TAIPEI MAYOR SUPPORTIVE OF NEW OFFICE COMPOUND

C O N F I D E N T I A L TAIPEI 001111

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/EX, OBO

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/11/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL ABLD CH TW
SUBJECT: TAIPEI MAYOR SUPPORTIVE OF NEW OFFICE COMPOUND
EXPANSION AND SAYS LOCAL ECONOMY ON THE REBOUND

Classified By: The Director for reasons 1.4 (b/d)


1. (C) Summary: The Taipei municipal government would ensure
that land adjacent to the New Office Compound (NOC) site
would be available should AIT want to expand the project,
Mayor Hau Lung-bin told the Director at their introductory
meeting on September 11. Hau said he already had stopped
plans to build a local school on that property to "keep the
door open" for expansion. The city economy, powered by
tourism from mainland China and several major infrastructure
projects, had a bright future, Hau predicted. The Mayor
played down Taiwan media concerns over the H1N1 virus. He
also expressed skepticism that the opposition Democratic
Progressive Party would make major gains in December local
elections. End summary.

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MAYOR SUPPORTIVE OF NOC EXPANSION
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2. (C) Director Stanton reminded Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin
of AIT's longstanding interest in possibly acquiring land
adjacent to the NOC in suburban Taipei for a number of
potential future uses, including AIT residences or a language
school. Hau said he already had blocked a local school
project on the site to "keep the door open" for AIT expansion
plans. While the city could not sell the land to AIT, a
property exchange with the Taiwan government was possible.
He urged the Director to be aggressive in arranging such a
swap with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which he said was
hesitant to take responsibility. The Director expressed his
gratitude for the Mayor's foresight, noting the significance
of the new compound as a symbol of friendship and cooperation
between the peoples of the United States and Taiwan.

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TAIPEI'S ECONOMIC FUTURE IS PROMISING
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3. (C) Asked about Taipei's economic prospects, the Mayor
said that while Taipei had yet to pull out of the economic
doldrums caused by the global downturn, promising signs of a
rebound included a fall in the city's unemployment rate,
which had peaked in March at 4.3 percent. The Mayor said
tourism from China and an ambitious infrastructure program
that included a fine arts center, a music center and a major
subway expansion, promised strong future growth. Newly
inaugurated direct flights from China could bring an average
of 3,000 Chinese tourists to Taipei daily, although for now
the influx was down because of Beijing's displeasure over the
Dalai Lama's visit to Taiwan in late August. Hau said he
expected the flow of visitors from China would fully rebound
in two to three months. The Mayor also noted that many
mainland Chinese had come to Taipei to evaluate investment
opportunities, although none had made a major commitment yet.
One issue the Mayor said did not overly worry him was the
H1N1 flu. He said his chief health advisor had told him the
situation was not as serious as feared by local media, which
Hau blamed for scaring the local populace.

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DESPITE KMT WOBBLES, LITTLE THREAT FROM THE DPP
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4. (C) Hau, whose father was a Kuomintang (KMT) heavyweight
and premier under former President Chiang Ching-kuo, said he
did not see much chance of the opposition Democratic
Progressive Party (DPP) making major gains in December local
elections. Although the KMT government had come under harsh
criticism for its typhoon response, Hau said the party should
retain most if not all of the local offices it now holds and
might even capture the magistracy of Pingtung County, an
opposition stronghold. He acknowledged the KMT might lose
the magistracy in Yilan County, where the KMT incumbent is
unpopular, but he insisted an island-wide DPP landslide was
"impossible."
STANTON