《说不尽的外交》：　　On June 11，2004，the state funeral of former US president RonaldReagan was conducted in Washington’s National Cathedral. I was presentas special envoy of Chinese President Hu Jintao.　　The day was overcast and a mournful drizzle fell. More than 4，000people attended the ceremony，including incumbent president George W.Bush，along with former presidents Clinton，Bush，Ford and Carter，aswell as senior officials and international guests.　　At 11 o’clock，Reagan’s coffin was taken from Capitol Hill to thecathedral，and carried into the hall by eight honor guards. The cofFinwas covered by an American flag. The funeral began as the singing ofthe choirs resonated in the hall. Former British prime minister MargaretThatcher，and Reagan’s vice president and successor George H.W.Bushgave their eulogies，and George W.Bush delivered a memorial speechon behalf of the US government. After the ceremony，the honor guards escorted the coffin to the hearse outside the cathedral，when the cathedral bell rang 40 times to commemorate the 40th president of the US.　　Gazing at Reagan’s coffin，I recalled accompanying him to visit the Terracotta Warriors in Xi’an，and scenes from his legendary life flashed into my mind.　　Reagan was the first US president with an acting background，and the oldest when he was elected. He was hailed as one of the most influential US presidents of the 20th century.　　After assuming the presidency，he pushed ahead with tax reductions and government deregulation，thus stimulating economic growth. Inthe eyes of my American friends，he is a representative of the modern US conservatives who renovated the Republican movement，and whose political philosophy still influences US politics today. His diplomatic policies paved the way for the end of the Cold War. His frank，optimistic and humorous character won him wide support. His rating was 63 percent favorable when he left the White House in 1989，the highest since President Franklin Roosevelt.　　During his tenure，Sino-US relations progressed somewhat erratically.There was “hostility before friendship” to paraphrase the Americans. To win the presidential campaign in 1980，Reagan publicly announced that he would set up an “official liaison” with Taiwan and resume their “official relations”. He also promised to make Taiwan’s defense needs a top priority. This showed that the ideological Reagan of his early presidency was a champion of his “old friends”in Taiwan. Having won the election，he planned to invite Chiang Yen-shih，secretary-general of the Central Executive Committee of the Kuomintang，to his inauguration ceremony，to agree to Taiwan’s opening more offices for the Coordination Council for North American Affairs，and to sell advanced weaponry to Taiwan.　　This represented a severe challenge to Sino-US relations. Deng Xiaoping instructed that a full-scale diplomatic campaign be waged against the US. If China didnt take strong action，more problems would ensue. China must be prepared for a deteriorating situation，that is，regression to the 1973 state ofliaison office，or even to the situation that had prevailed prior to Nixon’s China trip in 1972. Around that time，the Netherlands sold two submarines to Taiwan，and we resolutely downgraded bilateral relations to the level of charge d’affaires. This served as a warning to the US.　　……

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