BEIJING-BASED G-5 CHIEFS OF MISSION ON FRENCH FM

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BEIJING 006971

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/05/2027
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM CH FR GM JA UK BM IR
SUBJECT: BEIJING-BASED G-5 CHIEFS OF MISSION ON FRENCH FM
KOUCHNER'S VISIT, BURMA, IRAN, JAPAN, 17TH PARTY CONGRESS.


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

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

1. (C) At the November 2 bi-weekly G-5 Chiefs of Mission
gathering, French Ambassador Herve Ladsous reported that
French FM Bernard Kouchner's visit to China was "extremely
successful," with discussions on Burma, North Korea, foreign
aid, the environment, human rights and Taiwan. Chief Iranian
Nuclear Negotiator Ali Jalali is "obnoxious" and a "true
ideologue," according to German Ambassador Michael Schaefer's
personal experience. Ambassador Schaefer described fallout
from Chancellor Merkel's October meeting with the Dalai Lama.
Japanese Ambassador Miyamoto reported on PM Fukuda's
domestic issues and assessed the political outcome of the
17th Party Congress as a compromise between Hu Jintao and the
Shanghai faction. End Summary.

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

2. (C) Japanese Ambassador Yuji Miyamoto hosted German
Ambassador Dr. Michael Schaefer, French Ambassador Herve
Ladsous, UK DCM Barbara Woodward and the Ambassador November
2 for the bi-weekly G-5 gathering of Beijing-based Chiefs of
Mission.

French FM Kouchner's Visit to Beijing
--------------

3. (C) French Ambassador Ladsous reported that French Foreign
Minister Bernard Kouchner's visit to China was "extremely
successful." In honor of Kouchner's birthday, the Chinese
presented him with a cake at the farewell banquet. Kouchner
met with FM Yang Jiechi for three and a half hours, as well
as with International Liaison Department of the Communist
Party Central Committee Head Wang Jiarui. Ladsous
characterized Wang as "more positive" than Yang. Kouchner
will be returning to Beijing with French President Nicolas
Sarkozy at the end of November.

Kouchner on Burma
--------------

4. (C) During FM Kouchner's discussions with the Chinese
about Burma, he emphasized the need to support UN Special
Envoy for Burma Gambari and suggested making the Special
Envoy position permanent so as to keep lines of communication
open with the Burmese Government. Kouchner also suggested
creating a "Friends of Gambari" core group, comprising the
United States, EU, ASEAN, Japan and China, and urged the use
of both sanctions and positive incentives to encourage the
Burmese. He suggested the creation of a trust for
micro-finance as one potential carrot. Yang responded that
Burma needs both development and democracy but especially
development. Chinese EVM Dai Bingguo separately said
stability in Burma is its chief concern, according to
Japanese Ambassador Miyamoto.

Kouchner on North Korea
--------------

5. (C) When FM Kouchner raised North Korea, the Chinese
responded that they expect a Six-Party Talks Ministerial in
"due course" as well the creation of a Northeast Asia Peace
and Security Mechanism as a platform for continuing regional
security discussions.

Sino-French Discussion on Development Aid
--------------

6. (C) Kouchner attended the first meeting of a working group
on development aid. MFA Director General for International
Organizations Wu Hailong headed the Chinese delegation.
During the four-hour meeting, the Chinese "mostly listened"
during discussions on the administration of development and
development procedures, on the importance of transparency and
on the Paris Club and debt forgiveness. The French asked to
institutionalize the exchange of information between the two
countries and invited the Chinese to visit Paris as well as
French development projects in Africa.

Kouchner on Environment and Human Rights
--------------

7. (C) The major topic of discussion during FM Kouchner's
visit was the environment, which will also be a major focus
of Sarkozy's visit, according to the French Ambassador.
Topics of discussion included climate change and sustainable
development. Kouchner also presented the Chinese with a list
of human rights cases and raised the issue of freedom of the
press. He had lunch with several journalists who were chosen

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because they push the boundaries and are "not party hacks."

Kouchner's Visit: Taiwan, Darfur, G-8
--------------

8. (C) The only time FM Yang showed any anxiety during his
meeting with Kouchner, Ambassador Ladsous said, was when
Taiwan was raised, reminding Kouchner that "we must be
vigilant" regarding Taiwan. Kouchner expressed gratitude
that China had taken a "more forward leaning" position on
Darfur over the past months. Yang expressed gratitude that
Sarkozy had "offered to extend the G-8" to include China
(NFI).

Sarkozy's Visit
--------------

9. (C) French President Sarkozy will meet Chinese Premier Wen
Jiabao during Sarkozy's state visit November 26-27. He will
meet Wen twice again in the coming year: during France's
chairmanship of the EU and at the ASEM summit. These visits
will provide an opportunity for Sarkozy to "deepen his
friendship" with Hu that started during the G-7 summit in
Heiligendamm, Germany, June 6-8. In addition to Beijing,
Sarkozy will also visit Xi'an and Shanghai. Senior
Diplomatic Advisor Jean-David Levitte will visit Beijing next
week to finalize the details of Sarkozy's visit.

