BEIJING-BASED G-5 CHIEFS OF MISSION ON KIM

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BEIJING 003591

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/17/2028
TAGS: PREL PGOV KOLY PHUM CH FR JA GM UK KN KS ZI
SUBJECT: BEIJING-BASED G-5 CHIEFS OF MISSION ON KIM
JONG-IL, OLYMPICS BILATERAL MEETINGS, FUKUDA'S SUCCESSOR

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

Summary
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1. (C) At the regular meeting of G-5 ambassadors in Beijing
September 12, German DCM Hans Carl Von Werthern said that it
is possible German doctors are in Pyongyang to assist Kim
Jong-il. Japanese Ambassador Miyamoto reported that PM
Fukuda raised the issue of poisoned dumplings in his recent
bilateral meeting with Hu Jintao, noting that the dumplings
issue is of greater importance to most Japanese citizens than
the East China Sea territorial dispute. Miyamoto said that
China's leadership fears that Fukuda is the last "truly
attractive" Japanese leader, and that, despite public
optimism, Chinese leaders are worried about his successor.
French President Sarkozy's Olympics visit was a success that
helped "turn the page" in Sino-French relations, French
Ambassador Ladsous reported. Sarkozy will return to Beijing
for the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit in October, as will
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and UK Foreign Minister David
Miliband. UK Ambassador Ehrman said that during his recent
visit British Prime Minister Gordon Brown discussed with
Chinese leaders the Millennium Development Goals, Sudan, and
financial services reform. End Summary.

Participants
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2. (C) UK Ambassador William Ehrman hosted French Ambassador
Herve Ladsous, Japanese Ambassador Yuji Miyamoto, German DCM
Hans Carl Von Werthern and the Ambassador September 12 for
the regular G-5 gathering of Beijing-based Chiefs of Mission.

Kim Jong-il's Health
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3. (C) A member of the South Korean Intelligence Service
recently told a German parliamentarian that North Korean
leader Kim Jong-il suffered a stroke and underwent surgery,
according to German DCM Von Werthern. Kim is expected to
survive, and the South Korean Government does not expect "any
major changes" in the North. Regarding rumors that teams of
French and German doctors have flown to Pyongyang to assist
the ailing Kim Jong-il, French Ambassador Herve Ladsous said
that the French Government does not keep track of private
citizens and thus cannot confirm or deny the reports. Von
Werthern said that while he is not sure if these specific
rumors are true, a German hospital named
Charite-Universitaetsmedizin has trained North Korean doctors
and previously sent a heart surgeon to examine Kim Jong-il in
Pyongyang. Kim's brother-in-law, Jang Song Thaek, previously
wanted to go to Charite for treatment, but was denied a
German visa.

Fukuda's Olympics Meetings
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4. (C) At the start of his August 8 bilateral meeting with
Chinese President Hu Jintao in Beijing, Japanese Prime
Minister Fukuda said he hoped to have a "cordial and pleasant
meeting," but "issues had overtaken him," requiring that he
raise substantive issues, Japanese Ambassador Miyamoto said.
Fukuda began with the issue of poisoned dumplings exported by
China to Japan, a story recently revived by the Japanese
press. The dumplings issue is of greater importance to
ordinary Japanese citizens than the disputed boundary in the
East China Sea, Ambassador Miyamoto said. A recent joint
Sino-Japanese poll indicated that since the poisoned
dumplings incident, there has been a 15-percent increase in
the number of Japanese people with a negative view of China,
bringing the total to 70 percent. Ambassador Miyamoto
expressed frustration that despite the Japanese Embassy's
urging, the Chinese Government has never appeared to take the
matter seriously, responding to concerns only by noting that
"no one died" from the dumplings.


5. (C) PM Fukuda raised the topic of the Dalai Lama, urging
further talks between China and the Dalai Lama's
representatives and asking the Chinese Government to inform
Japan of the outcome. Fukuda raised the East China Sea, but
Hu responded that further discussions at this time would lead
to a negative public reaction. Fukuda raised abductees and

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the Six-Party Talks. For his part, Hu told Fukuda the
Chinese economy has no serious problems and, due to the
efforts of Chinese officials, will survive any challenges and
continue to grow and prosper. Ambassador Miyamoto noted that
this optimism differs from the opinions of Chinese
economists. Chinese officials thanked Fukuda for attending
the Olympics Opening Ceremony, noting Fukuda's schedule was
tight because the ceremony fell between the memorial
ceremonies in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Unexpectedly, China's
expression of appreciation was made formally and in public,
with the press attending.

Fukuda's Successor
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6. (C) According to Ambassador Miyamoto, Chinese officials
believe that Fukuda will be the last Japanese leader who will
be "truly attractive to the Chinese." They describe Fukuda
as old-fashioned, polite, indirect and caring, traits that
earned him high marks from his Chinese interlocutors. While
the official line from both the Chinese and Japanese
Governments is that a new Prime Minister will not alter the
current course of Sino-Japanese relations, in truth the
Chinese are nervous, Miyamoto said. However, Japanese
politicians have learned a "hard lesson" from former Prime
Minister Junichiro Koizumi's repeated visits to the Yasukuni
Shrine and are unlikely to repeat this course.

