Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06BEIJING19793
2006-09-18 09:42:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Beijing
Cable title:  

BEIJING-BASED CHIEFS OF MISSION ON WEN JIABAO IN

Tags:  PREL PGOV AMGT CASC FR GM JA UK EUN CH 
pdf how-to read a cable
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ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 180942Z SEP 06
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7324
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 1420
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 2936
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 8382
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 3895
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 1488
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 BEIJING 019793 

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C O R R E C T E D C O P Y -- PARA 13 AND 17 CLASSIFICATION

NSC FOR WILDER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/17/2026
TAGS: PREL PGOV AMGT CASC FR GM JA UK EUN CH
SUBJECT: BEIJING-BASED CHIEFS OF MISSION ON WEN JIABAO IN
EUROPE, JOURNALISTS AT OLYMPICS, CHIRAC VISIT, CHINA-JAPAN
RELATIONS, NEW JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER, NORTH KOREA


BEIJING 00019793 001.2 OF 004


Classified By: Ambassador Clark T. Randt, Jr. Reasons 1.4 (b/d).

Summary
-------

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 BEIJING 019793

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

C O R R E C T E D C O P Y -- PARA 13 AND 17 CLASSIFICATION

NSC FOR WILDER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/17/2026
TAGS: PREL PGOV AMGT CASC FR GM JA UK EUN CH
SUBJECT: BEIJING-BASED CHIEFS OF MISSION ON WEN JIABAO IN
EUROPE, JOURNALISTS AT OLYMPICS, CHIRAC VISIT, CHINA-JAPAN
RELATIONS, NEW JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER, NORTH KOREA


BEIJING 00019793 001.2 OF 004


Classified By: Ambassador Clark T. Randt, Jr. Reasons 1.4 (b/d).

Summary
--------------


1. (C) Premier Wen Jiabao told Prime Minister Blair China is
gradually reforming its political and administrative
structure. UK Ambassador Ehrman said that the two discussed
Iran, Lebanon, North Korea, human rights, trade issues and
China's economic growth during their London meeting. FM Li
Zhaoxing said Beijing this fall will ratify the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which China has
signed but failed to ratify. During the Beijing Olympics,
journalists will be allowed to travel freely and to conduct
interviews without obtaining advance government permission
and international norms towards journalists will be observed,
according to a Beijing Olympic Committee official. Wen was
pleased with the visit, stating that China-UK relations have
never been better.


2. (C) In Germany, Wen visited Hamburg and Berlin, attended
the "China Meets Europe" trade show and met with Chancellor
Merkel, said the German Charge. Germany hosted a second
China-Germany conference on civil society chaired by Siemens
Chairman Heinrich Von Pierer. Germany will have its first
Strategic Dialogue with China in November, said the German
Charge. French President Chirac will visit China from
October 25, the French Ambassador said. Despite Japanese
media reports about China's conciliatory mood, the Japanese
Ambassador believes China remains cautious, as indicated by
the low volume of official travelers to Japan from China.
The new Japanese Prime Minister will try to improve relations

with Beijing, reflecting popular opinion in Japan, he said.
Many saw Hu Jintao's recent address on Chinese Foreign Policy
as an attempt to assert greater control over foreign policy,
according to the Japanese Ambassador. He added that some in
the PLA are concerned that a North Korean nuclear test will
cause the Japanese public to demand that Japan develop
nuclear weapons. End Summary.

Participants
--------------


3. (C) The Ambassador, UK Ambassador William Ehrman,
Japanese Ambassador Yuji Miyamoto, French Ambassador Philippe
Guelluy and German Charge Aristide Fenster met September 15
for the bi-weekly G-5 gathering of Beijing-based Chiefs of
Mission, the first since July.

Blair Meetings with Wen
--------------


4. (C) Premier Wen met with Prime Minister Blair, Deputy PM
Prescott and Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown and had
dinner with business leaders during his recent visit to
London, all after attending the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM)
and the EU-China Summit in Helsinki, Ambassador Ehrman said.
PM Blair also hosted Wen for lunch, at which Wen compared
Chinese economic growth to a ship that is moving forward
steadily and rapidly but must not be capsized. Wen stated
China's political system, like its economic system, is
undergoing gradual political and administrative structure
reform. Noting that village-level elections already exist in
China, Wen said the next step is the township level but this
can not move forward until village elections are properly
implemented. This could take a long time, conjectured
Ehrman.


