Sarah Palin, the former Alaska Governor and U.S. Vice-Presidential candidate, delivered her first public address abroad in Hong Kong, where she delivered her thoughts on China’s rise. From the Wall Street Journal:
She acknowledged the economic rise of both China and India but called for a vision of Asia in which no one country would dominate.
“We all hope to see a China that is stable and peaceful and prosperous,” she said. But she added that the U.S. must work with Asian allies in case “China goes in a different direction.”
She said greater political openness in China could help soothe tensions. “Many believed that with China liberalizing its economy, greater political freedom would follow, but that hasn’t happened,” she said. “The more open [China] is, the less we’ll be concerned about its military buildup and its intentions.”
On U.S.-China trade relations, Ms. Palin called for more openness and warned against protectionism. “We need China to improve its rule of law, and protect our intellectual property,” she said. “On our part, we should be more open to Chinese investment where our national security interests are not threatened.”
Journalists were barred from the talk to investors, but AP posted this cell phone video:
UPDATE: CDT also obtained the transcript of the foreign policy portion of Sarah Palin’s speech. Her discussion of China begins about halfway down:
So far, I’ve given you the view from Main Street, USA. But now I’d like to share with you how a Commonsense Conservative sees the world at large.(...)
Read the rest of Palin Addresses Asian Investors (Updated with Excerpts) (3,942 words)
© Sophie Beach for China Digital Times (CDT), 2009. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: China's rise, Sarah Palin
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