Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07BEIJING7274
2007-11-29 11:03:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Beijing
Cable title:  

(CORRECTED COPY) SARKOZYING UP TO THE CHINESE:

Tags:  PREL ETRD PHUM SENV EFIN PGOV FR CH TW IR 
pdf how-to read a cable
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BEIJING 007274 

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2027
TAGS: PREL ETRD PHUM SENV EFIN PGOV FR CH TW IR
BM, SU
SUBJECT: (CORRECTED COPY) SARKOZYING UP TO THE CHINESE:
FRENCH PRESIDENT'S NOVEMBER 25-27 VISIT TO CHINA

Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Aubrey Carlson. Reasons
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BEIJING 007274

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2027
TAGS: PREL ETRD PHUM SENV EFIN PGOV FR CH TW IR
BM, SU
SUBJECT: (CORRECTED COPY) SARKOZYING UP TO THE CHINESE:
FRENCH PRESIDENT'S NOVEMBER 25-27 VISIT TO CHINA

Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Aubrey Carlson. Reasons 1.
4 (b/d).

This cable replaces Beijing 7272 and corrects text in
paragraph one.

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


1. (C) French President Sarkozy stressed China's and France's
"shared vision" during a successful November 25-27 visit to
China, French DCM Chapuis briefed Beijing-based diplomats
November 28. The visit reaped over 20 billion euros of
contracts for French firms, but focused on political issues.
Sarkozy thanked China for its helpful role on Darfur and on
Burma, while pushing China to do more to push the Burmese
government toward true dialogue with the opposition. Sarkozy
publicly criticized Taiwan's referendum on joining the UN.
He and French Justice Minister Dati pressed lightly on human
rights. Sarkozy made climate change a major theme of the
visit, signing a joint declaration with President Hu and
giving a speech at a Beijing university on the topic.
Sarkozy pressed for action to speed the Chinese RMB's
appreciation versus the euro and discussed intellectual
property rights, trade imbalances and the need for
"reciprocal" investment. End summary.


2. (U) French President Nicolas Sarkozy visited China
November 25-27 and met Chinese President Hu Jintao, Premier
Wen Jiabao and other Chinese officials, French DCM Nicolas
Chapuis briefed Beijing-based diplomats on November 28.
Sarkozy's party included the Ministers of Economics and
Finance, Justice, Sports and Foreign Trade, as well as the
State Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development.
French Parliamentarians, a business delegation, and roughly
200 French participants in an investment forum for small and
medium-sized business owners filled out a delegation of
500-600 people, making this the largest official visit to

China in French history. After Beijing, the delegation made
brief stops in Xi'an and Shanghai. Neither the French nor
the Chinese Foreign Minister were present, as both were
attending the Annapolis Conference on the Middle East.

Shared Vision, Successful Visit
--------------


3. (C) Chapuis said Sarkozy's visit was an opportunity to
reiterate France and China's "shared vision" of the world's
problems, as well as their joint view on the importance of
multi-lateral organizations, including the UN Security
Council. Because of this emphasis on a shared vision,
Chapuis said, China "went beyond the usual arrangements" for
a high-level visit. For example, President Hu met Sarkozy on
the evening of his arrival in Beijing, before the official
greetings in Tiananmen Square took place. Chapuis also noted
many Chinese newspapers' coverage of the visit led with a
photograph of Sarkozy warmly kissing a Chinese student at
Tsinghua University, a sign of the new "intimacy" between

SIPDIS
France and China.

Political Focus
--------------


4. (C) France and China signed or adopted 21 agreements
during the visit, Chapuis said. Half of these agreements
were intergovernmental, and half were private contracts worth
a total of over 20 billion euros. The intergovernmental
agreements included a joint declaration on climate change
(which Chapuis claimed is the first such agreement signed by
a Chinese President),a civil nuclear cooperation agreement
that paves the way for French processing of Chinese nuclear
waste and an investment agreement. Despite the high value of
the commercial conracts signed, Chapuis said, Sarkozy
nonetheless focused on political questions, including Iran,
Darfur, Burma, human rights and China's "territorial
integrity."

Iran/Darfur/Burma
--------------


5. (C) Chapuis said China's and France's views on Iran
"converged on the nature of the problem." The two countries
agreed on the need for a negotiated solution and the
importance of increasing unity in the P5 plus 1, which both
sides agree is the "right framework" for solving the problem

BEIJING 00007274 002 OF 003


of Iran's nuclear ambitions. Sarkozy thanked the Chinese
government for its work on Darfur, noting the positive role
China had played at the Paris Darfur conference. He said
France fully expects China will continue to be a positive
influence on the Darfur situation. President Hu assured
Sarkozy China would continue to help on Darfur.


