INDIAN READOUT ON CHINESE VICE FM HE YAFEI'S NEW

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 000033 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/01/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PK CH IN SUBJECT: INDIAN READOUT ON CHINESE VICE FM HE YAFEI'S NEW DELHI VISIT Classified By: PolCouns Ted Osius for Reasons 1.4 (B,D) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Chinese Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei visited New Delhi on January 5, where he met with FM Menon, FS Mukherjee, and NSA Narayanan as well as Deputy Chair of the Planning Commission Ahluwalia. Press coverage of the visit focused almost exclusively on discussion of the India-Pakistan situation, but the MEA indicated that the visit also covered a wide range of bilateral issues. The Chinese Embassy said that India "hesitated" on He's visit, leading to the postponement until He returned to China after his earlier trip to Islamabad. The Chinese Embassy stressed that China wants to see peaceful dialog between South Asian neighbors, but indicated that China can't help if India remains unwilling to share information. Professor Alka Acharya of Jawahalrlal Nehru University's Centre for East Asian Studies feels that He's visit shows that China would like to be seen as an important player in key regional issues such as Indo-Pak. She suggested that India should harness China's ambition and creatively use it as a means of communicating with Pakistan. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) MEA Director (East Asia) Sanjay Panda briefed PolOff on Chinese Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei's visit, emphasizing that, despite the press's exclusive focus on the India-Pakistan issue, comprehensive delegation-level talks took place during the visit. He discussed the gamut of bilateral issues with his Indian counterparts, and reviewed India and China's bilateral plans for 2009. He also met with the Indian Deputy Chair of the Planning Commission of India, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, to discuss the upcoming G-20 summit meeting. Panda said that the GOI delivered to He Yafei the same information about the Mumbai attacks that it delivered to Pakistan and other concerned countries. Panda told PolOff that the visit was "not last-minute," but had been planned since December 25th. ¶3. (C) Political Section Head Tan Qingsheng of the PRC Embassy in New Delhi told Poloff that He,s visit was scheduled to follow his visit to Islamabad, but India had hesitations and postponed the visit at late notice, probably in order to disconnect the India leg of the trip from Islamabad. Tan characterized the visit as "very successful," confirming that He and his Indian counterparts discussed topics including bilateral issues and the upcoming G-20 conference as well as "the situation in South Asia." Tan said that He,s visit did not represent any sort of turning point in China,s desired role in South Asia, or with India and Pakistan specifically, but said that it was &important.8 Tan stressed that China does not want to act as a "mediator," but does want to support peaceful dialog between India and Pakistan and is worried about the situation between the two neighbors. Tan, who participated in He Yafei,s New Delhi meetings, smiled and shook his head as he said that India clearly wants China to pressure Pakistan, but is &very unwilling to talk to China about its relationship with Pakistan.8 ¶4. (C) Dr. Alka Acharya of the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for East Asian Studies told PolOff that He Yafei's visit is an indication that China wants to be seen as an important player in South Asia, and an effort by China to convey its desire to promote dialog between India and Pakistan. &China does not want a break-down with India over Pakistan,8 she said. She pointed out that China has had a special relationship with Pakistan for a long time, and cannot throw that away by publicly denouncing Pakistan. However, she added, "this does not automatically mean that China is encouraging Pakistan to be in denial about its terrorism problem." Acharya - who accompanied Prime Minister Singh on his 2008 trip to Beijing - said her sources tell her that China has privately told Pakistan that the terrorism based there is unacceptable. In addition, Acharya cited the growing, internal problems with terror China is facing in some of its provinces as a good reason why China would not condone terrorism in Pakistan. She emphasized that civilian Pakistan, like India and China, wants to find a solution to the terrorism problem, and India needs to recognize that. Acharya suggested that India should find ways to "synergize" the Chinese and Pakistani concerns in order to help and strengthen the civilian government of Pakistan. India, she said, should creatively use China as a means of communicating with Pakistan. &India can,t let its guard down, but we must move on toward a solution, and use NEW DELHI 00000033 002 OF 002 Chinese diplomacy creatively, to our favor,8 she said. She added that, while it is unrealistic to ask China to denounce Pakistan, the Chinese appreciate that India recently shared some of its Mumbai evidence with them. MULFORD