US embassy cable - 05CHENNAI695

UNCLAS CHENNAI 000695 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, ECON, IN, India-China 
SUBJECT: CHINESE PREMIER WEN JIABAO KICKS OFF INDIA 
VISIT IN BANGALORE 
 
REF: (A) NEW DELHI 2677, (B) TELCON RAVI CANDADAI WITH 
OPS CENTER OF APRIL 10 
 
1.(U) SUMMARY: Chinese Premier Wen Jaibao began his 
visit to India with a stop at Bangalore, India\'s high 
tech capital.  During his low-key visit, Wen articulated 
a recurring theme of cooperation between China and 
India, especially in areas of information systems and 
technology, and the opportunities such cooperation would 
create.  END SUMMARY. 
 
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FIRST STOP BANGALORE 
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2.(U) Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao began his four-day 
visit to India on the evening of April 9 with a stop in 
Bangalore, south India\'s technology hot spot.  On his 
s 
arrival he said in a statement that the purpose of his 
visit was to enhance China-India friendship and to 
promote cooperation between the two countries.  On 
Sunday, April 10, Wen made a series of visits to Indian 
and Chinese high-tech organizations in the city. 
 
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LOW KEY VISITS WERE THE ORDER OF THE DAY 
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3.(SBU) Wen\'s began his Sunday visits with a stop at 
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) where he spun an 
elaborate metaphor comparing China and India to twin 
pagodas (\"Ta-Ta in Chinese signifies two pagodas,\" he 
explained).  He elaborated by noting that China has had 
the advantage in hardware and India in software and that 
the two countries had much to gain by working together. 
He went on to say that together, China and India could 
usher in an \"Asian century\" in information technology. 
Post\'s contacts at TCS said that the visit was relaxed 
with the Premier and TCS CEO C. Ramadorai having about a 
half hour discussion that was followed by a walk around 
the facility.  No agreements were signed and no specific 
announcements were made.  Wen also visited the Indian 
Institute of Science, the country\'s premier science and 
technology research institution, Huawei Technologies 
which is a Chinese software development firm and the 
Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).  Dr. Jacob 
Ninan, Program Director for International Cooperation at 
ISRO told Post, \"This was simply a VIP visit with no 
substance.  There were no agreements signed.\"  Wen\'s 
comments at all of the locations he visited repeated the 
theme of enhanced cooperation between China and India 
and the opportunities that such cooperation might 
create. 
 
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TIBETAN PROTESTOR PROVIDES SOME EXCITEMENT 
------------------------------------------ 
 
4. (U) The only real excitement of the day came when a 
Tibetan protestor managed to avoid security police and 
climbed a tower at the Indian Institute of Science. 
From his perch in the administration building tower he 
waved a Tibetan flag and shouted anti-China slogans. 
The protestor identified himself as Tenzin Tsundue and 
said that he was general secretary of the \"Friends of 
Tibet.\"  This was not the first such incident involving 
Tsundue.  In January 2002 he unfurled a similar Tibetan 
 
SIPDIS 
flag from a Mumbai hotel when Wen\'s predecessor Zhu 
Rongji was visiting the city.  Karnataka Chief Minister 
Dharam Singh took the issue seriously and ordered a 
high-level police probe of the security breach. 
 
5. (U) COMMENT: Wen\'s comments upon his arrival in 
Bangalore suggested that his visit there would be low 
key and focused on China-India friendship.  Low key it 
was with no news except that made by a lone Tibetan 
protestor.  South Indians seemed to have viewed the 
visit in the same way.  Media coverage was understated 
and generally focused on meetings later on in the week 
in Delhi.  But Wen\'s decision to begin his visit in 
Bangalore, India\'s I.T. capital, makes a statement about 
the importance China places on economic ties, especially 
those related to technology.  Such a visit might be a 
small step toward an important future economic 
partnership. END COMMENT 
 
HAYNES