MACAU OFFICIALS LOOKING FOR RESOLUTION IN BDA CASE

C O N F I D E N T I A L HONG KONG 003655 SIPDIS NOFORN SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/CM, EAP/K, EB/ESC/TFS, EB/IDF/OMA TREASURY FOR FINCEN, DGLASER, WNEWCOMB, SLEVEY, RDOHNER, LMOHTADER, ASHARMA JUSTICE FOR OAI, AFLMS, AND NDDS E.O. 12958: DECL: AFTER KOREAN REUNIFICATION TAGS: ECON EFIN HK KJUS KN MC PREL SUBJECT: MACAU OFFICIALS LOOKING FOR RESOLUTION IN BDA CASE Classified By: Consul General James Cunningham. Reasons: 1.4 (b,d,e). ¶1. (C) Macau's Chief Executive Edmund Ho and the PRC's Ministry of Foreign Affairs Commissioner in Macau Wan Yongxiang told CG James Cunningham in separate meetings on September 5 that they hoped the Banco Delta Asia (BDA) case would be resolved quickly. Noting that Macau's administration of BDA was nearing the one-year mark, Ho told Cunningham that Macau would extend its administration of BDA for another six months; he hoped that USG and Macau authorities would be able to resolve the case within that time. Wan noted that the U.S. Treasury Department designated BDA in Macau as a "primary money laundering concern" a year ago, but asserted that the Macau government had not found evidence of money laundering activities. Wan stressed that Macau and the USG officials should continue to work seriously to resolve this issue as it is linked to the suspension of the Six Party Talks. ¶2. (C) Cunningham thanked both officials for Macau's continued cooperation in the BDA case and stated that the U.S. Consulate Hong Kong and the U.S. Treasury Department would continue to work very seriously with Macau authorities to resolve the issues in the case. Cunningham thanked Ho for turning over the latest batch of documents that Treasury investigators had requested. He told Ho that the investigators had finished the document scanning process during the week of September 5 and would begin analyzing the BDA documents and data. Cunningham told Wan that U.S. and PRC officials had discussed in Beijing the need to deal with financial issues in Macau. ¶3. (U) Cunningham commended Macau for passing Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing laws in March of 2006 but emphasized that implementation would be the key in moving forward. The United States stands ready to assist Macau improve its capacity to implement money laundering and counterterrorism finance measures, including by continuing to provide training and exchange programs. Cunningham noted that U.S. officials look forward to working with Deborah Ng, the head of Macau's recently established Financial Investigation Unit. ¶4. (U) Cunningham told both Ho and Wan that the September 5 opening of the Wynn Macau Resort provided an example of the increasing U.S. investment that would be moving into Macau. An open, transparent financial regulatory regime would be essential to encourage both local and international investment in Macau, Cunningham told Ho and Wan. Cunningham