610 { China’s Quest
of China’s situation after 6-4. Clinton, on the other hand, had staked his
presidential campaign on hostility to China, criticizing Bush’s China policy
as “weak” and calling for the linkage of MFN and human rights. A tough
propaganda stance regarding Washington’s transgressions against China’s
sovereignty over Taiwan was fine, the MFA argued. But China should avoid
anything that might injure PRC-US economic ties. An MFA report along
these lines was approved by Deng and the Politburo Standing Committee.
Deng’s personal intervention tamped down criticism for a while, but PLA
criticism of the MFA and Qian Qichen continued. PLA critics could not very
well attack Deng. Qian Qichen and the MFA were another matter, and they
became the target of PLA criticism. At a session of the NPC in March 1994,
the PLA delegation drafted a proposal of eight “suggestions” regarding the
foreign policy work of the MFA. Senior Generals Li Desheng and Yang Dezhi
had to visit the delegation and persuade them to drop the matter. Two months
later, the PLA’s Academy of Military Science (AMS) and National Defense
University (NDU) convened a conference on “China’s Foreign Policy and
Policy toward Taiwan.” The conference compiled a long list of MFA mistakes,
concluded that those mistakes merited Qian’s resignation as foreign minister,
and embodied these views in a letter to be sent to the Central Committee. At
the last minute, the heads of the AMS and NDU intervened to order the doc-
ument withheld, and to explain to conference participants that the MFA was
implementing policies and principles approved by the Central Committee.
Deng followed up by calling on the PLA to submit at all times to party lead-
ership. Jiang Zemin informed the Politburo, and thence the PLA, that for-
eign policy was decided on by the Politburo and approved by the “Central
Committee” (i.e., by Deng). The MFA was not acting on its own, but had
firmly implemented centrally approved policies, with Qian Qichen’s efforts
being lauded by Deng, Jiang informed the Politburo. Deng also dispatched
close and high-level associates to key PLA generals to explain Deng’s views,
including the vital importance of PLA submission to party leadership on all
matters.US Upgrading of Relations with TaiwanWhile pressure was building in Beijing for tougher punishment of the United
States for its arms sales to Taiwan, pressure was building in Washington for
greater support for democratic Taiwan. By early 1994, it was increasingly
clear that Clinton’s (and Congress’) policy of “linkage” would fail; the costs
to the United States of carrying through with MFA revocation were sim-
ply too great. Some members of Congress began looking for other ways of
punishing Beijing. More importantly, Taiwan by 1994 was in the midst of a
full-blown transition to democracy, a transition that generated considerable