MEDIA REACTION: H1-N1, OBAMA'S 100 DAY, U.S.-CHINA

UNCLAS BEIJING 001147

DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/CM, EAP/PA, EAP/PD, C
HQ PACOM FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ADVISOR (J007)
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OPRC KMDR CH PREL ECON

SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: H1-N1, OBAMA'S 100 DAY, U.S.-CHINA
RELATIONS

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Editorial Quotes
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1. H1-N1

"H1-N1 approaches East Asia"

The official Communist Party international news publication Global
Times (Huanqiu Shibao)(04/29): "The WHO has upgraded the emergency
status of the H1-N1 virus to level 4, this adjustment has created
tension in many countries. The U.S. has published its plan to deal
with the possibility that 2 million people could die from H1-N1.
South Korea - whose people frequently visit China - confirmed a
suspect case in their country yesterday. China has begun emergency
planning for the possibility that the country could become infected
with the virus. A lot of people travel within the country of China.
Because of this, there is a great possibility that China may be
infected by H1-N1. China's experience with SARS prevention will help
stop H1-N1 from spreading. The virus may become weaker after the
infection. In the U.S., there no deaths have been reported yet. It
shows the virus has lightened. Thus it may not be as serious as in
Mexico even if it spreads to China."


2. OBAMA'S FIRST 100 DAYS

"A comment on Obama's 100 days of diplomacy"

The official Communist Party international news publication Global
Times (Huanqiu Shibao)(04/29): "For the past 100 days, the Obama
administration practiced smart-power diplomacy. The U.S. has changed
its stance on many issues. It started to listen to its allies'
opinions, adopt a mild policy in dealing with China and Russia, and
the Islamic countries as well, and especially tried to offer an
olive branch to Iran, Syria and Cuba. The U.S. is focused on
rebuilding its soft power and overseas image. The U.S. aims at
exchanging other countries' financial support and military support
by giving respect to them. The problem is whether or not it can
work. On the recent NATO summit and EU summit, America's goal of
getting NATO and the EU to take on more responsibilities has failed.
Domestic conservatives in the U.S. have criticized Obama's policy
for gaining insufficient returns. Without a payoff, criticism will
increase. It is still early to talk about the impact of the U.S.
diplomatic changes."


3. U.S.-CHINA RELATIONS

"U.S. scholars discuss dealing with China in South East Asian
policy"

The official Communist Party international news publication Global
Times (Huanqiu Shibao)(04/29): "Recently China provided 10 billion
U.S. dollars in infrastructure funds and 1.5 billion worth of credit
to ASEAN countries. This move has aroused the U.S. concern. American
scholars indicate that China's increasing influence in South East
Asia will negatively influence America's strategic influence in the
region. Chinese experts also believe that because of China's
economic growth, China's exchanges with South East Asian countries
have become frequent and will further increase in the future. The
U.S. always compares the influence of the U.S. and China in the
region, afraid that U.S. strength is weakening. However, such doubts
will not influence normal U.S.-China communications. Such voices
will not be the mainstream opinion of the United States either.
China should promote its policy and ask the U.S. to accept a more
powerful China."

PICCUTA