US urges China Taiwan to stay flexible

The United States urged China and Taiwan to stay flexible in their long-standing feud as Beijing legislators mulled a law that would make it illegal for the island to declare independence.


State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said US officials had not examined the proposed anti-secession measure and could not comment in detail. But he added, "It's not time to harden positions or take unilateral stances."


"Both sides should really focus on engaging in dialogue and try to peacefully resolve their differences," Boucher told reporters. "Neither side should do anything to unilaterally change the status quo."


China's Xinhua news agency said the National People's Congress Standing Committee would consider an anti-secession bill at its meeting from December 25 to 29.


Xinhua gave no details of the proposed law and did not mention Taiwan. But it said the law was to promote reunification, a phrase used only with reference to the island.


Boucher said the United States was following developments and has been in touch with people on the mainland and in Taiwan. "We've encouraged the parties to look for dialogue and not to look for staking out positions or hardening their positions," he said.