The US government on Friday held a state funeral for former president Ronald Reagan, who was remembered by the Chinese people for his efforts in promoting the development of Sino-US relations.

The Chinese government and the Reagan administration signed on Aug. 17 1982 the Sino-US Joint Communique on US Arms Sales to Taiwan, or the Aug. 17 communique.

The Aug. 17 communique is another historic agreement between China and the United States after the Shanghai Communique and the Joint Communique on the Establishment of Sino-US Diplomatic Relations.

The three communiques have laid the foundation for the development of Sino-US relations.

The United States reiterated in the Aug. 17 communique the fundamental principles guiding the Sino-US relations. In the communique, the United States "recognizes the government of the People's Republic of China as the sole legal government of China," and "acknowledges the Chinese position that there is but one China and Taiwan is part of China."

The US government in the document also made the following commitments on its arms sales: First, the US arms sales to Taiwan will not exceed, either in qualitative or in quantitative terms, the level of those supplied in the years following the establishment of diplomatic relations between the United States and China; Second. the United States intends gradually to reduce its sale of arms to Taiwan; and third, the US reduction of arms sales will lead, over a period of time, to a final resolution of the issue.

The signing of the communique was strongly opposed by the US conservatives, claiming the United States made too much concession to China.

Reagan made continuous efforts in persuading the Congress to pass the communique, showing Reagan realized that the Aug. 17 communique is very important to the development of Sino-US

relations and the development of Sino-US relations serves the US interests in the long run.

Regretfully, after 22 years, the United States has made no earnest efforts to carry out the communique. In fact, the US government has not only continued arms sales to Taiwan, but also kept such deals growing both in qualitative and quantitative terms.

By doing so, the US movement has sent a wrong signal to the elements advocating Taiwan independence.

In Chen Shui-bian's "inaugural speech" on May 20, he announced that a new constitution would be brought to the Taiwan people in 2008, bearing a hidden meaning of promoting the new constitution through referendum. On June 2, Taiwan passed a special budget of 18.2 billion US dollars to buy advanced arms.

The cross-Straits relations have been pushed to the dangerous brink by "Taiwan independence" separatists, a situation closely related to the breaching by the United States of its pledges in the Aug. 17 communique.

In April 1984, Reagan paid a friendly visit to China, the first US president to China since the establishment of diplomatic relations of the two countries. During his visit, Reagan said that one of the purposes of his visit was to hear what the Chinese people were concerned about and aspired for.

Today, it's time that the US politicians listened to the voice of the Chinese government and the Chinese people: to earnestly carry out the Aug. 17 communique and stop arms sale to Taiwan.