POSTPONEMENT OF ASEAN-RELATED SUMMITS, CITING

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANILA 004935 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/08/2016 TAGS: PREL ASEAN RP SUBJECT: POSTPONEMENT OF ASEAN-RELATED SUMMITS, CITING TYPHOON Classified By: DCM Paul W. Jones, reason 1.4 (d) ¶1. (U) The Philippine organizing committee on late afternoon December 8 announced the postponement until January 2007 of the 2006 ASEAN Summits in Cebu (central Visayan region). These include the ASEAN Leaders Summit and the East Asia Summit. (Full list in para 5.) The summits were due to begin on December 10 and conclude on December 13. Senior Officials Meetings have been underway since December 6, with economic and foreign ministers due to begin their own meetings on December 9. These ministerial meetings are expected to take place as scheduled, but the scheduled signing ceremonies of the accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation by Timor Leste and France (which will make them eligible for participation in the EAS in 2007) will likely now take place at the rescheduled leaders' meeting. ¶2. (SBU) Philippine National Police chief General Calderon and Philippine ASEAN Deputy Director General Valeriano separately confirmed to emboffs the postponements. Valeriano said that the Philippines would now have to consult with other partners about new dates, but expressed some concern whether the January dates would be feasible, given Singapore's plans to host summits in December 2007 after it has assumed the chair of ASEAN in August. One ASEAN emboff said privately that there was some speculation that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo would reverse this decision, but few believe this likely (or advisable). ¶3. (SBU) Separate bilateral visits to Manila by the Japanese and Chinese heads of government before and after the Summits, respectively, are still expected to take place. ¶4. (C) Comment: While an approaching typhoon may have been the real reason for postponement, the threat of terrorist attacks had been in the minds of many delegations, especially since the British and Australian Governments issued travel warnings for the Cebu Summits on December 7 and the U.S. issued a warden message. The head of the Philippine organizing committee specifically rejected a link with the terrorist threats and advisories to the postponement in remarks to the media, but inevitably many will assume that security was the primary factor. End comment ¶5. (U) Full list of postponed summits: the 12th ASEAN Leaders' Summit; the 10th ASEAN 3 (China, Japan, and South Korea) Summit; the 10th ASEAN - China Summit; the 10th ASEAN - Japan Summit; the 10th ASEAN - ROK Summit; the 5th ASEAN - India Summit; and the 2nd East Asia Summit (ASEAN, China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, New Zealand). Visit Embassy Manila's Classified website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eap/manila/index. cfm KENNEY