COMMANDER OF U.S. PACIFIC COMMAND SAYS U.S. AND CHINA CONFLICT IS NOT INEVITABLE

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Pacific Commander: U.S., China Can Build on Common Ground
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 22, 2013 - The United States and China, by increasing their dialogue and engagement, can build a foundation of trust while fostering regional security and prosperity, the top U.S. commander in the region said yesterday.

"While competition between the United States and China is inevitable, conflict is not," Navy Adm. Samuel J. Locklear III, commander of U.S. Pacific Command, told members of the National Committee for U.S. China Relations in New York.

"This means identifying strategic areas where our two countries can cooperate, while recognizing frankly and openly the areas where we will continue to differ, and to manage those," he said. "Our approach is to manage the friction and disruptive competition and increase areas of congruence and cooperation between our two nations."

Locklear encouraged the China experts to envision a future in which "the U.S. and China collaborate to build upon an existing Indo-Asia-Pacific community of peace and prosperity."

Reaching that goal, he said, requires recognizing, understanding and managing areas of divergence that could disrupt the security environment. These range from China's concerns that the U.S. strategic pivot to the Asia-Pacific region is designed to contain China's rise to differences in how the two countries view the maritime global commons and the lack of common ground on behavior in cyberspace.

Locklear emphasized that the rebalance is a whole-of-government strategy, recognizing that "the United States' success in the 21st century will, to a large extent, depend on what happens in this critically important region of the world."

Based on a strategy of collaboration and cooperation, the rebalance acknowledges the reality that the United States' future is "inextricably linked" to Asia's, he said. And one of the fundamental goals in implementing it is to build a "stable, productive and constructive relationship with China," he added.

Despite many areas of divergence between the two countries, Locklear said, he believes they're outweighed by areas where the United States and China share common interests.

"First, it is my belief that neither of our two nations desire conflict, especially armed conflict," he said.

But both countries must also recognize the major roles they both play in the region, he said. "The Pacific is big enough for all of us," Locklear told the group, borrowing a quote from both former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the United States' and China's economic relationship -- one that Locklear said draws them together and positively affects the entire region.

The admiral noted other promising developments that are solidifying this foundation: China's growing participation in the international community, its commitment to a denuclearized Korean Peninsula and its efforts to address HIV/AIDS and pandemic diseases, among them.

Meanwhile, China is demonstrating "a real appetite to deepen the military-to-military dialogue and build on those areas on which we converge," Locklear said. The goal, he said, is to continually improve the channels of communication and to demonstrate practical cooperation on issues that matter to both sides.

Gen. Fang Fenghu, China's top military officer, identified counterterrorism, antipiracy, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, logistics and military medicine as potential areas of cooperation during a visit to Beijing by Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Looking to the future, Locklear said, it's vital that both China and the United States recognize their responsibilities as regional and global leaders.

"We must move beyond our individual differences to bring consensus to issues that threaten regional stability and future prosperity," he said. That includes partnering with other nations to address regional security challenges such as piracy, terrorism, proliferation and pandemic disease.

Secondly, he said, the two countries must work together and with the international community to ensure access to the shared domains through universally accepted standards. This extends from the maritime domain -- and territorial disputes in the South China and East China Seas -- to the cyber and space domains, where they can play a role in helping to establish worldwide standards and practices, he said.

Also key, Locklear said, is China's increasing participation in regional military-to-military engagements. He cited progress in the Military Maritime Consultative Meeting and other forums, and China's agreement to take part in the next Rim of the Pacific international maritime exercise.

These engagements help to build trust and mutual understanding and, ultimately, reduce the likelihood of miscommunication and miscalculation that could derail forward progress, Locklear said.

"I believe the best hope for sustained bilateral cooperation will come from strategically identifying those areas where our interests overlap and building, over time, greater understanding and trust between our two armed forces," the admiral said.

CLOSING REMARKS AT U.S.-LIBERIA PARTNERSHIP DIALOGUE

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
U.S.-Liberia Partnership Dialogue Closing Remarks
Remarks
Wendy Sherman
Under Secretary for Political Affairs
United States Institute of Peace (USIP)
Washington, DC
May 7, 2013

I want to thank you, Minister Ngafuan, for sharing your reflections on the U.S.-Liberia Partnership Dialogue, they were indeed very eloquent.

I also as you did want to recognize the hard work of the U.S. Institute of Peace staff, of course its leader Congressman Jim Marshall, our Liberian colleagues, and my U.S. Government colleagues, including those in the State Department’s Africa Bureau, in making the inaugural session such a success.

Throughout today, as I understand from talking briefly to the Minister and with our staff, we have advanced the U.S.-Liberia bilateral relationship -- a relationship already deeply rooted not only in our historical ties, but our shared commitment to democracy, human rights, and economic advancement.

This joint statement that Minister Ngafuan and I just signed affirms our commitment to work together to address the challenges Liberia currently faces in its agriculture and energy sectors, and acknowledges their importance to Liberia’s overall economic development.

We have committed to hold the next session of the U.S.-Liberia Partnership Dialogue in Monrovia, Liberia within the next year. At that session we plan to convene the first meeting of the Human Development Working Group.

The high-level participation from both our governments demonstrates the significance of the U.S.-Liberia Partnership Dialogue to our bilateral relationship, and the importance of the sectors that were discussed today in the working groups.

In the Agriculture and Food Security Working Group, for example, colleagues discussed policy and institutional constraints to private sector-led development of Liberia’s agriculture sector, and ways to address these constraints. Together, we explored opportunities to expand bilateral cooperation to increase food security and nutrition, especially under the Feed the Future Initiative.

The Energy and Power Infrastructure Working Group reviewed Liberia’s efforts to meet its growing power generation, transmission and distribution requirements. We will continue to collaborate on how we can encourage private sector investment in Liberia’s energy sector by improving regulatory policies and to accelerate the development of a well-governed and inclusive Liberian energy sector.

Though the official government-to-government portion of the U.S.-Liberia Partnership Dialogue has come to an end, I am delighted that the Foreign Minister and the rest of the Liberian delegation will participate in a public outreach event that will discuss how the Government of Liberia and its partners plan to transform Liberia into a middle-income country through an inclusive and equitable economic development strategy. This event, open to the press and public, will further highlight the achievement made today and will allow private sector, civil society, Diaspora, and others to engage with the Government of Liberia on its plan for Liberia’s economic future. We all have a role to play in Liberia’s progress toward a growing and sustainable economy. It is clear to me that this is led by the Liberians themselves, which is as it should be, with all the rest of us in support of your vision and your destiny.

Liberia’s future is full of promise and great opportunities. Thank you all for a very successful inaugural session of the U.S.-Liberia Partnership Dialogue and for your friendship with the United States.

We look forward very much, I in particular, to meeting again in Monrovia. I commend to you Acting Assistant Secretary Yamamoto, who is going to take my place in any question and answer that follow. I greatly appreciate all the work done today.

Thank you very much.