PRC/SUDAN: AFM LIU JIEYI TELLS S/E GRATION CHINA

C O N F I D E N T I A L BEIJING 001414 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/27/2029 TAGS: PREL PGOV PREF EAID PHUM SOCI KDEM CH SU SUBJECT: PRC/SUDAN: AFM LIU JIEYI TELLS S/E GRATION CHINA SUPPORTS CPA, PUTS FOCUS ON THE POLITICAL TRACK Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Aubrey Carlson. Reasons 1. 4 (b/d). ¶1. (C) The United States and China had common interests in Sudan, Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Jieyi told Special Envoy for Sudan General Scott Gration May 25. AFM Liu stressed that China believed the political and peace-keeping tracks were both important and underscored the need to persuade parties that were not signatories to the CPA to make efforts to create progress on both tracks. On the North-South issue, Liu asserted that China supported full implementation of the CPA, adding that the agreement was an important accomplishment given the two decades of civil war that it sought to end. He claimed that implementation of the CPA was "making progress" but that "loose ends" remained. Liu said that China wanted to coordinate with the international community to ensure that the elections and referendum did not complicate the implementation of the CPA. Actions by UN forces in Sudan to help the situation, he cautioned, must be acceptable to the government in Khartoum. AFM Liu noted that China had provided almost US$3 million to Southern Sudan in assistance. ¶2. (C) After outlining U.S. concerns over stability in Sudan in light of scheduled elections and a referendum on the status of Southern Sudan, SE Gration told AFM Liu that the United States and China had overlapping objectives in Sudan and that peace and security in Sudan were in China's interest. Gration pressed China to increase consultations with the United States on Sudan and work toward formalizing channels of communication, including elevating the Sudan issue to a higher level of discussion between our governments. He invited China to send a delegation to the scheduled U.S.-hosted talks on renewing international support for the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in Washington DC on June 23. He indicated that, if progress could be made on a cease-fire and a path to reconciliation defined, the UN's role would increase. The UN had already requested additional support to enhance its surveillance capability and a joint monitoring team that included local representation, Gration noted. He underscored the importance of improving communication and coordination among UNAMID, MINURCAT and UNMIS, as well as building capacity among governing institutions in Southern Sudan regardless of the results of the referendum. He stressed the need for a long-term commitment from the international community to extend beyond 2011 to ensure stability, adding that instability would constrain the growth of Sudan's economy, including the energy sector. PICCUTA