5. (C) PM Blair raised human rights issues and noted that
without Chinese help, the UK cannot continue to resist
protectionist pressures. PM Blair raised concerns about
Xinhua's recent attempt to control news distribution by
foreign agencies in China. Wen replied that the new
regulations will not present any obstructions but that the
foreign press must obey Chinese laws. Ehrman noted that the
British Embassy has demarched the MFA and written a letter to
Commerce Minister Bo Xilai noting that Xinhua is both
regulator and competitor and stating that the new regulations
are contrary to China's WTO commitments. The two also
discussed the Middle-East, Iran, Lebanon and North Korea. On
Iran, Wen said all parties involved must work together, while

BEIJING 00019793 002.2 OF 004


warning that sanctions will be difficult, according to
Ehrman.

Other UK Meetings
--------------


6. (C) FM Beckett raised similar issues in her bilateral
meeting with FM Li Zhaoxing, said the British Ambassador. Li
told FM Beckett that Beijing will finally this fall ratify
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR),which China has signed but failed to ratify. Blair
and Beckett separately pressed Premier Wen and FM Li to
support UN rehatting of African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS)
peacekeepers, Ehrman noted.


7. (C) Premier Wen made an appearance at a meeting of the
UK-China Task Force chaired by Deputy PM Prescott and State
Councilor Tang Jiaxuan. Ehrman said that Chairman of the
State National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) Ma
Kai, Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai and Foreign Minister Li
Zhaoxing also attended. Prescott will come to China in early
November for the next round of Task Force meetings. The
Sino-UK working group also met and discussed energy
cooperation, climate change and sustainable development,
Ehrman added.

Olympics Meeting
--------------


8. (C) In a meeting with the UK Secretary of State for
Culture, Media and Sport Tessa Jowell, the Chairman of the
Beijing Organizing Committee for the 29th Olympiad Games
(BOCOG) and Beijing Party Secretary Liu Qi said that both
accredited and non-accredited journalists will be allowed to
travel freely in China during the 2008 Olympics. He also
said that international norms towards journalists will be
observed and that journalists will be allowed to conduct
interviews without obtaining advance government permission,
Ehrman recounted. Liu Qi told Jowell that new regulations to
be issued in January 2007 will make this clear.


9. (C) In the run up to the Beijing Olympics, in 2008 Great
Britain will host the "China Now" Festival, sponsored by
China's HSBC Bank, to promote UK firms and encourage UK
participation in the Olympics, Ehrman said.

Wen Pleased with Visit
--------------


10. (C) Ehrman commented that Premier Wen was very pleased
with the visit, making a public statement that China-UK
relations have never been better. During Wen's visit, over
USD one billion of contracts were signed, including one for
Rolls Royce commercial aircraft engines and one by the UK
company Arup for the design of the new Kunming Airport. The
UK also announced that it will participate in the upcoming
Shanghai Expo, noted Ehrman.

Wen's Visit to Germany
--------------


11. (C) Chancellor Merkel met with Premier Wen for the
second time in four months during his recent visit to
Germany, said Charge Fenster. In Hamburg, Wen attended the
"China Meets Europe" trade show, then took the train to
Berlin where he discussed IPR, energy, transportation, and
export credit issues, among others. Merkel was critical of
China's human rights record and Xinhua's recent attempt to
control distribution of news by foreign agencies in China.
She also discussed Lebanon, North Korea, Iran and East Asia
with Premier Wen, who in turn pressed Merkel to increase
youth exchanges with China. Fenster recounted that the
German MFA responded to Wen's interest in youth exchanges by
transforming a proposed MOU on the topic into an actual
federal agreement, which both parties signed. The Germans
also agreed to allow the Chinese to open new Confucius
Institutes in Hamburg and Hanover, bringing the total in
Germany to six. The German company BASF signed a large
contract with China's Sinopec during Wen's visit, Fenster
noted.


BEIJING 00019793 003.2 OF 004


German-China Meetings on Civil Society
--------------


12. (C) Germany hosted the second China-Germany conference
on civil society from September 4-5, with meetings chaired by
Siemens Chairman Heinrich Von Pierer. Topics discussed
included the image of China in Germany as well as that of
Germany in China, energy efficiency, innovative societies and
property rights in Germany and China.

