In the keynote speech for the week-long conference sponsored by the Forum for American / Chinese Exchange at Stanford, or FACES, James Lilley, former U.S. ambassador to the People’s Republic of China and South Korea, discussed past and present Chinese politics, including the need for the U.S. government to work with the Chinese government in talks with North Korea. He also defended the American sale of arms to Taiwan over the past several decades.

He called on personal experience to construct a brief, yet historical history of China before delving into the more hard-hitting issues. When his family first settled in China, Lilley said the nation had only just begun recovering from both the Opium War with Great Britain and the Boxer Rebellion, two events that left a very China with a very negative impression of the Western world.

“Westerners existed in a privileged oasis in a sea of suffering in China,” he said. “From the Chinese point of view, it was a period of humiliation and victimization, and how foreigners exercised their will on China has resonance today.”

Using this history to explain China’s current political system, Lilley argued that the chaos and constant violence that existed in China before World War II prompted the need for a strong central government.

It took visionaries like President Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger, his secretary of state, to change the nature of U.S.-China relations — to dispel distrust and encourage collaboration, Lilley said.

“Nevertheless, the American-Chinese relationship has a cyclical nature, with ups and downs,” he added.

Shifting his attention to Taiwan and North Korea, Lilley warned the audience to be skeptical of buzzwords used by the media.

“There is preoccupation with the most dangerous concepts in history right now — self-determination, forced unity, premature independence and exercise of sovereignty,” he said. “You heard these buzzwords in pre-ward Europe.”

Justifying the U.S. sale of arms to the Taiwanese government, Lilley said, “You work in Taiwan to give them a sense of confidence so that they go and deal with China. We provided the material and spiritual support they needed.”

He stressed the importance of maintaining open communication along the Taiwan Strait.

“Because of American policy, there emerged a more civilized discourse out of China because American presidents would not tolerate unilateral changing of the status quo in Taiwan,” he said. “There is reason to be more optimistic.”

The situation in North Korea, Lilley said, is much uglier. He referred to the nation as a failed economic state based on Stalinist totalitarianism, and even compared it to 1935 Nuremberg, Germany. He added that North Korea currently spends 30 percent of its GDP on the military while 2 million of its citizens are starving.

“We have to work with our partners, and China is critical in this — but their interests are different,” he said, explaining that China does not want North Korea to collapse for fear that an American-backed, unified Korea could emerge. Ultimately, China wants the nation to be sustained.

“This is not an American problem,” Lilley said, referring to North Korea. “It is a Chinese, South Korean and Japanese problem, and if the Chinese want to support them, we have to allow that.”

Following his talk, Lilley fielded questions from the audience related to economic development and interdependence. In response, he warned against the Western notion that democracy must accompany capitalism.

“Political liberty accompanying a market economy is a Western imposition,” he said. “Watch your step when you begin to bring premature democracy in Rwanda or to the Congo. Certain cultures are closer to western values, but in other countries with different systems, you have to be very careful.”

Many audience members, including FACES delegates, who attended the speech said they enjoyed Lilley’s presentation.

“I thought the breadth and depth of his understanding was extensive and that he had a lot to offer to this type of audience and this type of conferences,” said FACES delegate Kaitlin Solimine, a first-year graduate student at the University of Southern California. “He provided a unique and invaluable perspective unavailable to someone of our age group because he has a long-standing history with U.S.-China relations.”

Emily So, a senior at the University of Hong Kong, echoed Solimine’s comments.

“I’m particularly impressed with him saying that capitalism works best, but that you have to watch out for human rights and democracy,” she said. “This stance is rarely seen in U.S. diplomatic relations.”

During his four-decade career in government, Lilley also worked in the Central Intelligence Agency, the White House, the State Department and the Department of Defense. He also served as director of the American Institute in Taiwan, a nonprofit private corporation that oversees all programs and transactions conducted by the U.S. government in respect to Taiwan.