REQUEST FOR CLARIFICATION ON U.S.-CHINA BILATERAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L BEIJING 002374 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/17/2019 TAGS: PGOV MNUC PREL CH SUBJECT: REQUEST FOR CLARIFICATION ON U.S.-CHINA BILATERAL INTERAGENCY COUNTERTERRORISM SUBDIALOGUE IN MID-SEPTEMBER 2009 REF: A. STATE 082472 ¶B. BEIJING 001953 Classified By: Classified by Acting Political Section Chief Ben Moeling . Reason 1.4 (b/d). ¶1. (C) PolOff raised the Counterterrorism Subdialogue with Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) External Security Division Deputy Director Li Nan and First Secretary Wu Shifan on August 12. Li and Wu confirmed the proposed September 14 and 15 meeting dates for the U.S.-China Bilateral Interagency Counterterrorism Subdialogue and agreed to provide a list of proposed participants, including full names, dates of birth and passport numbers as soon as possible, preferably before August 21. ¶2. (C) Li and Wu said the MFA Director General for External Security Wang min would lead the Chinese interagency delegation. They also said that they understood this would be the seventh (vice eighth as noted in reftel A) bilateral counterterrorism dialogue and requested clarification on this point. They asked for clarification on designating the meetings as a subdialogue instead of a dialogue. ¶3. (C) Li and Wu delivered a tentative agenda as follows: Opening Remarks ¶I. U.S.-China Counterterrorism Consultation and Cooperation --Review and Outlook II. International and Regional Counterterrorism Situation III. Counterterrorism Situations, Measures and Concerns of China and the U.S. IV. Counterterrorism Cooperation between China and the U.S. in Specific Areas Concluding Remarks ¶4. (C) Li and Wu noted that their tentative agenda was intentionally vague and that reftel A agenda items could be incorporated in the PRC tentative agenda framework. They asked for further information on the exact nature of the proposed U.S. agenda item on biological and nuclear terrorism, as well as security for foreign investment and development. ¶5. (C) Li and Wu confirmed that the Ministry of State Security, Ministry of Public Security, People's Liberation Army, and People's Bank of China planned to send representatives to the meetings, and told PolOff that the Chinese government hoped the meetings would focus on concrete steps for bilateral cooperation on counterterrorism issues. GOLDBERG