Chirac's "Swan Song" Visit to China
--------------


13. (C) In what is likely to be his final visit to China as
President, French President Chirac will visit Beijing from
October 25-26, Wuhan until October 28 and Dunhuang and the
Mogao Caves thereafter, said Ambassador Guelluy. France
maintains a Consulate in Wuhan and it has proved an important
and active post for France, said Guelluy. Chirac will visit
French car-maker Peugeot's facility in Wuhan and take part in
a ribbon-cutting ceremony for an addition that will double
the existing plant's production capacity. Chirac will also
witness the signing of a bilateral medical agreement whereby
France will assist China to develop new liver surgery
technology. Former Prime Minister Raffarin will accompany
Chirac, along with other yet-to-be determined ministers.

Sino-Japanese Relations Still Tense
--------------


14. (C) Japanese officials are still traveling to China, but
very few Chinese officials are coming to Japan, commented
Ambassador Miyamoto. The only significant recent visits were
by Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai and the head of China's
Electricity Commission who came to Japan to discuss
electricity grid control. Although Japanese journalists are
reporting that China is in a conciliatory mood towards Japan,
Miyamoto believes that the low volume of official travel
indicates that Beijing remains cautious. A new Japanese
Prime Minister will present an opportunity to improve the
relationship, according to Miyamoto, who said "it will be
Abe," and that "the deal is done." Miyamoto, who served as
Abe's father's private secretary, believes Abe's attitude
toward China will reflect popular opinion in Japan: while
most Japanese feel China should not intervene in Japanese
internal political affairs, 70 to 80 percent would like Japan
to have better relations with China.


15. (C) Asked whether President Hu and Abe will meet at the
upcoming APEC Summit, Miyamoto said there is no current plan
for such a meeting, but Japan would like to arrange one. He
further noted that indications from Beijing are that meetings
for a new Japanese Prime Minister should begin with Wen
Jiabao, meaning on the margins of the East Asia Summit in
December at the earliest.

President Hu Speech on Foreign Policy
--------------


16. (C) President Hu's speech on foreign policy at the
"Central Foreign Affairs Work Conference" held in Beijing on
August 21-23 was a rare thing, according to Miyamoto.
Chinese contacts described President Hu's message as
emphasizing that foreign relations must serve China's
development and that the Party and the military must support
these efforts, said Miyamoto. The message Japan took from
the speech was that China should not provoke Japan, for
example by sending submarines into Japanese waters. Many saw
the speech as an effort by Hu to assert greater control over
foreign policy, noted Miyamoto.

North Korea
--------------


17. (C) In a general discussion on North Korea, Ambassador
Miyamoto stated that Japan's PLA contacts are concerned that
a North Korean nuclear test will cause the Japanese public to
demand that Japan develop nuclear weapons. Miyamoto agreed
that this was a potential outcome of such a test.

Upcoming High-level Visits

BEIJING 00019793 004.2 OF 004


--------------

--(C) September 20-24, the German Minister of Transportation
will visit Shanghai and Beijing.

--(C) September 22-23, Executive Vice Foreign Minister Dai
Bingguo will participate in another Strategic Dialogue with
DFM Yachi in Tokyo. This will be Dai's sixth trip to Tokyo
this year, according to Miyamoto.

--(C) On October 8, France will hold a Strategic Dialogue
with China; Di Bingguo will represent China. Late in
October, Minister of Trade LaGarde will come to China for
bilateral trade discussions with Zeng Peiyan.

--(C) October 29-30, the German Minister of Defense will
visit China.

--(C) On October 30, Berlin will host a bilateral dialogue on
human rights. MFA Special Representative for Human Rights
Shen Yongxiang will attend and has said he looks forward to
discussing recent allegations of torture in Germany,
according to the German Charge.

--(C) November 6-7, Germany will have its first Strategic
Dialogue with China. German State Secretary Silverberg and
Chinese VM Zhang Yesui will participate. Topics to be
discussed are partnership, the global economy, energy,
technology transfer, sustainable development, IPR, African
relations and, if time allows, Latin American relations.

--(C) Former German Chancellor Kohl will come to Beijing and
Shanghai on behalf of Generali Insurance Company and will
meet with National People's Congress Vice Chairman Raidi.
RANDT