Cablegate: Media Reaction: U.S.-China-Taiwan Relations

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

182305Z Sep 05

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TAIPEI 003855

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/TC, EAP/PA, EAP/PD - ERIC
BARBORIAK
DEPARTMENT PASS AIT/WASHINGTON

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO TW
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: U.S.-CHINA-TAIWAN RELATIONS

Summary: Major Chinese-language Taipei dailies focused
their coverage September 16 on local issues such as a
carcinogenic substance being found in Taiwan fish for
sale, and the continuing boycott by opposition parties
of legislative affairs in the Legislative Yuan. The
pro-independence "Taiwan Daily," however, ran a banner
headline on its front page that read: "[Chinese
President] Hu Jintao slashes at Taiwan by making
disguised offers to help poor countries at the U.N.
summit." The sub-headline added: "[China] offers the
world's poorest countries tariff-free trade, debt
relief, and cheap loans, but excludes the dozen of
countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan." The
newspaper also carried a news story on its second page
that was topped with the headline: "Bush urges Hu again
to engage in a dialogue with Taiwan."

In terms of the U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, several
Chinese-language Taiwan newspapers reported in their
inside pages remarks made by U.S. Department of State
East Asian Bureau Senior Advisor James Keith Thursday
before the U.S.-China Economic and Safety Review
Commission. Keith said although the U.S. arms
procurement bill has been blocked by Taiwan's
opposition parties, Taiwan's ruling party should also
take some of the blame for not having increased the
national defense budget much over the past six years.

2. In terms of editorials and commentaries, the pro-
independence "Liberty Times" ran a commentary
criticizing the proposal made by Chinese President Hu
Jintao during his meeting with U.S. President George W.
Bush Tuesday that Washington join China in maintaining
peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. The
newspaper called the proposal "absurd" and said "it is
like a bandit who calls shamelessly upon the police to
join him in maintaining social order." Journalist Sun
Yang-ming, however, said Hu's proposal can be seen as
an attempt by Beijing to have the United States join it
in setting up a "framework" to constrain Taiwan. An
editorial in the limited-circulation, pro-independence,
English-language "Taipei Times" discussed current
Washington-Taipei ties by saying both the United States
and Taiwan must "make a much more committed effort to
set up lines of communication." End summary.

A) "Having Bandits Maintain Social Order?"

The "Free Talk" column of the pro-independence "Liberty
Times" [circulation: 600,000] wrote (9/16):

"During his meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush,
Chinese President Hu Jintao urged the United States to
join China in safeguarding peace and stability across
the Taiwan Strait. This proposal is so absurd that
people do not know whether to laugh or cry. .

". [If] the Chinese authorities genuinely believe that
Taiwan is part of its territory, it should then belong
to China's domestic affairs about how to maintain peace
and stability across the Taiwan Strait. How can it
allow foreign forces to interfere? Thus, judged from
Hu's proposal of having China and the United States
jointly manage the Taiwan Strait, China obviously has
tacitly agreed that Taiwan is an independent sovereign
state over which China has no authority. That's why
China hopes to get, via the United States, a share of
the loot between superpowers.

"What's so absurd is that the United States is a
democratic county, and so is Taiwan. The United States
therefore will not possibly respond to such a public
trading of power proposed by China and sell out the 23
million people on Taiwan. Even though Washington and
Taipei have no diplomatic ties, the Taiwan Relations
Act clearly stipulates the United States' commitments
to the Taiwan people. China evidently has met
rejection. .

"Most absurd of all is that China upholds the `One
China' [principle] and will not promise to renounce the
use of force against Taiwan. As the biggest ringleader
to sabotage stability across the Taiwan Strait, China
has also deployed more than 700 missiles aimed at
Taiwan. Now the biggest threat to cross-Strait
security is urging the United States to work with it
and jointly maintain peace and stability across the
Strait. [The offer] is like a bandit who calls
shamelessly upon the police to join him in maintaining
social order. This is indeed very absurd."

B) "A New Probe Concerning China-U.S. `Joint Management
of the Taiwan Strait'"

Journalist Sun Yang-ming said in the "United Notes"
column of the conservative, pro-unification "United
Daily News" [circulation: 400,000] (9/16):

". Unlike what happened in their previous meetings,
[Chinese President] Hu Jintao stated clearly in the
summit [with U.S. President George W. Bush Tuesday]
that he hopes that Washington would join Beijing's side
to maintain stability across the Taiwan Strait. Hu's
statement basically can be seen as an attempt by
Beijing to have the United States join it in setting up
a "framework" to constrain Taiwan.
"It is noteworthy that such a concept of `joint
management' of the Taiwan Strait or Taiwan is not aimed
at compelling Taiwan to promote peaceful unification
[with China] but at treating [the policy of]
`maintaining of the status quo' as a fundamental
concept for now. In fact, this is already a basic
consensus and a bottom line for Washington and Beijing
with regard to the policy toward Taiwan. .

"As a matter of fact, the proposal of having Washington
and Beijing `jointly manage the Taiwan Strait,' or the
idea or approach to set up a task force to jointly
manage the Taiwan issue, was formed as early as in the
second half of 2004. It's just that such an idea or
approach continued to remain on the `Track Two' level,
without really being carried out via the official
channel. Now that Hu has formally proposed it to Bush
personally, it remains to be seen how the United States
will respond. ."

C) "Clearing the Line to Washington"

The pro-independence, English-language "Taipei Times"
[circulation: 30,000] editorialized (9/16):

". The brief visit to Taiwan by Dana White, the country
director for Taiwan in the US Office of the Secretary
of Defense, is therefore a welcome tonic. White came
to finalize high-level security talks between Taipei
and Washington that were originally canceled because of
the scheduled visit to the US by Chinese President Hu
Jintao. But the initial cancellation - a painful and
demeaning slap in the face for Taiwan - points to an
unsettling change stateside: a growing tension between
pro-China and pro-Taiwan forces in the Bush
administration, with the former prevailing.

"The mantra of protecting the `cross-strait status quo'
has been chanted by officials in all countries
involved, but until such time that those US officials
mired in an Orientalist devotion to a utopian Chinese
state recognize that the `status quo' can be maintained
neither passively nor indefinitely, the eroding of both
Taiwanese and US interests in the region will continue
and most likely accelerate.

"In the meantime, President Chen Shui-bian's
administration can only be grateful to the US
Department of Defense for intervening to ensure that
this year's Monterey talks will take place. It is
crucial, however, that defenders of democracy on both
sides of the Pacific take this incident as a sign of
things to come, and make a much more committed effort
to set up lines of communication. .

". [W]hat has been genuinely surprising is the
amateurish and slovenly attempts by the Chen
administration to communicate with Washington, and,
just as importantly, members of Congress. It is not
clear who should be held responsible: Chen, perhaps, or
the increasingly discredited Boy Scouts - his youthful
team of so-called advisers.

"Regardless, the truth of the matter is that if there
is going to be change, Taiwan cannot afford to be
anything less than an instigator of it rather than its
dumb object. As the Bush administration struggles with
Iraq and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, a more
proactive and focused campaign for practical support
among members of Congress and other US officials will
vindicate supporters in the US and at home at a time of
considerable distraction for the American public.
There is no clearer road to take."

KEEGAN

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