GVN VIEWS 35TH ASEAN MINISTERIAL MEETING AS "VERY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HANOI 001990 SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV, EAP/RSP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR PINR PTER VM ARF ASEAN CTERR SUBJECT: GVN VIEWS 35TH ASEAN MINISTERIAL MEETING AS "VERY -- SUCCESSFUL" REF: A. STATE 150391 B. HANOI 01382 UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 02 HANOI 01990 01 OF 02 091047Z ¶1. (U) SUMMARY: MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OFFICIALS CHARACTERIZED THE 35TH ASEAN MINISTERIAL MEETING IN BRUNEI AS "VERY SUCCESSFUL." HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDED THE SIGNING OF A JOINT DECLARATION ON COUNTER TERRORISM BETWEEN ASEAN AND THE U.S., A POSITIVE MEETING BETWEEN FOREIGN MINISTER NGUYEN DY NIEN AND SECRETARY POWELL, LIMITED PROGRESS TOWARDS ADOPTING A DECLARATION ON THE CODE OF CONDUCT FOR THE SOUTH CHINA SEA, AND CONSENSUS ON ECONOMIC/DEVELOPMENT ISSUES. END SUMMARY -------------- -------------- COUNTERTERRORISM DECLARATION "MOST IMPORTANT ACHIEVEMENT" -------------- -------------- ¶2. (U) POLOFFS OBTAINED READOUT OF THE 35TH ASEAN MINISTERIAL MEETING FROM MFA ASEAN DEPARTMENT DEPUTY DIRECTOR GENERAL PHAM HUU CHI AND SENIOR EXPERT LE CHI DUNG ON AUGUST 8. OVERALL, CHI SAID THE GVN VIEWED THE MEETING AS "VERY SUCCESSFUL." ASEAN MEMBERS "WERE PLEASED TO SEE THAT SECRETARY POWELL CAME TO THE MEETING WITH A "THICK BOOK" OUTLINING US ONGOING PROJECTS IN ASIA, WHICH DEMONSTRATED USG COMMITMENT TO THE REGION. ¶3. (U) CHI SPECIFICALLY POINTED TO THE ASEAN-U.S. JOINT DECLARATION ON COUNTER TERRORISM, SIGNED AUGUST 1, AS THE MEETING'S "MOST IMPORTANT ACHIEVEMENT." CHI NOTED THAT, REGARDING COUNTER TERRORISM, "ASEAN AND THE U.S. UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER WELL AND THAT ASEAN IS DETERMINED TO WORK WITH THE USG'S CONCERNS." CHI PREDICTED THAT NEXT MONTH'S ASEM SUMMIT WOULD INCLUDE A SIMILAR, THOUGH "SOMEWHAT WEAKER," UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 03 HANOI 01990 01 OF 02 091047Z DECLARATION. CHI SAID IT WAS SIGNIFICANT THAT THE PARTIES REACHED A CONSENSUS THREE DAYS BEFORE THE END OF THE MEETING. TO EXPEDITE REACHING CONSENSUS, CERTAIN SPECIFICS SUCH AS INTELLIGENCE SHARING WERE OMITTED FROM THE DECLARATION BECAUSE SUCH ISSUES TOUCHED ON SOVEREIGNTY CONCERNS AND WOULD HAVE REQUIRED CONSULTATIONS WITH HOME MINISTRIES. CHI DOWNPLAYED THE SIGNIFICANCE OF SUCH OMISSIONS, HOWEVER, NOTING THAT HE "EXPECTS SUCH COOPERATION WILL OCCUR." -------------- "POSITIVE" NIEN-POWELL MEETING -------------- ¶4. (U) CHI SAID THE FOREIGN MINISTER NIEN AND SECRETARY POWELL HELD A "VERY POSITIVE" 20-MINUTE MEETING ON JULY 31ST. CHI