6. (C) Likewise, according to Chapuis, Sarkozy thanked China
for its work on the crisis in Burma, saying China had created
the conditions for restoring dialogue between the military
government and Aung San Suu Kyi. Sarkozy told officials that
France would like China's involvement in Burma to mirror its
involvement in North Korea; i.e., China should use its
influence to bring about true dialogue. France disagrees
with China's assessment that the crisis in Burma is over and
urged China to take further action on this matter. Chapuis
reported that President Hu and other leaders were unwilling
to commit to any specific actions.

Human Rights
--------------


7. (C) Chapuis said Sarkozy expressed hope for Chinese
progress in three areas of human rights now, and "not in
fifty years." Sarkozy asked for progress on the judiciary so
as to make China a nation with the "rule of law." Second,
Sarkozy, recognizing China's progress in reducing use of the
death penalty, called for a moratorium. Third, he pushed for
freedom of the press, both during the Olympics and beyond.
French Minister of Justice Rachida Dati held unpublicized
meetings with two human rights activists, Zeng Jingyan and Hu
Jia, both of whom have been nominated for the European
Parliament's Sakharov Prize. Neither Sarkozy nor Dati
presented a list of specific human rights cases, but French
Foreign Minister Kouchner presented such a list three weeks
in advance of the President's visit.

Territorial Integrity: Taiwan and Tibet
--------------


8. (C) Chapuis said Sarkozy has long made both public and
private statements that "any change in status quo in the
Taiwan Strait would be a mistake." However, during the visit
he for the first time publicly stated France's opposition to
a Taiwan referendum endorsing Taiwan's UN membership under
the name Taiwan. Sarkozy reaffirmed Tibet's being a "part of
China," but urged President Hu to consider dialogue with both
the Tibetan people and the Dalai Lama. According to Chapuis,
asked by a reporter if he would receive the Dalai Lama,
Sarkozy said he would "do nothing to harm the territorial
integrity" of China.

Environmental Issues
--------------


9. (C) Chapuis said Sarkozy "greatly stressed" environmental
concerns during the visit. Presidents Sarkozy and Hu signed
a negotiated joint statement on climate change, the first of
its kind ever signed by a Chinese president, and Sarkozy gave
a speech on climate change at Tsinghua University. Topics
discussed included energy efficiency, protection of habitat,
"cars of the future," renewable energy, clean-burning coal,
carbon reduction, clean water and waste management. Both
sides agreed to hold a Minister's dialogue on the environment.

Economic Issues
--------------


10. (C) Economic issues discussed during the visit include
RMB appreciation versus the euro, IPR, product safety and
trade imbalances, according to Chapuis. On RMB appreciation,
Chinese Premier Wen blamed distorted exchange rates on the
currently weak and fluctuating dollar. Wen reportedly said
further that the currency problem is not a China issue, but
global. Sarkozy agreed currency rates are a global issue,
but said that China still must speed RMB revaluation. On
IPR, Sarkozy noted that 80 percent of all French customs
seizures of pirated goods originate in China. The problem is
not academic or intellectual, but rather "concrete" in
nature, Sarkozy said. France and China signed an agreement
on product safety. President Hu told Sarkozy that 99 percent
of Chinese exports are safe, and the current media hype over
product safety is unjustified. On trade imbalances, Premier
Wen said that the vast majority of Chinese exports are
produced by foreign-owned companies. Wages and labor costs

BEIJING 00007274 003 OF 003


are paid to Chinese employees, but the true value added is
being given to foreign firms, Hu claimed.

Trade and Investment
--------------


11. (C) Chinese and French businesses signed over 20 billion
euros of contracts during the visit, including an
8-billion-euro contract with Areva for two nuclear reactors
and a 12-billion-euro contract with Airbus for 160 aircraft.
Sarkozy discussed Chinese investment in France which has
been rising over the past several years. France has opened
an investment bureau in Shanghai to identify and attract
potential investors to France. Stressing a difference
between "purely financial" investment and "industrial
investment" that creates jobs, Sarkozy stated his desire for
"reciprocity" and the creation of a "win-win" situation. In
support of investment, Sarkozy committed to negotiating a new
visa treaty with China similar to China's treaty with Britain.

Future Visits
--------------

12. (C) President Hu is slated to visit France in the first
half of 2008. Sarkozy said he is planning two future trips
to China. Premier Wen will lead the Chinese delegation to
the EU-China Summit in France in 2008. Chapuis noted that
with all of these visits in the planning stages, 2008 will be
a "big year" for Sino-French relations.

RANDT
RANDT