Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08BEIJING1023
2008-03-18 11:36:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Beijing
Cable title:  

BEIJING-BASED G-5 CHIEFS OF MISSION ON JAPAN,

Tags:  PREL PGOV KOLY SENV SOCI PTER AF CM CH FR 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO7892
OO RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHBJ #1023/01 0781136
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 181136Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5910
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN PRIORITY 1672
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 0379
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 3333
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 4298
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 1876
RUEHYD/AMEMBASSY YAOUNDE PRIORITY 0029
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BEIJING 001023 

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/18/2028
TAGS: PREL PGOV KOLY SENV SOCI PTER AF CM CH FR
GM, JA, UK
SUBJECT: BEIJING-BASED G-5 CHIEFS OF MISSION ON JAPAN,
GOVERNMENT REORG, GERMANY, AIRPORT SECURITY


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

Summary
-------

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BEIJING 001023

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/18/2028
TAGS: PREL PGOV KOLY SENV SOCI PTER AF CM CH FR
GM, JA, UK
SUBJECT: BEIJING-BASED G-5 CHIEFS OF MISSION ON JAPAN,
GOVERNMENT REORG, GERMANY, AIRPORT SECURITY


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

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


1. (C) At the March 14 bi-weekly Beijing-based G-5 Chiefs of
Mission gathering, Japanese DCM Kunio Umeda said that PRC
President Hu Jintao's trip to Japan is scheduled for May 6,
but the poisoned dumpling issue could make the visit
"difficult." Participants were unimpressed by the National
People's Congress's recently announced restructuring of the
government. UK DCM Barbara Woodward said that if the
proposal should fail, blame will probably fall on newly
selected Politburo Standing Committee member Li Keqiang.
Participants said that ongoing government changes make
scheduling visits difficult. German DCM Aristide Fenster
described the improvement of Germany's relationship with the
PRC since Chancellor Merkel's September 2007 meetng with the
Dalai Lama. End Summary.

Partcipants
--------------


2. (C) The Ambassadr hosted French Ambassador Herve Ladsous,
Geran DCM Aristide Fenster, Japanese DCM Kunio Umeda and
British DCM Barbara Woodward March 14 for the bi-weekly G-5
gathering of Beijing-based Chiefs of Mission.

Hu Jintao Japan Trip Set, Dumplings May Poison It
-------------- --------------


3. (C) Japanese DCM Umeda reported that PRC President Hu
Jintao will travel to Japan on May 6 and stay for four
nights. FM Yang Jiechi is scheduled to be in Japan April
14-17 to prepare for the visit. Umeda said that the issue of
the poisoned dumplings is "overshadowing" the two countries'
bilateral relations. PM Fukuda has instructed Japanese
authorities to cooperate with China and is concerned that
public backlash over the dumpling issue in Japan could make

Hu's visit difficult. Umeda reported that he has been to the
Ministry of Public Security twice to discuss the case, but
that there has been no substantial progress. China is
sending investigators to Japan, which will be followed by a
trip by Japan's investigators to China. Umeda commented that
it "looks like China wants to find a way out."

Government Reorganization at the NPC
--------------


4. (C) Participants said they were unimpressed by the planned
government restructuring. Japanese DCM Umeda said there is
history to consider and the personalities of those in charge
will greatly influence what will be a very gradual process.
UK DCM Woodward speculated that if the reorganization turns
out to be insignificant, recently promoted Politburo Standing
Committee member Li Keqiang, who heads the reorganization
effort, would fail his first test. Such a failure would
indicate that he does not have the power necessary to
streamline the government and would hurt him politically.

German High-Level Visits Reflect Thaw
--------------


5. (C) German DCM Fenster reported several upcoming
high-level visits, which reflect an improvement in relations
since the downturn following German Chancellor Merkel's
meeting with the Dalai Lama in September 2007. Minister of
the Interior Wolfgang Schaeuble will visit April 28-29 and
will also be in Beijing for the Olympics, along with Federal
President Horst Kohler. Chancellor Merkel has not decided
whether she will attend the Games, but will attend the
Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Beijing in October. Vice
Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui will travel to Berlin April 14
for the Sino-German Strategic Dialogue. Fenster said that
Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier will visit China
June 12-14 and Minister for Economics and Technology Michael
Glos will travel to Beijing and Shanghai April 13-18. The
two sides are scheduled to hold a human rights dialogue in
Munich on March 22. Finally, Germany will launch a
German-Chinese cooperative program to provide vocational
training in Chongqing. Chongqing Party Secretary Bo Xilai is
reportedly happy about the training because it aids
Chongqing's rural population.