CHARACTERIZED THE MEETING AS "FORMAL, NOT PULL- ASIDE." ACCORDING TO CHI, NIEN RAISED SEVERAL ISSUES, INCLUDING BTA IMPLEMENTATION, PERMANENT REMOVAL OF THE JACKSON-VANIK WAIVER, AND SETTING UP OF "A PERMANENT MECHANISM" BETWEEN THE U.S. AND VIETNAM FOR SETTLING ISSUES SUCH AS CATFISH. CHI SAID SECRETARY POWELL TOLD NIEN HE VIEWED THE CATFISH ISSUE AS NOTHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY; THE SECRETARY DID NOT COMMENT ON THE OTHER ISSUES RAISED. NIEN SIPDIS ALSO MENTIONED TO THE SECRETARY THAT IT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA FOR PRIME MINISTER KHAI TO MEET PRESIDENT BUSH AT THE APEC MEETING SCHEDULED FOR THIS NOVEMBER IN MEXICO. CHI ALSO REPORTED THAT SECRETARY POWELL TOLD NIEN THAT HE HOPED THEY COULD MEET AGAIN IN NEW YORK AT THE UPCOMING 57TH UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY. UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 04 HANOI 01990 01 OF 02 091047Z -------------- -------------- CODE OF CONDUCT-PROGRESS BUT STILL A LONG ROAD AHEAD -------------- -------------- ¶5. (U) IN A MEETING WITH EMBOFFS LAST MAY (REFTEL B),CHI EXPRESSED OPTIMISM THAT THE DECLARATION OF THE SOUTH CHINA SEA CODE OF CONDUCT (COC) WOULD BE ADOPTED AT THE BRUNEI MEETING. THIS DID NOT OCCUR. CHI SAID THERE IS STILL NOT A CONSENSUS ON THE SCOPE. THE STICKING POINT IS THAT MALAYSIA WANTS TO INCLUDE ONLY THE AREA AROUND THE SPRATLEY ISLANDS, WHILE OTHER ASEAN MEMBERS (AND THE PRC) WANT TO INCLUDE ALL THE SOUTH CHINA SEA AREA. THAT SAID, CHI OPINED THAT THE PRC IN PARTICULAR "WAS ANXIOUS TO SIGN A COC." CHI SAID THAT ASEAN IS "WORKING TOWARDS A CONSENSUS" TO BREAK THE DEADLOCK BY LEAVING THE SCOPE ISSUE OUT OF THE TEXT BUT INCLUDE IT IN THE DOCUMENT'S TITLE. ACCORDING TO PRESS REPORTS, MALAYSIA AND VIETNAM DISAGREED OVER THE TITLE, AS WELL, THOUGH VIETNAM EVENTUALLY RELENTED. ACCORDING TO CHI AND PRESS REPORTS, THE DECLARATION'S WORDING (ORIGINALLY DRAFTED BY THE PHILIPPINES) WILL BE "REFINED" OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS AND THEN SIGNED AT THE ASEAN SUMMIT THAT WILL BE HELD THIS NOVEMBER IN CAMBODIA. CHI POINTED OUT, HOWEVER, UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED PTQ1109 PAGE 01 HANOI 01990 02 OF 02 091048Z ACTION EAP-00 INFO LOG-00 NP-00 AIT-03 ACQ-00 CIAE-00 DOTE-00 DS-00 EB-00 FAAE-00 FBIE-00 UTED-00 VC-00 TEDE-00 INR-00 LAB-01 VCE-00 NSAE-00 PM-00 SCT-00 IRM-00 TEST-00 USIE-00 ASDS-01 IIP-00 PMB-00 DSCC-00 DRL-02 NFAT-00 SAS-00 /007W -------------- D6F6ED 091048Z /38 R 091045Z AUG 02 FM AMEMBASSY HANOI TO SECSTATE WASHDC 7256 INFO AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY ASEAN COLLECTIVE AMEMBASSY BEIJING AIT TAIPEI 0700 NSC WASHDC USCINCPAC HONOLULU HI//FPA// SECDEF