'Buy America' call not protectionist

Comments by the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) reported in your article of February 24, "Obama Stimulus Ruffles Industry," are completely inaccurate. Your readers need to hear the true facts.

As WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy said, the 'Buy America' provision in America's stimulus plan is being implemented "in a way that is consistent with US WTO obligations." This directly refutes the comment by CISA's Luo Bingsheng that it "violates WTO rules".

You also report that China's commerce ministry "is against protectionism of any kind". If this were true, China would not continue to heavily subsidize its steel industry and it would stop controlling the value of its currency, which economists estimate gives China a 35 percent advantage over competitors in other nations. CISA also attacks the stimulus plan as being "inaccessible to Chinese steel products." As a corollary to that and given the anti-competitive barriers in place, is CISA suggesting that China's $586 billion stimulus package is designed to generate demand for European or US or Japanese steel? I suspect not.

As your own newspaper has reported, China is suffering during the global recession with an estimated 160 million tons of surplus steel production. As a result, surging Chinese finished-steel imports are taking an inordinately high share of the US market. In the face of a recession-driven decline in US domestic steel demand and shipments, we will continue to strongly advocate for rules-based trade and zero tolerance of unfair trade in the US market.

Thomas J. Gibson

President and CEO

American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI)

Statues must be returned to owner

CNN news presenters suggest China buys back the bronze heads of the rabbit and rat that were stolen from China 140 years ago.

They are jolly good fellows, always trying to make people laugh. Yes, the global audience needs to be encouraged, to think pink, and be optimistic in these economic hard times. The former lover of Yves Saint Laurent also has to endure economic hardships, given that he felt forced to auction the treasures he, and his beloved friend, so dearly collected. Every sensible man will share the acute pain inevitably connected with such a hard choice. What a pity that the positive, and always delighted presenters of CNN, totally ignore everything about the different paths various artistic masterpieces follow in the course of history.

Mona Lisa was brought to France by Leonardo da Vinci himself. The French monarch, Francis I, held the hand of the Italian genius on his death bed.

The Marbles of the Parthenon, sculpted by Phidias, were taken away by Lord Elgin, but at that time in the Hellenic region there was no a definite Greek state.

And German authorities can exhibit documentation that its Nefertiti bust was legally sold and exported from Egypt to Berlin. The Chinese relics differ in that, Whatever the changes in its nature and form of government - in 1860 a feudal autocracy, today a socialist republic - its continuity is indisputable. No Chinese government ever sold or authorized the exportation of the works of art in question.

That's why they must be returned to China, their only legitimate owner under international law.

Claudio Cervini

Via Email

China, Europe should extend ties

Comments on "China, Germany sign $14B in trade deals" (China Daily website, Feb 26)

China can improve its international strategy so that she won't appear cold in one instance and warm in another. There are bound to be those who want to criticize, intimidate and anger China for many reasons. A country with confidence and power should not be easily intimidated or threatened by small nonsense acts aimed to discredit it. Where are the calmness, intelligence and confidence?

One is sure that Chancellor Merkel has no intention of prompting a rebellion in any legitimate country in this world, especially in a country where its system has lifted many citizens out of poverty when the world did not pay much attention to its plight. Surely it goes against anyone's belief to do so, especially for a great leader from a great nation.

China and Asia must move forward. It is quite important for China and Asia to link their economies to these of Germany and Europe. China and Asia must not be too proud of themselves, and make great efforts to co-ordinate their own economies among themselves first and then with other continents. China and Asia ought to encourage more Germans and Scandinavians to come to China to enhance its science and engineering capabilities.

Common

on China Daily website

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(China Daily 03/04/2009 page9)