US embassy cable - 04TAIPEI3265

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TAIPEI 003265 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE PASS AIT/W 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/10/2013 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, CH, TW, Cross Strait Politics 
SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE RESPONDS TO PRC SUSPICIONS 
OVER 10/10 
 
REF: A. TAIPEI 3162 
 
     B. TAIPEI 3190 
     C. TAIPEI 2876 
 
Classified By: AIT Deputy Director David J. Keegan, Reason: 1.4 (B/D) 
 
1. (C) Summary: Presidential Office Deputy Secretary General 
James Huang requested a meeting with the Deputy Director 
October 19 to clarify concerns raised by Beijing over 
President Chen Shui-bian's October 10 speech.  Huang, at the 
president's instructions, explained that Chen's statement 
that "Taiwan is the Republic of China" was in no way meant as 
a provocation to the Mainland.  On the contrary, Huang said 
the president made the statement to counter attempts by Lee 
Teng-hui and pro-independence fundamentalists to use the 
upcoming constitutional debate to formally rename the 
"Republic of China" as Taiwan or to otherwise redefine 
Taiwan's sovereign status.  Huang emphasized that Chen 
remains committed not to address sovereignty-related 
questions in future rounds of constitutional reform.  While 
acknowledging that Beijing is unlikely to fully understand or 
accept the president's position, he urged Washington to 
convey Taipei's sincerity in seeking improved relations.  The 
Deputy Director reminded Huang that the PRC remains extremely 
skeptical about Chen's intentions, and is unlikely to 
distinguish between what Chen identified as intended for 
domestic constituencies and what he meant for Beijing's 
consumption.  End Summary. 
 
Point of Clarification 
---------------------- 
 
2. (C) Presidential Office Deputy Secretary General James 
Huang requested a meeting with the Deputy Director October 19 
to further clarify President Chen Shui-bian's October 10 
National Day Address (Ref A).  Huang noted that the Secretary 
of State would soon be traveling to Asia and would likely 
receive a negative message over portions of the president's 
speech during his meetings in Beijing (Ref B).  Huang said he 
shared with the president concerns raised by the AIT Director 
and Deputy Director on October 16 about Beijing's strong 
reaction to Chen's assertion that the "Republic of China is 
Taiwan."  Huang said that the president provided, in 
response, a lengthy explanation of his thinking and asked 
that this clarification be conveyed to AIT and Washington. 
 
3. (C) Huang asserted that the president's "ROC/Taiwan" 
statement was meant to respond to calls by fundamentalists, 
especially former President Lee Teng-hui, that Taiwan abandon 
the "Republic of China" structure.  He emphasized that this 
was in no way was aimed at provoking Beijing.  Huang said 
that the president is concerned about growing public support 
for Lee's call to abandon the title "Republic of China" and 
formally change the national title to "Taiwan."  He pointed 
out that Lee has resurrected the traditional term, 
"rectification of names" (zheng-ming) as his slogan.  Huang 
noted that President Chen has offered a series of speeches in 
recent months aimed at "safeguarding" the "Republic of 
China's" existence.  Huang said that President Chen reminded 
an audience in Honolulu on August 30 that Dr. Sun Yat-sen had 
come to Hawaii to seek support for his revolution.  Chen 
proclaimed to the group that "the Republic of China does 
exist and it is thriving."  Huang added that Chen also used a 
press availability in Belize on September 2 to refute the 
suggestion (made in August by Premier Yu Shyi-kun) that the 
national title should be changed to "Taiwan, ROC," insisting 
it would remain the "Republic of China." 
 
4. (C) Huang stated that the president's specific reference 
to the "Republic of China's" territory and population in a 
separate section of the speech was meant only as a 
description of the status quo, and denied that there were any 
political connotations.  Huang added that had the president 
meant to make this a message for Beijing's consumption, "he 
would have included it in the portion of the speech on 
cross-Strait relations."  Huang noted that the president 
reiterated in his October 10 speech that his May 20 inaugural 
promises would be faithfully followed in his term of office. 
A core element of his May 20 pledge, Huang continued, was 
that the upcoming debate on constitutional reform will not 
touch on the question of national title or definition of the 
"Republic of China's" territory. 
 
5. (C) Huang said that "while we are not so naive to think 
that Beijing would fully accept our clarification," he hoped 
that "our friends in Washington" would understand the complex 
political pressures the president is under.  Huang added his 
appreciation for recent statements by the State Department 
Spokesman on cross-Strait relations.  Huang asked the USG to 
convey to Beijing that "it takes two to tango" and that some 
sort of clear positive gesture from the other side will be 
critical to restarting communications.  Huang added that the 
PRC's refusal to accept the "Republic of China" nomenclature 
makes the Chen administration's attempts to suppress 
fundamentalists calls for a name change even more difficult. 
 
Beware of PRC Suspicions 
------------------------ 
 
6. (C) The Deputy Director noted in response that Beijing 
remains deeply suspicious of any statement from President 
Chen that relates to Taiwan's sovereignty, especially in the 
lead-up to discussions on constitutional reform.  He added 
that the PRC is extremely unlikely to discriminate between 
messages meant for domestic constituencies and those aimed 
across the Taiwan Strait.  The Deputy Director added that 
Beijing's leadership also faces intense internal political 
pressures to stand firm on Taiwan, making a public positive 
gesture unlikely.  That said, he noted that there are some 
signs that Beijing may be willing to de-link political and 
economic issues in the coming months.  For this reason, the 
Deputy Director urged the Chen administration to tread very 
cautiously during the ongoing Legislative Yuan (LY) election 
campaign, and to consistently reiterate the president's 
conciliatory message. 
 
Comment: Washington Remains Priority Number One 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
7. (C) President Chen's quick response to our observations 
makes it clear that he remains determined to persuade the 
United States of his commitment to a conciliatory approach to 
the PRC.  We are, as many here have noted, his primary 
audience.  He is willing to accept, at least in the short 
term, a more chilly response from Beijing.  It is not clear, 
however, that he accepts the need to be consistent in his 
message. 
PAAL