[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 6]
[House]
[Pages 8229-8230]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                         AGAINST PNTR FOR CHINA

  (Mr. TANCREDO asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks and include extraneous 
material.)
  Mr. TANCREDO. Mr. Speaker, I have in front of me a letter from the 
Reserve Officers Association of the United States to the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Wolf). I would like to refer to excerpts from it and then 
enter it into the Record.

       Dear Congressman Wolf: Just within the past few weeks, 
     China has made military threats against Taiwan and threatened 
     military action against the United States if we defend 
     Taiwan. Just 4 years ago, China fired several live missiles 
     in the Taiwan Strait, necessitating deployment of two 
     American carrier groups to the area.
       A report issued last month by the CIA and the FBI indicates 
     that Beijing has increased its military spying against the 
     United States. Less than a year ago, the Cox Committee 
     reported that China stole classified information regarding 
     advanced American thermonuclear weapons.
       Additionally, Beijing has exported weapons of mass 
     destruction to Iran and North Korea, in violation of treaty 
     commitments. Finally, China's record of human rights abuses 
     is well documented.
       A recent Harris Poll revealed that 79 percent of the 
     American people oppose giving China permanent access to U.S. 
     markets.
                                 ______
                                 

                                      Reserve Officers Association


                                         of the United States,

                                   Washington, DC, April 27, 2000.
     Hon. Frank R. Wolf,
     House of Representatives,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Congressman Wolf: The Reserve Officers Association 
     (``ROA''), representing 80,000 officers in all seven 
     Uniformed Services, is concerned about the proposal to grant 
     Permanent Normal Trade Relations (``PNTR'') to China.
       ROA acknowledges the importance of our relationship with 
     China, including our growing economic ties to China. 
     Nevertheless,

[[Page 8230]]

     ROA believes that it would be a mistake to grant PNTR to 
     China at this time. The annual process of reviewing trade 
     relations with China provides Congress with leverage over 
     Chinese behavior on national security and human rights 
     matters. Granting PNTR would deprive Congress of the 
     opportunity to influence China to improve its human rights 
     record and behave as a more responsible actor on the national 
     security stage.
       Just within the past few weeks, China has made military 
     threats against Taiwan and threatened military action against 
     the United States if we defend Taiwan. Just four years ago, 
     China fired several live missiles in the Taiwan Strait, 
     necessitating a deployment of two American carrier battle 
     groups to the area.
       A report issued last month by the CIA and FBI indicates 
     that Beijing has increased its military spying against the 
     United States. Less than a year ago, the Cox Committee 
     reported that China stole classified information regarding 
     advanced American thermonuclear weapons.
       Additionally, Beijing has exported weapons of mass 
     destruction to Iran and north Korea, in violation of treaty 
     commitments. Finally, China's record of human rights abuses 
     is well documented.
       A recent Harris Poll revealed that fully 79% of the 
     American people oppose giving China permanent access to U.S. 
     markets until China meets human rights and labor standards. 
     On this issue, Congress should respect the wisdom of the 
     American people. Now is not the time to grant Permanent 
     Normal Trade Relations to China.
           Sincerely,
                                                Jayson L. Spiegel,
     Executive Director.

                          ____________________