Iranian Nuclear Negotiators
--------------

10. (C) According to French Ambassador Ladsous, at the "last
meeting" with Iran on the nuclear issue, newly appointed
Chief Iranian Nuclear Negotiator Ali Jalali did not speak;
instead, previous Chief Nuclear Negotiator Ali Larijana did
all the talking. German Ambassador Schaefer stated the he
knows Jalali personally from his previous assignment as
Political Director of the Federal Foreign Office. He
characterized Jalali as "obnoxious" and "a true ideologue"
and said that the current situation of having two negotiators
springs entirely from struggle between Ahmedinejad and
Rafsanjani.

German Dalai Lama Fallout
--------------

11. (C) German Ambassador Schaefer reported that October was
"Dalai Lama Month," as the Chinese cancelled all major
visits. Thirty-five Chinese CEOs slated to visit Frankfurt
cancelled their trip, as Frankfurt is the home of the
President of the German state of Hesse, who is known to
support the Dalai Lama, information specifically included in
the Chinese letter explaining their cancellation. Japanese
Ambassador Miyamoto said that the Dalai Lama will visit Japan
for a seminar, and VFM He Yafei has warned him against any
government figures meeting the Dalai Lama. Ambassador
Schaefer said the German company ThyssenKrupp held a
technical fair in Shanghai that was "well attended." A
second German-sponsored fair, "The German Vision of
Urbanization," was part of a three-year program in advance of
the World Expo and was attended by 25 German companies. The
motto of the fair was "Better Cities Make Better Lives."
Schaefer said that despite excellent attendance and positive
reviews, the event got little press, as journalists were
instructed to downplay the event. It is unclear if these
instructions stemmed from the Dalai Lama meeting.

German High-Level Visitors
--------------

12. (C) German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck will be
visiting in early December to discuss currency issues.
German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel will visit after
the Bali Meeting in late January or early February to discuss
technical cooperation.

British High-Level Visitors
--------------

13. (C) Lord Mayor of London John Stuttard visited China and
Korea October 16-28 and in China discussed financial services
liberalization, as well as the establishment of a training
services center in Tianjin. UK Secretary of State for
Innovation, Universities and Skills John Denham visited
Beijing October 29-November 2 and officially opened the
Beijing office of the Research Councils UK. The
four-million-pound project will promote innovation, research
and exchanges between China and Britain. Foreign Secretary
David Miliband will visit in advance of early 2008 visits by
Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Chancellor of the Exchequer
Alistair Darling.


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Zhang Yan Pessimistic on IAEA Process for Iran
-------------- -

14. (C) MFA Arms Control Department Director General Zhang
Yan will represent China at the P5-plus-1 Political Directors
Meeting in London November 2. German Ambassador Schaefer is
a friend of Zhang from his previous position as Political
Director in Berlin. Schaefer said that in personal,
off-the-record conversations, Zhang indicated that "Iran is
prepared for a third resolution," but that China hopes to get
more results from the IAEA process. Zhang himself, however,
is quite skeptical of the IAEA process and does not think it
will produce results. Regardless, Zhang agreed with
Ambassador Schaefer that the six countries must be united to
make a difference.

Japanese Prime Minister's Domestic Issues
--------------

15. (C) Japanese Ambassador Miyamoto said that Prime Minister
Fukuda is currently embroiled in domestic politics. One of
the items being discussed is the refueling of ships for
Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. Fukuda will meet
with opposition leader Ichiro Ozawa to see if a compromise
can be reached. China wants Fukuda to visit and has
suggested dates. Fukuda expressed interest but will be
unable to come due to his current preoccupation with domestic
political issues.

17th Party Congress: Japan's Assessment
--------------

16. (C) Japanese Ambassador Miyamoto said the results of the
17th Party Congress reflected President Hu Jintao's character
as a "middle of the roader" unlikely to "push anyone into the
corner." On policy, Hu achieved all of his goals, including
the incorporation of his Scientific Development concept at
the end of his first term. Previous leaders were only able
to promulgate their ideological innovations in the Party
Constitution at the end of their second terms. Miyamoto
noted that the Party Congress "followed all the rules," such
as the principle of "Seven up, Eight out," in an effort aimed
at institution building. This is being done with an eye on
the next big transition, to take place in five years.


17. (C) On personnel, the Japanese were surprised at the
ouster of VP Zeng Qinghong. Miyamoto noted that two members
of the Shanghai faction (He Guoqiang and Zhou Yongkang) were
given positions in the investigative, prosecutorial and legal
lines, which he analyzed as a "defensive compromise" that
allowed Hu to achieve all of his policy aims, but gave the
Shanghai faction protection from future corruption
investigations.

New Discipline and Inspection Mechanism
--------------

18. (C) Discipline and inspection committees are now being
sent all around China to form permanent surveillance teams,
according to Miyamoto. The teams comprise "outsiders" (that
is, no one from Hubei, for example, would be allowed to
perform an inspection in Hubei Province),which is a change
from past policy, when the local party secretary had
authority over discipline and inspection activities.

Japan: Nanjing War Memorial is Incorrect
--------------

19. (C) The Japanese have presented information and
"evidence" to the Foreign Ministry that purports to show that
some of the exhibits in the War Museum in Nanjing are in fact
false, according to Ambassador Miyamoto. This evidence did
not get any traction in the MFA, but Communist Party Central
Committee International Liaison Department Head, Wang Jiarui,
said he would look into the matter, prompting Miyamoto to
label him "an interesting person."
Randt