"Although the parties concerned might look at the issue from
strategic or political angles, the bid is a business action between
companies and fall within normal trade exchanges between
China and the United States," Liu said.
"It should not be affected by political issues," Liu added.
US Treasury Secretary John Snow said again on Tuesday that the
Bush government will review the takeover deal for national security
considerations.
CNOOC, China's largest offshore oil and gas producer, made a bid
to Unocal Corp. on June 23, offering to acquire all outstanding
shares of Unocal for US$67 per share in cash or a total of US$18.5
billion.
China's energy issue is concerned with its domestic supply and
its ability to resolve energy shortages on its own, Liu said in
response to a question about China's energy strategy.
When asked to comment on US-DPRK talks, Liu said that China is
looking forward to better relations between Washington and
Pyongyang.
According to Liu, Pyongyang's presence at an academic conference
in New York this week is another sign of a thawing of relations
between the two, improving prospects for the restarting of nuclear
talks.
Liu said that both the US and the Democratic People's Republic
of Korea (DPRK) have signaled their interest in restarting the
six-party talks, a move China supports.
"We would like to see the two sides continue to move forward to
create more favorable conditions and atmosphere for the talks," he
said.
On a less positive note, Liu complained about US interference in
China's relations with Israel after reports that the Israeli
government had called off an arms deal with China because of
pressure from the Americans.
He said cooperation between China and other countries not only
brings direct benefits to the parties involved, but also helps to
maintain regional stability.
Liu called for the US not to interfere or make irresponsible
remarks regarding China's international affairs, to give up its
Cold War mentality and to stop creating obstacles between China and
other countries.
Meanwhile, a senior US lawmaker has, on Wednesday, reportedly
introduced legislation to discourage the European Union from
lifting its arms embargo on China.
Moving on, the spokesman expressed China's strong opposition to
talks between Japan and Taiwan on fishing issues.
The Chinese government is responsible for the protection of
legal rights of fishermen from both the Chinese mainland and
Taiwan, Liu said.
He added that there is an existing fishing agreement between
China and Japan, and since Taiwan is a part of China, Japan
should act in accordance with that agreement.
If there were talks between Japan and Taiwan, Liu said: "It
would violate the one-China principle and would not be in
accordance with the rules of Sino-Japanese fishing industry
agreements."
Liu also expressed unhappiness with Japan, for forcing Chinese
fishermen to leave the Diaoyu Islands, a territory?to
which?China lays claim.
Japan and Taiwan reportedly plan to hold talks on their maritime
disputes on July 29.
Liu also appealed to Tokyo to put aside their disputes and work
on the joint development of oil and gas resources in disputed
waters in the East China Sea.
The statement was in response to a report that Japan might
approve drilling work in the area by a Japanese company.
Liu said neither side should take unilateral action until the
dispute over the boundary is resolved.
?
He noted that putting aside disputes and pursuing joint development
would not only help maintain stability in the East China Sea but
also mutually benefit both sides.?
On state visits, Grenada's Prime Minister Keith Mitchell will
pay an official visit to China from July 7 to 11 at the invitation
of Premier Wen
Jiabao.
(Xinhua News Agency, China Daily July 1, 2005)