China warns U.S. about Taiwan

BEIJING — Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao called on the United States to deter Taiwan from adopting laws that could pave the way for a referendum on the island's independence, warning that China would "pay any price to safeguard the unity of the motherland."

In an interview Friday with Washington Post editors and reporters, Wen also said China was shocked and wounded by the Bush administration's decision last week to limit imports of Chinese textiles, arguing that "arbitrarily imposing sanctions or restrictions will not help solve the problem" of the $100 billion-plus U.S. trade deficit with China.

Seated in a Ming Dynasty pavilion in the Zhongnanhai compound, the Communist Party headquarters, Wen handled his first interview with Western journalists with ease, pausing only once — for eight seconds — when asked about the 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square. He pledged to "develop democracy," protect human rights and improve China's legal system. But he all but ruled out talks with Tibet's Dalai Lama, and he rejected bold reform of China's one-party political system.

"Conditions are not ripe for direct elections at the higher levels," he said. "The first hindrance in my view is the inadequate education level of the population."

Speaking as he prepared for a visit to the United States in December, Wen displayed the down-to-earth affability, attention to detail and broad smile that have become hallmarks of his short stint as the party's No. 3 leader and the official who runs the operations of the Chinese government.

The 61-year-old son of a schoolteacher, he will be the first senior Chinese official to visit the United States since a major leadership change last year, and he emphasized China's desire for friendly relations, quoting from Tang Dynasty poetry, the Declaration of Independence and two speeches of Abraham Lincoln.

Wen appealed for understanding from people who are eager to see political change catch up with the economy, which has tripled in size since market reforms began in 1978. He mentioned China's population six times, arguing that the country is just too big to move forward rapidly with political liberalization.

"China is a big country with 1.3 billion people," he said, "so to press ahead with political reform, it has to be done in an orderly fashion and in a well-organized manner."

"1.3 billion is a very big number," he said at another point. "Any small problem multiplied by 1.3 billion will end up being a very big problem."