WASHDC//ISA/ABLAGG// UNCLAS SECTION 02 OF 02 HANOI 001990 SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV, EAP/RSP THAT THE DECLARATION IS ONLY AN INTERIM STEP AND THE FINAL UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 02 HANOI 01990 02 OF 02 091048Z CODE OF CONDUCT IS UNLIKELY TO BE ADOPTED FOR "QUITE A FEW YEARS." -------------- PROGRESS ON THE ECONOMIC FRONT -------------- ¶6. (U) ACCORDING TO CHI, ASEAN MADE CONSIDERABLE PROGRESS REGARDING MEASURES TO NARROW THE DEVELOPMENT GAP AMONG THE ASEAN MEMBERS AND TOWARDS THE FORMATION OF NEW (AND SEPARATE) FREE TRADE AREAS (FTA) WITH, CHINA, JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA, RESPECTIVELY. SINGAPORE IN PARTICULAR WANTS TO SEE AN ACCELERATED EFFORT TO DIMINISH THE DEVELOPMENT GAP, AND "IS GROWING INCREASINGLY FRUSTRATED BY THE SLOWER DEVELOPMENT OF ASEAN'S NEWEST MEMBERS," ACCORDING TO CHI. CHI COMMENTED THAT ASEAN AND THE PRC WERE "SLOWLY MOVING FORWARD" ON THIS ISSUE AFTER WITNESSING THE SUCCESS OF NAFTA AND THE EU. CHI WAS LESS ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT AN FTA WITH JAPAN. JAPAN STILL FAVORS BILATERAL COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIPS RATHER THAN A MULTILATERAL FTA WITH ASEAN AS A WHOLE. -------------- PROLIFERATION OF PLUSES -------------- ¶7. (U) IN THE COMING MONTH'S ASEAN WILL LOOK TO EXPANDING UPON THE SUCCESS OF ITS "+ 3" RELATIONSHIP WITH CHINA, JAPAN AND SOUTH KOREA BY PUSHING FOR THE ENHANCEMENT AND CREATION OF NEWER "+" RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER SIGNIFICANT PARTNERS. CHI SAID HE "WAS PLEASED TO NOTE" THAT THERE WILL BE AN UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 03 HANOI 01990 02 OF 02 091048Z ASEAN + 1 MEETING WITH INDIA ON THE MARGINS OF THE UPCOMING MEETING IN CAMBODIA THIS NOVEMBER. A SEPARATE, FIRST-EVER "+ 1" MEETING IS SCHEDULED TO OCCUR EARLY NEXT YEAR WITH AUSTRALIA. IN ADDITION TO THESE MEETINGS, ASEAN ALSO WOULD LIKE TO DEVELOP A "+ 1" RELATIONSHIP WITH THE UNITED STATES. CHI SUGGESTED THAT SUCH A MEETING COULD BE ATTEMPTED AS EARLY AS THIS YEAR. VIETNAM BELIEVES THAT A ONE-DAY SUMMIT ON THE MARGINS OF THE MEXICO APEC SUMMIT WOULD OFFER A GOOD TEST FOR THIS IDEA. -------------- PAST AND FUTURE LEADERSHIP -------------- ¶8. (U) CHI SAID BRUNEI HAD DONE A "GOOD JOB" OF HOSTING THE CONFERENCE. CHI OPINED THAT CAMBODIA "SHOULD BE READY" TO HOST THE NOVEMBER MEETING. HE NOTED THAT THE CAMBODIAN GOVERNMENT HAS SENT DELEGATES TO HANOI AND BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS IN AN EFFORT TO LEARN THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES AS HOSTS. CHI SAID THAT THIS PREPARATION SHOULD PROVIDE FOR A SMOOTH TRANSITION. PORTER UNCLASSIFIED