PRC/INDIA: CORDIAL HIGH-LEVEL TALKS VEIL

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 003005

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/30/2019
TAGS: PGOV ECON EINV ETRD PREL CH IN
SUBJECT: PRC/INDIA: CORDIAL HIGH-LEVEL TALKS VEIL
INTRACTABLE BORDER DISPUTE

REF: BEIJING 01989

BEIJING 00003005 001.2 OF 002


Classified By: Acting Economic Minister Counselor Robert Forden. Reaso
ns 1.4 (b, d)


1. (C) Summary: Contrary to recent media reports, the
October 24 meeting between Indian PM Manmohan Singh and PRC
Premier Wen Jiabao on the sidelines of the East Asian Summit
were cordial and addressed the ongoing bilateral border
dispute without acrimony, according to an Indian diplomat who
attended the talks. In a separate meeting, PM Singh affirmed
to Premier Wen that the Dalai Lama was welcome to visit
Arunachal Pradesh. An MFA official reported that the two
leaders underscored that India and China did not regard each
other as a threat. PRC scholars assessed that growing
nationalism in China and India complicated the two
governments' efforts to resolve their long-standing border
dispute. The scholars suggested that a U.S.-China-India
trilateral dialogue was possible but should start as a Track
2 dialogue among scholars from the three countries, with the
China-India-Russia trilateral as a possible model. They
predicted that bilateral investment would continue to grow,
as would Chinese complaints about Indian restrictions on
Chinese investment in certain sectors.

Cordial Wen-Singh Meeting on Margins of East Asia Summit
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2. (C) An Indian Embassy official (strictly protect) told
PolOff October 29 that, contrary to negative media reports,
the October 24 meeting between Premier Wen Jiabao and PM
Manmohan Singh on the margins of the East Asia Summit in Hua
Hin, Thailand, had been cordial and productive. (Our contact
served as Singh's Chinese-language interpreter at the
meeting.) Having met six times, Wen and Singh have a
friendly rapport, according to the Indian diplomat. The
meeting, originally scheduled for 45 minutes, went an extra
30 minutes and covered a broad range of bilateral and
multi-lateral topics. MFA Asian Affairs Department, India,
Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bhutan Division Director Wang Jingfeng
told PolOff on October 30 that the two leaders confirmed at
the meeting that China and India did not regard each other as
a threat, but rather sought good-neighborly relations and
welcomed each other's progress.

Border Talks Discussed With No Tension
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3. (C) Our Indian Embassy contact reported that Singh and Wen
had repeated set-piece statements on solving the border issue
through consultation and dialogue, adding that discussion
took place without acrimony or tension. Both sides expressed
satisfaction with recent high-level visits and exchanges,
though no leadership-level visits were planned for the near
future. In addition, India was pleased with implementation
of an MOU on water resource use whereby Chinese authorities
regularly consult with Indian counterparts on upstream
flooding conditions of rivers in China that flow into India.
While the two leaders affirmed a desire to cooperate on
multi-lateral issues, our Indian Embassy contact made no
mention of UNSC reform issues.
The two sides also agreed that the joint Sino-Indian military
exercises had had a beneficial effect on the mil-mil
relationship and should continue, according to our contact.

Singh Affirms Dalai Lama Welcome in Arunachal Pradesh
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4. (C) In a separate meeting, Singh had told Wen that the
Dalai Lama was welcome to visit Arunachal Pradesh, but that
India would not allow the Dalai Lama or Tibetans in India to
undertake political activities. Our Indian Embassy contact
stated he did not know how Wen responded.

Nationalism and Public Opinion Complicate Border Issue
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5. (C) China and India had reached a basic consensus to avoid
confrontation but faced the dilemma of nationalistic
populations and press that played up the border dispute,
according to Ministry of State Security-affiliated China
Institutes of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR)

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South Asia scholar Li Li. She said that resolving the border
issue would take many more years of negotiations because
public opinion made it difficult for either government to
make concessions. CICIR scholar Ma Jiali compared China's
long-standing border disputes with India and Russia, arguing
that the latter had been eventually resolved because
generally friendly relations between Russia and China allowed
both governments to make concessions. Ma predicted that
high-level visits between Chinese and Indian leaders would
keep the relationship on track and prevent border tensions
from escalating.

U.S.-China-India Trilat?
--------------


6. (C) A U.S.-China-India trilateral dialogue was possible
but should start as a Track 2 dialogue among scholars from
the three countries, CICIR scholar Ma Jiali suggested in an
October 22 meeting. He pointed to the China-India-Russia
trilateral as a possible model, noting that he and a small
group of scholars from the three countries started a Track 2
dialogue in 2001 and passed on suggestions to their
respective governments after their annual meetings. The
dialogue paved the way for an annual trilateral dialogue
among foreign ministers, the most recent of which was held in
Bangalore October 26-27. Ma said a dialogue among the United
States, China and India could cover a wide range of issues,
including counterterrorism, regional stability, energy and
sea lane security.

Complaints about Indian Investment Restrictions
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7. (C) Ma complained that some Indian ministries opposed
Chinese investment in certain sectors based on "so-called"
security concerns, citing the Indian Internal Affairs
Ministry,s rejection of a Shenzhen-based company's bid to
supply boarding bridges to Indian airports on national
security grounds. In spite of Indian "sensitivities" about
Chinese investment, Ma predicted that bilateral investment
would continue to grow as Chinese and Indian companies looked
for opportunities to expand into each other's enormous
markets.
HUNTSMAN