CHINESE MFA VIEWS POSITIVELY GAMBARI VISIT TO BURMA

C O N F I D E N T I A L BEIJING 003319 SIPDIS RANGOON 679 AND PREVIOUS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/27/2028 TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM BM CH SUBJECT: CHINESE MFA VIEWS POSITIVELY GAMBARI VISIT TO BURMA Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Aubrey Carlson for reasons 1.4 (B/D). ¶1. (C) In an August 27 meeting also devoted to Georgia (septel),MFA International Organizations and Conferences Department UN Division Acting Director Sun Xiaobo told POLOFF (and accompanying UK and French Embassy PolOffs) that during the recent visit of UN Special Advisor Gambari the Burmese Government "had shown flexibility" and "made some efforts" to be accommodating. Though Gambari did not meet Burmese Senior General Than Shwe, he did meet Prime Minister Thein Sein and other senior officials. Though opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi refused to meet Gambari, Gambari succeeded in meeting other senior National League for Democracy (NLD) figures. Moreover, the Burmese Government offered responses on each of Gambari's five substantive proposals. In sum, China believes that during his visit Gambari "made some achievements." ¶2. (C) POLOFF said that the U.S. view of the Burmese regime's cooperation with the Gambari mission is quite different from China's. Though the United States supports Gambari's mission, the recent visit made little progress, which reflected the nearly total lack of cooperation from the Burmese Government. Sun replied that China believes that diplomatic efforts in Burma require "patience and persistence." China has consistently supported the "good offices" of the UN Secretary General (UNSYG) and his representatives. The UNSYG's work should be encouraged, and now is not the time to shift focus to some other mechanism, Sun said. In response to UK PolOff's query on what results China expects from the upcoming visit to Burma of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Sun offered no substantive reply. Sun noted that the Burmese Government said there is "no reason to refuse" the UNSYG visit, but any outcomes will need to be agreed through negotiation. RANDT