China’s Prime Minister Wen Jiabao confirmed his government’s new policy towards the United States during a press conference at the close of the annual session of the Popular Assembly.

He didn’t simply condemn the U.S. arms sales to Taiwan and the reception given by the White House to the Dalai Lama, as he had done in the past. This time, he qualified both the arms sale to a separatist region and the backing of a separatist leader as acts of intrusion violating the sovereignty of the Popular Republic.

This declaration denotes that China’s new foreign policy does not emanate from the ascension of a few "hawks" to power [1] - Mr. Wen having been Prime Minister for 7 years; it embodies the consensus prevailing within the Communist Party and marks a new balance of power between Beijing and Washington.

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[1] See Difficult adjustment between Beijing and Washington, Voltaire Network, 9 March 2010.