Cablegate: Media Reaction: Obama's Visit to Asia, Japan

VZCZCXRO5719
RR RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHBJ #3092 3160859
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 120859Z NOV 09
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6788
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RHMFIUU/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI

UNCLAS BEIJING 003092

DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/CM, EAP/PA, EAP/PD, C
HQ PACOM FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ADVISOR (J007)
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL ECON KMDR OPRC CH

SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: OBAMA'S VISIT TO ASIA, JAPAN

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Editorial Quotes
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1. OBAMA'S VISIT TO ASIA

a. "Barack Obama must make a clear statement on his trade policy"

The Shanghai-based Shanghai Media Group (SMG) publication, China
Business News (Diyi Caijing)(11/12)(pg A4): "Aside from climate
change and promoting global economic recovery, setting a positive
tone for the overall U.S.-China trade relations will be an important
topic for Obama's visit to China. This year the U.S. has initiated
ten countervailing and anti-dumping investigations against Chinese
products. Fred Bergsten at the Peterson Institute for International
Economics believes that this is not a planned policy of the Obama
administration. It happens because of the pressure to create a
positive trade policy. A Swiss professor commented that the price
Obama paid when he sacrificed trade interests in exchange for the
support of the Worker's Union and the Democrats was very high. The
U.S. commercial circle is using this Asia trip as a chance to urge
Obama to promote regional free trade negotiation. During his visit
to Asia, Obama should clarify his trade policy. The U.S. President
should make the following statement, 'U.S. trade policy is this...'
This is what the Asian countries want to hear, because economic
factors are the driving force behind the relationship between Asian
countries and the United States."

b. "China should enjoy the right to fair international trade"

Guangdong 21st Century Publishing Company Ltd.'s business newspaper
21st Century Business Herald (21Shiji Jingji Baodao)(11/12)(pg 2):
"China should be aware of two facts, about global trade friction:
first, because of the financial crisis trade protectionism has
spread worldwide; second, with the U.S. as the obviously leader,
global trade protectionism mainly targets China. China must respond
to the U.S. trade investigations otherwise other countries will
follow in the footsteps of the U.S. and start their own broad
investigations about China. In fact the situation means an end to
China's economic mode which depends on price advantages. What's
more, China needs to adopt a better exchange rate system. Due to the
depreciation of the U.S. dollar China needs to prepare in order to
deal with the criticisms concerning China's exchange rate policy.
In order to enjoy the right to fair international trade, China
should work towards the removal of any and all discriminative rules
against it in the WTO. To fulfill that, China should ask the U.S.
to recognize China's market economy status during Obama's visit to
China. In return, China can also make appropriate compromises on
import and currency issues."

2. JAPAN

"Japan-U.S. relations are still in an adjustment period"

The official Communist Party People's Daily (Renmin Ribao)(11/11)(pg
3): "Japanese experts suggest that Obama will not mention the
disputable military base and only vaguely ask Japan to abide by the
U.S.-Japan agreement on U.S. military in Japan. Japan also thinks
that Obama's postponed visit to Japan, though reasonable, reflects
the two country's dispute over the reorganization of U.S. troops in
Japan. To some extent, the Democratic Party of Japan and the
Democratic Party of the United States have many things in common:
they both face complex, thorny domestic issues. If any setback
occurs in U.S.- Japan relations both countries will suffer."

HUNTSMAN

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