[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1994, Book I)]
[May 19, 1994]
[Pages 948-949]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Exchange With Reporters Prior to a Meeting With Military Leaders
May 19, 1994

Representative Dan Rostenkowski

    Q. On Rostenkowski, sir, should the public be concerned at all that 
you and he have the same lawyer?
    The President. No.

China

    Q. Mr. President, did you send Michael Armacost to China to 
negotiate some kind of deal?
    The President. Well, we've had a number of Americans in China and 
speaking with the Chinese, and those conversations are ongoing. And I 
think until they are resolved, one way or the other, I shouldn't say 
more about them.
    Q. It's being reported that you have made a decision to go ahead and 
renew MFN.
    The President. We are still in discussions with the Chinese. I don't 
know that I should call them negotiations; that's not an accurate 
characterization. We are having discussions with them about our 
differences and about the importance of our relationship. And I will 
have a decision on the matter in a timely fashion. No decision has been 
reached yet; we're still talking with them.

[[Page 949]]

    Q. Is it true that China has--[inaudible]--leaders willing to make 
concessions on human rights----
    The President. I don't think I should speak for the Chinese. All I 
can tell you is there are some things which have been reported which 
have actually occurred, and we've had discussions about other matters. 
But I don't think I should discuss them now. We're still in discussions 
with them.
    Q. What's the purpose of this meeting?
    The President. What?
    Q. What's the purpose of the meeting?
    The President. We meet on a regular basis to discuss a number of 
national security issues. And there are a number of things that the 
CINC's are going to bring me up to date on. I have some questions to ask 
them about some of the challenges we face around the world.

North Korea

    Q. On North Korea, sir--[inaudible]--North Korea divert its spent 
nuclear fuel? And if so, is it too late to avoid sanctions?
    The President. Well, let me say I certainly cannot answer that first 
question in the affirmative. That's why we have inspectors there now. 
And they are working hard, and as far as we know, they're--I got a 
report this morning--they are proceeding with their inspections. They 
should be in a position to give us a report imminently, in the near 
future. So I don't think you'll have to wait long for an answer to that. 
But the inspectors are there and working, and we should know more about 
it. And I think that the better course of action is for all of us to 
refrain from any kind of comment until we know what the facts are, 
because we will have the facts soon.
    Q. Sending troops anywhere? [Laughter]
    The President. To Normandy. [Laughter]

Note: The exchange began at 10:14 a.m. in the Cabinet Room at the White 
House. A reporter referred to Michael Armacost, Asia-Pacific Research 
Center, Stanford University. A tape was not available for verification 
of the content of this exchange.