US embassy cable - 05CANBERRA807

C O N F I D E N T I A L CANBERRA 000807 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NOFORN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/09/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, AS, ARF 
SUBJECT: AUSTRALIA ANTICIPATES EAS INVITATION: WILL MAKE 
SURE TAC DOESN'T INTERFERE WITH ANZUS 
 
REF: CANBERRA 677 
 
Classified By: POLCOUNS WOO LEE.  REASONS 1.4 (B/D) 
 
1. (C/NF) Summary: Australia will sign ASEAN's Treaty of 
Amity and Cooperation (TAC), with conditions, in exchange for 
an invitation to the first East Asian Summit (EAS) to be held 
in Kuala Lumpur this December.  The conditions include 
ensuring that the TAC does not hinder Australia's obligations 
under the ANZUS Treaty, and getting a guarantee from ASEAN 
that it will be invited to all future EAS meetings.  In an 
added boost to the GOA, Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van 
Khai backed Australia's inclusion in the EAS during his May 
5-7 visit to Canberra.  End Summary. 
 
Australia Relaxed About the TAC 
------------------------------- 
2. (C/NF) Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) 
ASEAN Section Director Lynette Wood told us on May 6 that the 
GOA was not rushing to sign the TAC.  Australia would likely 
end up signing, but Canberra was taking its time on the off 
chance that it might be able to get in to the EAS without 
signing, Wood said.  In any event, the GOA was confident 
Australia would receive an invite to the EAS one way or the 
other based on the "inclusive approach toward regional 
architecture" that most ASEAN countries now appeared to be 
taking. 
 
Stipulations for Signing 
------------------------ 
3. (C/NF) If Australia did sign the TAC, Wood continued, it 
would do so in a way that made certain the TAC did not 
interfere with the ANZUS Treaty or conflict with Australia's 
other bilateral defense agreements with the U.S.  ASEAN also 
would need to agree that the Treaty would not constrain 
Australia's ability to criticize ASEAN countries in cases 
where it deemed it necessary to do so.  Finally, the GOA 
would need an "iron-clad guarantee on the public record" from 
ASEAN that by signing the TAC, it would receive an invitation 
to this year's Summit and all subsequent Summits, Wood said. 
 
 
Vietnam Gets on Board 
--------------------- 
4. (C/NF) In a separate meeting also on May 6, DFAT Thailand, 
Vietnam, and Laos Section Director Frank Ingruber said 
Australia welcomed visiting Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan 
Van Khai's comments the previous day that "Australia should 
participate in such a summit meeting and should have an 
important voice in that forum."  Asked in a May 5 joint news 
conference in Canberra if he believed that Australia should 
have to sign the TAC to gain entry into the EAS, PM Khai 
said, "I don't think so.  These are two separate issues." 
Ingruber told us, however, that he believed the comment was 
due to confusion, most likely a translation error, noting 
that PM Khai added the proviso that "we have to follow the 
principle of consensus amongst ASEAN." 
 
STANTON