ROK-JAPAN-CHINA TO HOLD DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER

C O N F I D E N T I A L SEOUL 001463

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/15/2017
TAGS: PREL PGOV KS CH JA
SUBJECT: ROK-JAPAN-CHINA TO HOLD DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER
TRILATERAL ON MAY 19

Classified By: POL M/C Joseph Y. Yun. Reasons 1.4 (b/d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: On May 15, MOFAT's Asian and Pacific Affairs
Deputy Director-General, Cho Yong-chun, told POL M/C that
China will host a Deputy Foreign Minister trilateral with ROK
and Japanese counterparts on May 19 in Beijing. Cho said
this meeting, the first Foreign Ministry senior
officials-level dialogue, will discuss enhancing regional
political trust and multi-sector cooperation, exchange ideas
on regional and international issues, and prepare for a June
3 Foreign Minister trilateral that will be hosted by the ROKG
on Cheju Island. Cho said that the ROKG view is that it
welcomes trilateral exchanges so long as they do not detract
from other relationships, such as those with the United
States or ASEAN countries. While the agenda appears
relatively vague, it represents increasing efforts among
Seoul, Tokyo, and Beijing to promote dialogue. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) Cho Yong-chun, Deputy Director-General for Asian and
Pacific Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade,
told POL M/C that the ROKG had accepted the Chinese proposal
to hold trilateral Deputy Foreign Minister talks in Beijing
on May 19. The principals include ROK Deputy Minister of
Foreign Affairs Shim Yoon-joe, Japanese Deputy Minister
Yabunaka Mitoji, and Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Cui
Tiankai. DFM Shim planned to depart for Beijing on May 18
for a trilateral dinner in Beijing, attend trilateral talks
on May 19, and return to Seoul on May 20.

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ORIGIN IN TRILATERAL SUMMITS
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3. (C) Cho explained that South Korea, China, and Japan had
been holding trilateral presidential summits on the sidelines
of ASEAN Plus Three fairly regularly since 1998. The
trilateral summits began after the 1997 Asian financial
crisis when the capitals saw a need for more frequent
consultations. Their agendas were open-ended and touched on
issues of the moment.


4. (C) Last fall, China proposed senior-level Foreign
Ministry talks to complement trilateral summits and existing
trilateral Environment Ministry and Finance Ministry
discussions. The initial plan is to hold senior-level
Foreign Ministry talks annually, or more frequently if
needed, that, like the trilateral summits, would have a broad
agenda.

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GETTING TO KNOW YOU
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5. (C) Cho said that the objectives for the senior-level
Foreign Ministry talks are to (1) build political trust; (2)
discuss multi-sector cooperation; and (3) cover recent
issues. POL M/C asked whether the ROKG intended to raise
issues such as Search and Rescue (SAR) operations, especially
in the wake of the May 12 incident in which sixteen sailors
went missing following a South Korean freighter's collision
with a Chinese ship off China's east coast. Cho responded
that SAR was more of a bilateral issue and probably was too
specific for this round of talks. (NOTE: Cho said that as of
May 15, Seoul still had not made a conclusion about the cause
of the incident, had heard that the PRC had yet to recover
any of the missing sailors, and that the ROKG was planning on
sending a survey team to China to investigate. END NOTE.)
Likewise, Cho said that history and fishery issues were too
detailed to be discussed. Instead, the meeting, the first of
its kind, was an opportunity to get the Foreign Ministries
involved in trilateral discussions.


6. (C) One issue that might be raised, presuming all three
delegations were agreeable, was a general discussion on the
DPRK nuclear issue and the DPRK political system, Cho said.
The ROKG would not be opposed to a general discussion on the
U.S. role in the region or other topics, so long as the focus
was not to diminish relations with other countries, such as
the United States or ASEAN nations. In fact, Cho said, ASEAN
nations had expressed some concern over these increasing
"Plus Three" gatherings. Seoul had already assured them that
the ROKG did not regard these trilateral gatherings as having
any effect on its relationship with ASEAN nations. Cho did
not expect a trilateral communique to be issued from the
talks, but speculated that the PRC might issue a press
release.

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FOREIGN MINISTER TRILATERAL ON JUNE 3
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7. (C) Cho noted that the ROK will host a June 3 Foreign
Minister trilateral on Cheju Island. The agenda and
objective of this meeting were under consideration, but Cho
expected that the Deputy Foreign Ministers in Beijing would
help prepare the ground for the June 3 meeting.
VERSHBOW