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ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 020916Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7866
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RHMFIUU/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 000266
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 SENV KGHG KMDR OPRC CH
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: ARMS SALES TO TAIWAN
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Editorial Quotes
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ARMS SALES TO TAIWAN
a. "Let the West get used to 'tough China'"
The People's Daily-sponsored and internationally-focused commercial
news publication Global Times (Huanqiu Shibao)(02/02)(pg 14): "China
will, as always, make full efforts to defend its core interests.
The West's surprise about China's tough stance (on the Taiwan arms
sales issue) shows that they have underestimated China's strategic
determination because they are conceited and ignorant. The West
does not have a clear position on China, especially the United
States. The United States sometimes treats China as an assumed
enemy and other times as a partner. How to understand China and
define Sino-U.S. relations has become strategically confusing for
the United States. They thought that it was sufficient, when
dealing with China, to play with such an ambiguous strategy. But
along with China's growing strength, their use of continuous
ambiguous, double-sided measures has left a smaller and smaller
space for the United States. The United States is bound to suffer
retaliation because China's two roles in the U.S.'s understanding
(assumed enemy and partner) have become increasingly incompatible.
They (the United States) have also underestimated the influence of
China's public opinion. With the increasing influence of Chinese
public opinion on China's foreign strategy; the Chinese public has
become the Chinese government's firm support behind taking more
hard-line measures against the United States. If the United States
fails to understand the situation, it is impossible for it to
accurately grasp China's future U.S. policy, and similarly, it is
unlikely to make the strategic policy concerning China come in line
with long-term benefits for the U.S. China's hard-line measures
against the United States are not unreasonable or anti-Americanism.
There is a prerequisite for stable Sino-U.S. relations: to let the
United States know what things are absolutely inviolable and what
areas can be negotiable. After all, the Chinese also want to enhance
mutual military trust, trade and political exchanges, but this
increase must be good for both sides, not just beneficial to the
U.S. We must let the entire Western world know that they need to
adjust their strategy toward China. In this way the West's
misjudgment of China will greatly reduce, and they will not regard
China's act of self-defense as a provocation."
b. "China strongly retaliates over U.S. arms deal with Taiwan"?
The China Radio International sponsored newspaper World News Journal
(Shijie Xinwenbao)(02/02)(pg 3): "China's countermeasures to protest
the United States' arms deal with Taiwan have shown China's great
attention to its core interests. It is specially worth noting that
China will impose sanctions on American companies involved in the
arms deal. This is the first time for China, as a developing
country, to sanction companies from a developed country. It shows,
that in order to protect China's core interests, China will not only
adopt political and diplomatic measures, but will also take action
against American companies, who have directly profited from the
deal. Imposing sanctions on U.S. companies is probably a more
effective means of protest than to just (verbally) protest such
actions by the U.S. Jin Canrong, a Professor from Renmin
University, said the United States will gradually increase the cost
of selling arms to Taiwan until, one fine day, the cost is too big
for the United States to afford."
c. "'Decryption' of the landing of 'Black Hawk' (regarding Taiwan)"
Guangdong 21st Century Publishing Company Ltd.'s business newspaper
21st Century Business Herald (21Shiji Jingji Baodao)(02/02)(pg 3):
"Professor Wu Xinbo, deputy director of the Center for American
Studies at Fudan University, said that the U.S. Congress has always
been the base for pro-Taiwan anti-China forces. Sun Zhe, director
of the Center for American Studies at Tsinghua University said that
it is some pro-Taiwan officials in the Obama administration that
promoted the arms deal. Since these officials, after the Copenhagen
summit, speculated that China's support to the United States has
been insufficient on the Afghanistan or Iran issues, they intend to
pressure China using the arms sales issue and the Dalai Lama's
visit. Wu Xinbo said that Obama chose to submit the arms sales
proposal earlier this year because he wants to leave sufficient time
in the rest of the year to repair the damage that the Sino-U.S.
relationship will have suffered. 'In the next three months, the
United States may try to eliminate the negative impact of the arms
sales so as to ensure that China attends the April nuclear summit
and determine matters relating to President Hu Jintao's visit to the
United States.' Wu Xinbo pointed out that this could make 2010
Sino-U.S. relations go along a (strategic) path where a bad start
sees a good ending to the year. However, Sun Zhe said that the
United States has underestimated the serious impact of its arms
sales to Taiwan. It is not easy to repair damages between the
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United States and China within several months. In 2010, Sino-U.S.
relations will undergo a U-turn."
HUNTSMAN