China, under increasing pressure to play a role on the global stage commensurate with its economic might, could see its image sullied by welcoming three strongmen whose regimes are under international sanctions, they say.

But close ties with Pyongyang, Tehran and the military junta in the former Burma -- whose leader Than Shwe is in China this week -- afford Beijing both access to key natural resources and a bit of diplomatic wiggle room, they add.

"Today, China is following its own path. It is integrating with the world on its own terms, while maintaining its autonomy and values," said Xu Tiebing, a professor of international relations at the Communication University of China.

"It has decided to defend its fundamental interests without worrying too much about what the West thinks."

China has rolled out the red carpet for the state visit by Than Shwe, calling Myanmar a "friendly neighbour" and saying its November 7 election -- a contest widely derided in the West -- is an "important step" towards democracy.

Two weeks ago, North Korea's reclusive Kim Jong-Il made his second visit to China -- the only country where he travels -- in less than four months, perhaps to win Beijing's blessing for plans to transfer power to his son Kim Jong-Un.

In June, two days after the UN Security Council imposed fresh sanctions on Tehran, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad used an appearance at the World Expo in Shanghai to blast world powers for "monopolising" atomic technology.

While the firebrand leader did not come to Beijing for talks with senior leaders, China said on the day of his arrival that it "highly values relations with Iran".

"While Beijing is aware of the potentially devastating consequences some of its close allies can have on its image, it does not want to diminish the room to manoeuvre these countries can afford it on the global stage," said Valerie Niquet, a China expert at the Foundation for Strategic Research in Paris.

Jean-Pierre Cabestan, a professor of international studies at Hong Kong Baptist University, explained that North Korea, Myanmar and Iran all had "tricky relations with the US and its European and Japanese allies".

As a result, the three countries are "pawns in the bipolar chess game that China is playing with the United States", said Cabestan, who has just published a book on Chinese foreign policy.

Niquet however noted that Beijing's strategy of being the key intermediary between its controversial allies and the West sometimes had limits.

"Washington now seems more sceptical about the positive role played by Beijing on the issue of North Korea," which has not returned to stalled nuclear disarmament talks despite the efforts of host China, she said.

Beyond the complex diplomatic ties, China has a tangle of economic interests in the mix: Iran's oil; major investments in Myanmar's natural gas, teak, minerals and gems; a deal with neighbour North Korea to develop its Yellow Sea port Rajin; and arms sales to all three countries.

China is also extending its influence in those nations by building pipelines, roads and rails. In Myanmar, it is looking to secure access to the Indian Ocean.

As a result, Beijing "has a network of client states which are more or less dependent upon it, and which it would not want to jeopardise by betraying one of those states," Niquet said.

The three nations sometimes benefit from China's veto-wielding power on the UN Security Council, she added.

"The extreme isolation of these countries -- and consequently their deep dependence on Beijing, notably in the cases of North Korea and Myanmar -- is an asset that China is not willing to give up," Niquet said.

earlier related report
Pentagon releases new ground rules for Guantanamo media
Washington (AFP) Sept 10, 2010 - The Pentagon Friday issued new ground rules for media coverage of the prison and trials at the US detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, creating an appeals process in the event of a dispute.

The new regulations come four months after the furor surrounding four American and Canadian journalists banned from covering the prison and trials after publishing the name of an interrogator testifying at a hearing.

Under the new measures, reporters can now publish information that has already been released by other media outlets, even if it is declared "protected information" by a Guantanamo military tribunal judge, the Pentagon said.

And while US defense officials relaxed some censorship on photographs of a prisoner or a guard, the Defense Department also said the authorities "may request two images per person per day be cropped to meet security requirements."

Photographers, however, can now appeal the censoring and will be due an answer on their demand within 24 hours.

Media workers can also have better access to prosecution and defense teams "at the discretion of the counsel," officials said, allowing them more access to a special press conference room.

Officials said they would ban alcohol consumption in the Guantanamo media operation center, calling it a "place to conduct business," but said a tent with "a large refrigerator, chairs and TV as a social area" will be a designated area for journalists to store alcohol.

If a journalist does not comply with the new regulations they risk being banned from the facility, but will now be notified in writing and be allowed a hearing, officials said.

Four reporters from the Miami Herald and three Canadian news organizations, the Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail and CanWest news service, were banned from the controversial facility in May.

They were accused of having violated a judge's request that they keep secret the identity of the witness whose identity had previously been reported by media outlets.

The Pentagon came under fire from rights groups after the action, with the American Civil Liberties Union calling the decision "rash, draconian and unconstitutional."

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News