Sarkozy's Olympics Meetings
--------------


7. (C) French President Nicolas Sarkozy's August 8 visit was
a success, Ambassador Ladsous reported. Sarkozy met
President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, and had lunch
with State Councilor Dai Bingguo. Sarkozy raised the topics
of Iran, Darfur and North Korea, and encouraged greater
Chinese participation in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The press
was present during the initial part of the bilateral meeting
with Hu Jintao, which Hu reportedly said showed that "the
page is turned, and we are looking to the future." Shortly
thereafter, French electric company EDF was able to complete
the signing of a large but long-delayed contract in Guangdong
Province.

High-Level Visitors to and from France
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8. (C) Premier Wen Jiabao will attend the next EU-China
Summit December 1 in Lyon, France, and the French Government
is encouraging him to stay for bilateral meetings. China has
agreed to restart its strategic dialogue with France, and a
small, one-and-a-half-day informal session between French
Diplomatic Advisor Jean-David Levitte and State Councilor Dai
Bingguo is planned for October 4-5. While Sarkozy will
return to China for the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) summit
October 24-25, it is unclear if Foreign Minister Bernard
Kouchner will attend. Secretary of State for Trade
Anne-Marie Idrac will attend, however, and will stay to
inaugurate the new French Consulate General in Shenyang. She
will also attend the September 25-27 World Economic Forum
session in Tianjin and attend the inauguration of a large new
Airbus assembly line there. Minister of Commerce Chen Deming
will attend a Joint Economic Commission Meeting in Paris.

Germany: Low Profile at Olympics
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9. (C) Germany had no Federal Government representative at
the Olympics. The German press was staunchly opposed to
official representation at the Olympics, and even those
German politicians who were in Beijing at the time did not
attend the Opening Ceremony for fear of negative publicity,
German DCM Von Werthern said. The German business community,
however, expressed displeasure over German leaders' failure
to attend, noting that a lack of representation at the
Olympics may hurt German business interests. German
President Horst Koehler, whose daughter is blind, attended
the Paralympics Opening Ceremony and held a bilateral meeting
with President Hu Jintao. Von Werthern said that the meeting
was noteworthy because Hu did not raise either Tibet or
Taiwan. Asked for the definition of "harmonious society and
scientific development," Hu responded that the policies are
an attempt to put the individual at the center of the Party's

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policies and to create "the missing link" between society and
economics to allow the Party to meet the needs of individual
citizens. Von Werthern said German Chancellor Angela Merkel
will attend the ASEM Summit in October and has asked for
bilateral meetings. The Chinese Government is encouraging
Merkel to travel to Sichuan after the ASEM Summit for an EU
Chamber of Commerce conference on Sichuan Province
development. The Sino-German strategic dialogue will take
place October 9 in Berlin. AFM Wu Hongbo will attend instead
of the previous interlocutor, VFM Zhang Yesui.

UK PM Meeting with Hu Jintao
--------------


10. (C) In his August 22 meeting with President Hu Jintao, UK
Prime Minister Gordon Brown asked about the Millennium
Development Goals, inquiring whether China's 2006 promises of
development aid to other nations had been met, how much debt
relief was given in 2007, and how much new aid was proposed,
UK Ambassador Ehrman reported. Hu responded that the Chinese
Government plans to announce on September 25 in New York a
new assistance and debt relief package for 30 countries, the
majority of which are in Africa. Hu asked for Britain's help
in Sudan, but Brown replied that the Sudanese Government had
previously rejected a proposed joint British-Chinese aid
project. Brown raised human rights and Tibet, and stressed
the importance of the British-Chinese strategic economic
dialogue. In his bilateral meeting with Premier Wen Jiabao,
Brown "made some progress" with respect to the financial
service sector relating to capital markets, derivatives and
bond markets, Ehrman said. Wen expressed regret that the
Doha Round broke down, and said that China will do all it can
to help resuscitate it.

Various British Meetings
--------------


11. (C) In a recent meeting of the "Politicians of the
Future" Forum, in which rising British politicians meet their
young Chinese counterparts, a group of British politicians
met Communist Youth League First Secretary Lu Hao, whom they
described as "confident, outspoken and frank," Ambassador
Ehrman reported. When asked for the definition of
"harmonious society" and "scientific development," Lu said he
was unable to answer, as he is "not yet the General Secretary
of the Communist Party." PM Brown will not attend the ASEM
summit. Foreign Minister David Miliband and Trade Minister
Digby Jones will attend, and Jones will also participate in
an economic and trade dialogue and the September 25-27 World
Economic Forum session in Tianjin. Central Military
Commission Vice Chairman Guo Boxiong will visit the UK in the
near future. Brown will host an energy summit in London in
late September, which Vice President Xi Jinping may attend.
The UK worries that following the Olympics, the Chinese
Government will reinstitute rules that roll back increased
freedom of the press (for foreign journalists),Ehrman said.
Former Minister of Information Cai Wu, now the Minister of
Culture, said the new freedoms will continue after the
Olympics, an assertion the British Embassy doubts. Ehrman
said Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe wanted to attend the
Olympics, but did not after China indicated that Mugabe's
participation would be "inconvenient."
RANDT