Another detrimental move to harm China-U.S. ties

U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed the 2013 Defense Authorization Act, which includes two amendments related to China, in another move that is apparently detrimental to fostering a new-type China-U.S. relationship based on mutual respect and benefit.

Obviously, the amendment on the Diaoyu Islands, which recognizes Japan' s administration on the disputed isles and applies the U.S.-Japan joint security treaty to them once they come under attack, constitutes a gross violation of China' s sovereign rights.

Meanwhile, the amendment calling for selling advanced F-16C/D fighter jets to Taiwan amounts to be a blunt interference in China' s internal affairs, while breaking the U.S. previous promise to phase out arms sales to the Chinese island.

The 2013 Defense Authorization Act is expected to be passed by the Senate on Friday, before being sent to President Barack Obama for signing into law. Though none of the amendments produces any policy change and neither is legally biding -- they only express "the sense of Congress," they are set to cause harm to the China-U.S. relations at a sensitive time of political transition in both countries.

It is known to all that China has undisputed sovereign rights on the Diaoyu Islands, and whatever moves the U.S. side takes will not change the fact and make China yield any ground on issues of sovereign integrity.

On the issue of Taiwan, the U.S. side, whether through its arms sales or other acts of interference, is also doomed to fail in its attempt to shake mainland China' s firm determination to realize the sacred goal of final reunification with Taiwan.

The U.S. Congress has sent out a wrong message by including the two amendments in the 2013 Defense Authorization Act, which could be taken advantage of by certain parties in Asia seeking to make illegal territorial gains from China.

The history of the past four decades has clearly demonstrated that China and the U.S. can break the curse of zero-sum game between a sitting power and an emerging power, through building a cooperative partnership based on mutual respect and benefit.

So, it' s advisable for the Obama administration to reject the two amendments and continue to honor its commitment to building a new type of inter-power relationship with China, by respecting China's vital interests, enhancing strategic mutual trust and handling differences properly.