US embassy cable - 05SANTODOMINGO4481

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SANTO DOMINGO 004481 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR WHA, WHA/CAR, WHA/EPSC, EAP, INR, EB/ESC/IEC/EPC; 
NSC FOR SHANNON; USCINCSO ALSO FOR POLAD; TREASURY FOR 
OASIA-MAUREEN WAFER; USDA FOR FAS; USDOC FOR 
4322/ITA/MAC/WH/CARIBBEAN BASIN DIVISION; USDOC FOR 
3134/ITA/USFCS/RD/WH; DHS FOR CIS-CARLOS ITURREGUI 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/30/2015 
TAGS: DR, TW, CH, PREL, ETRD, EINV 
SUBJECT: TWO CHINAS IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: TAIWAN 
PRESIDENT'S VISIT 
 
 
Classified By: Economic and Political Counselor Michael Meigs, for Reas 
on 1.4(b) and (d). 
 
1,  (C) Summary:  Taiwan President Chen's official visit to 
the Dominican Republic September 23-24 has warmed bilateral 
relations, according to Taipei's ambassador here.  Chen and 
President Fernandez announced their intention to begin 
negotiation of a free trade agreement, and Chen promised 
further assistance for high-technology industrial training. 
Favorable press coverage prompted the local PRC commercial 
representative to arrange media attention for PRC events. 
For now the Fernandez administration appears to be content to 
let the two Chinas compete in their offers and appears to be 
in no hurry to abandon ties to Taiwan.  End summary. 
 
2.  (C) John Chi-Tai Feng, Taiwan,s ambassador to the 
Dominican Republic, who is often bluntly pessimistic in 
assessing his chances of deterring the PRC,s "big offensive" 
to take away one of his country,s last bastions of 
recognition, was enthusiastic in remarks to political officer 
September 29.  President Chen Shui-Bian and President Leonel 
Fernandez had hit it off well during Chen,s official visit 
here September 23-24.  The "coolness" that the ambassador had 
felt in bilateral relations during Fernandez,s first year in 
office "warmed up" during their personal meeting September 
23.  "I feel it," he exulted.  His only regret was that Chen 
and his 130-person traveling party would make a refueling 
stop in Santo Domingo late in the day, after a swing through 
Central America.   "They all have to de-plane," he grumbled, 
only half in jest. 
 
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CAFTA-DR and Potential Investments 
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3. (C) The Foreign Ministry,s Asia director, in more 
restrained desk-officer style, said the Dominican Government 
had reaffirmed its commitment to relations with Taiwan, 
including support for Taiwan to become a UN member state and 
observer to the World Health Organization.  The splashiest 
announcement by the two presidents was that negotiations 
would soon begin on a bilateral free-trade agreement, 
pursuant to a letter of intention signed last February. 
Chen, With a press encounter at national daily "Hoy," which 
had previously been critical of the CAFTA-DR free-trade 
agreement with the United States, Chen achieved an 
unprecedented headline on that newspaper,s front page: 
"Taiwan President Believes CAFTA will strengthen Dominican 
Republic."  Feng said that MFA Under Secretary for Economic 
Affairs Juan Guiliani Cury would soon travel to Taipei for 
the first round of talks, with the goal of signing an FTA in 
January 2007. 
 
4. (C) President Fernandez had repeatedly put off a promised 
trip to Taiwan but Feng said Fernandez has renewed his 
commitment to travel in January.  President Chen for his part 
visited the Technological Institute of the Americas (ITLA) -- 
a high-tech industrial training facility assisted and staffed 
by Taipei -- and promised to expand support for this project, 
part of a "Cyber Park" planned by Fernandez since his first 
administration in the late 1990s.  The president of Stevens 
Institute of Technology in New Jersey was on hand to announce 
additional support for ITLA.  According to Feng, five or six 
big Taiwanese entrepreneurs accompanying Chen expressed more 
interest in investing as a result of the recent Dominican 
ratification of DR-CAFTA, although no deals were concluded. 
 
5. (U) The local press was overwhelmingly positive, with 
front-page coverage and photo spreads.  The Taiwan Embassy 
counted 68 newspaper articles, including 2 editorials and 2 
op-ed commentaries, "all positive."  Local TV ran more than 
170 clips, and radio mentioned the topic over 110 times. 
 
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PRC Rep Reacts 
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6. (SBU) All this attention to Taiwan provoked PRC commercial 
rep to the Dominican Republic Cai Weiquan to action.  He 
appeared at least twice on television this week and on 
September 29 published a an op-ed in the middle of the 
editorial page of leading national paper Listn Diario, on 
"China and the U.S."  Cai spent one column reviewing, in a 
diplomatic tone, China,s position on trade disputes with the 
United States and two columns rehashing the PRC line on "the 
problem of Taiwan."  Then he advocated UN Security Council 
reform, which he said would offer better rotational 
opportunities for "small and medium countries like the 
Dominican Republic." 
 
7. (C) The PRC has continued to bait the hook of diplomatic 
recognition.  According to the Taiwan ambassador, the latest 
proposal being dangled here by the PRC is a USD 100 million 
pickup truck assembly plant.  "But there are always 
conditions for this and other PRC investment offers," noted 
Feng, "That means diplomatic relations." 
 
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Foreign Minister Skeptical 
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8. (C) Dominican Foreign Minister Carlos Morales Troncoso 
missed the Chen visit, spending September 23-25 at a Wilton 
Park Conference in the United Kingdom.  There he heard Deputy 
Director of the Institute of Latin American Studies of the 
Chinese Academy of Sciences Jiang Shixue, deliver a paper 
entitled, "Big Countries and Small Countries Can Be Brothers: 
 China,s Relations with the Caribbean."  In it, Jiang 
characterized Taiwan,s policy in the region as "dollar 
diplomacy." 
 
9. (C) "Both Chinas do that," retorted Morales Troncoso in 
conversation with the Ambassador September 28.  "They,re 
both corrupt, and their cash flows in election campaigns to 
political parties and candidates." 
 
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Comment 
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10. (C) Like previous Dominican presidents, Fernandez appears 
to be content to let the two Chinas compete in offering 
goodies to this developing island nation.  The Fernandez 
administration appears to be in no hurry to cut its 
traditional ties to Taiwan.  The foreign minister's 
dismissive attitude, though not necessarily shared by the 
President, suggests he will provide an additional measure of 
resistance to Beijing's offers. 
Hertell