BEIJING 00001023 002 OF 003


French Polls Complicate Visits
--------------


6. (C) French Ambassador Herve Ladsous said local elections
in France are complicating plans for upcoming visits because
there may be personnel "adjustments" after the vote. For the
time being, Minister of Culture Christine Albanel is still
planning to visit April 3, and Secretary of State for
European Affairs Jean-Pierre Jouyet will visit April 18-19.
Secretary General for Defense M. Francis Delon is expected to

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discuss strategic planning with the PRC Ministries of Defense
and Foreign Affairs during a visit in early April. Former
French Presidents ValeryQiscard d'Estaing and Jacques Chirac
and former Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin will visit
China the week of April 21. Chirac is expected to give a
speech on global issues and the preservation of cultural
identity. Ambassador Ladsous said that Chirac's first major
speech since leaving office will be "important." French
Minister of Finance Christine Lagarde will come to China for
an economic dialogue in May, and in June Diplomatic Advisor
to the President Jean-David Levitte will arrive for a
strategic dialogue, Ladsous said. The dialogue's working
groups are expected to cover the UN, Africa, Latin America,
strategic affairs and terrorism.

UK Visits
--------------


7. (C) Former PM Tony Blair will travel to China to discuss
climate change with Premier Wen Jiabao; however, it is still
unclear if the National Development and Reform Commission
will take the lead or if responsibility will pass to the new
Environmental Protection Ministry. DCM Woodward believes
that the PRC counterpart for Chancellor of the Exchequer
Alistair Darling's April Economic Dialogue will be
newly-selected Vice Premier Wang Qishan, but that is not yet
confirmed. The dialogue is expected to cover trade,
development and financial services, among other topics. UK
Foreign Minister Miliband was "so taken with China" after his
trip that he is encouraging more high-level UK officials to
visit, including a planned trip of the UK Ambassadors to
other P-5 nations at the end of April, Woodward said.

Counterterrorism and Kerosene
--------------


8. (C) The participants lamented the lack of information on a
recent alleged terrorist incident in Gansu Province in which
a young ethnic Uighur woman is reported to have tried to
cause an explosion on an airplane with a bottle of kerosene.
UK DCM Woodward said that on March 13 a Sichuanese
entertainer hired by a British company arrived at London's
Heathrow airport from China. Before leaving the airport he
asked his hosts if they would like to see his flame throwing
act, at which point he produced a bottle of kerosene from his
suitcase. The story has been a caused renewed concern for
transportation authorities in the UK.

Health Issues
--------------


9. (C) Japanese DCM Umeda said that he understood that (with
the exception of one case) the PRC Ministry of Health does
not check for avian influenza infection until after a patient
has died. (NOTE: Post's CDC Resident Advisor reports that
due to financial concerns and the unspecific early symptoms,
patients in China are not usually tested for avian influenza
until the symptoms are quite severe and that the patient
often does not survive the lengthy testing and confirmation
process, thus leading to the possible conclusion that a
diagnosis prior to death is rare.) A doctor at the
HKU-Pasteur Research Center in Hong Kong reported to
Ambassador Ladsous that he does not believe that the current
outbreak in Hong Kong of what he called the "Brisbane" flu is
dangerous.

Olympics Hotline
--------------


10. (C) UK DCM Woodward mentioned that during recent consular
discussions with China on a "hotline" for the Olympics, it
became apparent that the "hotline" is currently nothing more
than "one man on a cell phone."


BEIJING 00001023 003 OF 003


Diplomatic Moves
--------------


11. (C) German DCM Fenster announced that he has been
nominated to be Germany's new ambassador to Afghanistan.
Cameroon's ambassador to the PRC, Eleih-elle Etian, who has
served at his post for well over twenty years, will be
leaving soon and will be replaced by a former Minister of
External Relations.
RANDT