MEDIA REACTION: GUANTANAMO UYGHURS, NORTH KOREA, IRAN

UNCLAS BEIJING 001621

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: GUANTANAMO UYGHURS, NORTH KOREA, IRAN

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Editorial Quotes
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1. GUANTANAMO UYGHURS

"Eastern Turkistan prisoners want to open a restaurant in Bermuda"

The official Communist Party international news publication Global
Times (Huanqiu Shibao)(06/16): "Recently Western media organizations
have reported on every move of the four East Turkistan Prisoners
sent to Bermuda. It is reported that they want to open a restaurant
in Bermuda. Chinese experts have said that they are not persuaded
by their claim that these men are not terrorists. Only through
interrogation and evidence collection can their identities be
cleared. Guantanamo prison itself has been a political topic that
arouses great attention. Plus some western personnel worried that
these prisoners' human rights will be violated if they were sent
back to China. Therefore the western media has paid a special
attention to the issue. Other analysts also indicate that if they
are not terrorists, there is no reason for them to refuse to come
back to China. They have strenuously tried to conceal their crimes
and provoke the conflicts of the west and China just because they
intend to gain the west's sympathy and force the west not to give up
on the issue."


2. NORTH KOREA

"Washington must go through Beijing to get to Pyongyang"

The official Communist Party international news publication Global
Times (Huanqiu Shibao)(06/16): "Currently the key to the issue is in
the hands of the U.S. The core conflict of the North Korean issue is
its relationship with the U.S. Based on this situation, on the one
hand North Korea has a legitimate moral reason to obtain nuclear
strength and technology to ensure their nation's security. However,
on the other hand, North Korea is using the attention of the
international community on nuclear proliferation to obtain
diplomatic and other strategic goals. Against the backdrop of
current U.S.-North Korea relations, the role of North Korea in the
global strategic system is not important enough for the Obama
administration to change its North Korea policy. The U.S. aims at
promoting denuclearization on the Korean peninsula. To fulfill it,
the U.S. still needs to stick to the peaceful means and the Six
Party Talks. The Obama administration has lowered its position on
many issues recently, including the Iran issue, however it has no
olive branches for the North Korea issue. The U.S. believes that
North Korea is not a trustworthy negotiator, thus refuses to conduct
one-on-one agreement with North Korea under bilateral framework, but
under a multilateral framework with the help of the Six-Party Talks.
Therefore, Beijing is still the inevitable road for Washington to
get to Pyongyang."


3. IRAN

"How does the western media influence the situation in Iran?"

The official Communist Party international news publication Global
Times (Huanqiu Shibao)(06/16): "After the election in Iran, the
former Iranian Premier publically announced a victory and criticized
the current President as being a fraud. One of the most important
reasons this situation happened is that the west media has catalyzed
it. Using the press to influence the Middle East happens
frequently. Iran's former Premier Moussaoui is not really pro-west.
Picking him as a choice for the west is mostly due to a relatively
open leader will be easier for the west to influence Iran. The
western media's compliments towards Moussaoui have greatly
influenced Iranian young people's votes. In fact, only the support
of a large amount of residents living in impoverished regions in
Iran can make the candidate win the election. Western media has a
rich experience in building up a politician's image. During an
election, the press is the only means by which a candidate can
influence the public. Middle class Iranians can be influenced by
the western media through the internet. However, Iranian voters
living in interior mountain regions only get information through
radio and TV, which made Armadinejad's reelection successful."

PICCUTA