirring up Chinese nationalism, the New York Times reported.
Kim Un Yong, an influential IOC delegate from South Korea, echoed those sentiments Tuesday.
"The U.S. can't tell the IOC what to do, but it could cause big repercussions," Kim said. "But America is neutral. . . . If you push too hard, sometimes you solidify a place against outsiders. Bush knows this. His father knows this. And American business is waiting to do business in China."
After strained relations with China in the administration's early months, the White House is now trying to set the stage for President Bush's trip to Shanghai in October for the annual meeting of Asian and Pacific leaders. Bush then plans to proceed on to Beijing, and the form and substance of that visit will be negotiated this month when Secretary of State Colin Powell makes his first trip to China.
Thus, public opposition to the Olympics would sour the atmosphere -- with no notable gain -- at a moment when the administration is intent on improving relations.
Yet, the administration's willingness to go along with the Beijing games also carries some peril. Once China is awarded the Olympics, objectionable behavior on Beijing's part probably would spur calls from groups in the United States for a boycott, calls that would present a Republican administration with a difficult choice.
According to the New York Times, administration officials were downplaying this Tuesday, saying that Beijing's conduct would have to be egregious to gather enough momentum for a boycott.
The White House has been helped in its low-key approach by the muted voices on Capitol Hill.
The most vocal critic has been a Democrat, Rep. Tom Lantos of California, the ranking member of the House International Relations Committee.
At a news conference Tuesday, Lantos urged the House to approve a resolution opposing the holding of the Olympics in China saying China's deplorable human rights record violates the spirit of the games.
However, House Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas., said it was unlikely the House would take up such a resolution, adding that he thinks the IOC would not be influenced by a House vote. If China wins the games, Armey said, it might be forced to treat its citizens better because, with international scrutiny, it "can't hide transgressions against human rights."
In the Senate, the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., has said it would be counterproductive for the administration to try to interfere with the choice of the Olympics city for 2008.
A Senate resolution calling for a rejection of Beijing on human rights grounds has been bottled up in the Senate committee by Biden and will not be voted on before Friday.
In contrast to the Bush administration, the European Parliament passed a resolution last week opposing Beijing as the host city, citing the Chinese government's abuse of human rights.
-- Information from the New York Times and Associated Press was used in this report.
ONLINE: International Olympic Committe Web site.
Report of the IOC Evaluation Commission for the 2008 games.