ROK-JAPAN-PRC TRILATERAL BARELY MENTIONS DPRK

C O N F I D E N T I A L SEOUL 001740

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/07/2017
TAGS: PREL ECON ENRG KS JA CH
SUBJECT: ROK-JAPAN-PRC TRILATERAL BARELY MENTIONS DPRK

REF: A. TOKYO 2532

B. BEIJING 3770

Classified By: A/POL Brian D. McFeeters. Reasons 1.4 (b/d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: The June 3 trilateral foreign ministers'
meeting focused on efforts to increase trilateral economic
and civic cooperation, but glossed over security issues in
Northeast Asia (including North Korea) and other regions,
MOFAT contacts told poloffs on June 5. The host-ROK agenda
had planned on 90 minutes of talks on three issues
(trilateral cooperation, NEA and DPRK, and other regions such
as the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia),but the
delegations spent all but 10 minutes on the first issue, with
Japan emphasizing the importance of addressing climate change
and China explaining its position on carbon emissions. The
North Korea discussion consisted of each side noting the
importance of implementing the February 13 agreement and
resolving the Banco Delta Asia issue as soon as possible.
MOFAT Director-General for Nuclear Affairs Lim Sung-nam
opined that ROK FM Song Min-soon had good chemistry with his
Japanese counterpart, but Chinese FM Yang appeared overly
timid in his first meeting of the three ministers together.
END SUMMARY.

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NEA TRILATERAL FOR NORTHEAST ASIANS
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2. (C) On June 5, MOFAT's Northeast Asia Division I (Japan)
Deputy Director Lee Ho-shik, who was the ROK coordinator for
the trilateral, told poloffs that the ROK objective in
hosting the June 3 talks on Jeju Island between ROK Foreign
Minister Song Min-soon, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso
and PRC Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi was to promote
cooperation and to encourage a channel for tripartite
dialogue separate from the ASEAN PLUS Three summit framework.
Japan, Lee said, had expressed a willingness to hold a
similar NEA FM trilateral in 2008, with the tentative plan
that China would host in 2009.


3. (C) Lee explained that the last four ROK-Japan-PRC
foreign ministers' meetings came under the name the
Trilateral Summit Committee and prepared for the ASEAN Plus
Three summits (June 2004, on the sidelines of the Asia
Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) in Qingdao, China; November 2004,
on the sidelines of the ASEAN Plus Three; May 2005, on the
sidelines of Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Kyoto, Japan; and,
January 2007, on the sidelines of ASEAN Plus Three in Cebu,
Philippines). During the meeting in Cebu, ROK FM Song
proposed holding a different kind of trilateral format.
While the June 3 meeting preceded the June 4-5 ACD in Seoul,
the location and timing was separate enough that the ROKG
assessed it as "substantially meaningful." The three foreign
ministers would probably meet in November 2007 on the
sidelines of ASEAN Plus Three in Singapore, but it was not
clear whether this meeting would again be under the
Trilateral Summit Committee mantle.

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AGENDA
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4. (C) Lee reflected that June 3 agenda did not allow enough
time to cover a broad agenda in significant detail. The ROK
schedule had planned on thirty-minute discussions (with
simultaneous interpretation) on three topics: trilateral
cooperation; Northeast Asia including North Korea; and, other
regional and international issues in the Middle East, Africa,
and Central America. However, the delegations spent some 80
of the 90 allotted minutes on the first issue, with Japan
emphasizing the importance of addressing climate change and
China explaining its position on carbon emissions. Result
from the first agenda item included agreement to:

--accelerate negotiations on a Trilateral Investment
Agreement;

--assess and follow-up on the results of private sector
studies on a Korea-Japan-China Free Trade Agreement (Lee said
that an academic study is being led by the Korea Institute
for International Economic Policy; the National Institute for
Research Advancement (Japan),and their PRC counterpart. A
private business study is being led by the Federation of
Korean Industries, the Nippon Keidanren, and the China
Council for the Promotion of International Trade);

--strengthen energy security talks and develop trilateral
cooperation;

--endeavor to launch airport shuttles from the Seoul's Kimpo
to Tokyo's Haneda airports, as well as between Haneda and
Shanghai's Hongqiao airports;

--strengthen cooperation in environmental matters such as
Chinese sandstorms and marine refuse;

--promote clean and alternative energy measures;

--expand youth and sports exchanges;

--enhance people-to-people and journalist exchanges;

--resume exchanges among foreign affairs think tanks.

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PLATITUDES ON NORTH KOREA
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5. (C) After the first agenda item was completed, only 10
minutes remained to discuss North Korea and the remaining
topics, Lee said. Conversation was limited to each side
noting the importance of implementing the February 13
"Initial Actions" agreement and resolving the Banco Delta
Asia (BDA) issue as soon as possible. In a separate June 5
meeting, MOFAT Director-General for Nuclear Affairs and
Deputy Head of the ROK Six-Party Talks delegation Lim
Sung-nam confirmed to POL M/C that neither the trilateral
meeting nor the ROK's 30-minute bilateral meetings
(consecutive interpretation) with Japan and China went beyond
urging China to play a bigger role in resolve the BDA issue.
Chinese officials responded that Washington needed to provide
a good solution to the problem, Lim said.


6. (C) Following discussions on North Korea, there was only
time to note the importance of trilateral cooperation in the
Middle East, Africa and Central Asia, Lee said.

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ATMOSPHERICS
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7. (C) Deputy Director Lee said it was productive for the
three sides to assemble and concentrate on areas of
commonality, even for a short time, but efforts to formalize
a trilateral foreign ministers' meeting were still at the
early stage. Director-General Lim, who attended the
trilateral meeting plus the ROK's bilaterals with Japan and
China, expressed his impression that ROK FM Song and Japanese
FM Aso had good chemistry together, but that Chinese FM Yang
appeared overly timid and cautious. Perhaps this was because
it was his first time meeting his ROK and Japanese
counterparts in such a forum, but Yang would not even agree
on a venue or a date for the next trilateral FM meeting.
STANTON