WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback released the following statement today following the Senate vote approving Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) for China. H.R. 4444, the U.S.-China Relations Act of 2000, passed the Senate by a vote of 83-15.

“This bill is the most significant foreign policy-related legislation that we have debated during the 106th Congress,” Brownback said. “PNTR for China presents tremendous new export opportunities for our manufacturers, farmers, and service providers. While China has had excellent access to the U.S. market for twenty years, U.S. access to China’s enormous market has been limited. With the enactment of this legislation, and China’s accession to the WTO, that situation is about to change.

“The United States is finally going to enjoy virtually unfettered access to China’s vast market. The impact on Kansas will be substantial. China agreed to end corn export subsidies, increase import quotas for wheat and corn, and reduce soybean tariffs. China agreed to lower its tariff on beef from 45 percent to 12 percent and on pork from 20 percent to 12 percent. China agreed to accept USDA safety certification for meat and pork exports.

“Agriculture is not the only sector in Kansas that will benefit from China’s accession to the WTO. Black & Veatch will see lower tariffs on imported equipment, which will reduce the contract cost of projects won in China. Boeing will have a more stable economic environment in which to sell airplanes to China’s airlines.

“Granting PNTR status to China will increase our exports to the world’s most populous country. But, more importantly, bringing China into the WTO will put the PRC on a collision course with economic and political liberalization. “China has been ruled by the Communist Party with an iron grip for more than fifty years. But WTO accession comes with a price. WTO accession will usher the forces of globalization into China in a very permanent way. Globalization will be good for China’s economy because it will integrate China’s economy into the world’s economy. Globalization will also force the systemic reform of China’s inefficient state-owned enterprises and banking system.

“But globalization will also have a much more profound effect on China. Globalization will force upon China the infrastructure necessary for greater political liberalization. It will require China to adhere more strongly to the rule of law and property rights. It will create a stronger middle class in China that will demand greater freedom with which to enjoy their new wealth.

-MORE- Globalization will bring the Internet into tens of millions of Chinese homes, exposing the Chinese people to Western standards of political and religious freedom and human rights.

“PNTR and human rights must go hand in hand. My positive position on PNTR gives me a door to walk through to raise a number of human rights issues with the Chinese government, including religious liberty and the development of the rule of law. Realistically speaking, this door is closed to those who vote against PNTR.

“An intellectual myth has been adopted, dictating only two ways to deal with China. Either grant PNTR status but never raise these issues, which gives an unfortunate, unbridled affirmation regarding known abuses. Or the second method which mandates a complete isolation from any relationship other than that of repeatedly dunning this government with ill will and no positive incentives. Such vitriol does not work with people and it does not work with governments. Ultimately, nothing changes for those who suffer.

“I propose a third way which calls for a relationship where we can give some and take some, and genuinely raise these issues in a serious, sustained dialogue. And I do, in fact, raise these issues continuously. This third way will, in the end, free religious prisoners, and create an independent judiciary not ruled by communist dogma. Ultimately, this third way engenders freedom and human rights better than either of the other two methods.

“I hope that the Chinese Government does not think that the tabling of the Thompson Amendment is the end of the proliferation debate in the Senate. China must stop engaging in the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The Clinton administration has failed miserably to curb such proliferation. That is why there has been support to legislate anti-proliferation policy in the absence of an executive proliferation policy. China must stop making weapons of mass destruction available to rogue nations around the world.

“We need to open up trade with China to increase our exports and to increase the exposure of the Chinese people to economic and political liberalization. But trade must not come at the expense of national security. Ignoring China’s proliferation activities while increasing our trade ties with China would be a grave mistake. We must be vigilant and enforce current U.S. law as it pertains to proliferation. The Clinton administration’s failure to do so has jeopardized national security. Congress will not permit the next administration to make the same mistake,” Brownback said.