JANUARY 28, 2010 MFA PRESS BRIEFING: TALKS WITH DALAI LAMA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 000232

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TAGS: PREL PHUM PARM MASS EINT TINT SENV CH AF JM

SUBJECT: JANUARY 28, 2010 MFA PRESS BRIEFING: TALKS WITH DALAI LAMA
REPRESENTATIVES, EU ARMS EMBARGO, U.S. STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS,
AFGHSANISTAN CONFERENCE, GAO ZHISHENG


1. Key points at the January 28 MFA press briefing were:

-- Chinese officials will meet with representatives of the Dalai
Lama for talks in the "near term."

-- The EU arms embargo against China was the result of "political
prejudice" and China demanded that it be lifted.

-- Requests for information on the whereabouts of rights activist
Gao Zhisheng were "unreasonable" and journalists had no right to
make such requests.

Talks with Dalai Lama's Special Envoy
--------------


2. Ma stated that talks between the Chinese government and
representatives of the Dalai Lama would take place "in the near
term." He would not confirm whether the talks were currently
ongoing or where they would take place. Ma said the Tibet issue was
clearly an internal affair of China and that the international
community, including the United States, recognized Tibet as an
inalienable part of China. He referred additional questions on the
subject to the "competent authorities" for more specific
information.

EU Arms Embargo on China
--------------


4. China had seen reports of comments by Spanish officials that
Spain would like to use its presidency to begin discussions on
lifting the EU arms embargo on China, Ma said. China's position on
the EU arms embargo was consistent - China demanded an end to the
embargo because it represented "political prejudice" against China
and was contrary to "world trends." Lifting the embargo would
remove this issue as an obstacle in EU-PRC relations.

State of the Union Speech
--------------


5. Asked about President Obama's State of the Union address, Ma
replied that China was "looking into it." The U.S. was the country
with the greatest influence in the world, Ma said, and China hoped
that its policies would continue to contribute to peace.
Cooperation between the United States and China continued to be
important to world peace.

Afghanistan Conference; Clinton-Yang Meeting
--------------


6. Ma confirmed that Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi was in London to
participate in the London Conference on Afghanistan. FM Yang would
engage in in-depth discussions and an objective review of the
situation in Afghanistan which would help increase coordination to
help Afghanistan with its reconstruction efforts, Ma said.


7. Ma confirmed that Secretary Clinton and FM Yang would meet in
London on January 28 to discuss US-China relations and international
and regional issues of mutual interest. Ma had no comment on
whether internet issues would be discussed.

Google
--------------


8. Ma had no comment on whether the Chinese government would engage
in talks with Google, adding that China's position on the issue was
well known.

Kazakhstan: Cross-border River Issues
--------------


9. China attached great importance to partnership with Kazakhstan
and to fair and reasonable protection of natural resources, Ma
stated. China and Kazakhstan had signed agreements on cross-border
river management and maintained close cooperation on the issue of
cross-border rivers. China supported sustainable development,
respected other countries' rights and interests, and the recognized
the responsibilities of upstream-river countries with regard to
their impact on downstream-river countries.

DPRK: American Detained, Artillery Exchange
--------------


10. China had seen reports that an American citizen had been
detained by North Korea, but Ma said he was not aware of the

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specifics of the case. Asked whether the individual had entered
China legally Ma had no comment.


11. China had taken note of reports of artillery exchanges between
the DPRK and South Korea and hoped that the parties involved would
make efforts to maintain the peace and stability of the Korean
Peninsula.

Whereabouts of Gao Zhisheng
--------------


12. The BBC asked for a commitment by Ma to provide information on
the whereabouts of lawyer and rights activist Gao Zhisheng, missing
since February 2009. Ma responded that the request was
"unreasonable." China was a country ruled by law with 1.3 billion
people and the BBC had "no right" to ask such a question. Calling
the request "absurd," Ma refused to discuss the issue further.

Sri Lanka
--------------


13. China had seen the results of Presidential elections in Sri
Lanka and had taken note of the re-election of Sri Lankan president
Mahinda Rajapaksa. As a close and friendly neighbor, China hoped
for stability in Sri Lanka and for an enduring and lasting peace in
that country.

Jamaican Visit to China
--------------


14. Ma announced that, at the invitation of Premier Wan Jiabao,
Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding will visit China February 1 to
5, his first visit to China since taking office in 2007. During the
visit, the two sides will sign economic and trade agreements.

HUNTSMAN