US embassy cable - 05TAIPEI4250

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TAIPEI 004250 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE PASS AIT/W 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/19/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, TW 
SUBJECT:  FORMER PRESIDENT LEE TENG-HUI'S VISIT TO THE 
U.S.: BACKGROUND NOTES (C-AL5-01095) 
 
REF: SECSTATE 190431 
 
Classified By: AIT Director Douglas H. Paal, Reason(s): 
1.4 (B/D) 
 
1.  (C) In response to reftel request, AIT is providing the 
following background notes on the visit of former Taiwan 
President Lee Teng-hui to the U.S., and events leading up to 
it. 
 
2.  (C) The Director met with former President Lee on August 
30 to discuss Lee's planned U.S. visit.  At that time, Lee 
told the Director that he was scheduled to arrive in the U.S. 
on October 1, and expressed surprise that this was only one 
day after President Chen Shui-bian's planned departure from 
San Francisco.  Lee indicated that he understood the timing 
of his and Chen's visits could lead to misunderstanding by 
the PRC and emphasized that the final timing for his trip was 
not yet formalized.  He told the Director that he might 
change the timing of his trip in order to "escape" such 
misunderstandings.  Lee suggested he had planned his trip 
intentionally to fall well after Hu Jintao's trip to the 
United States but without any consideration of the timing of 
Chen's transit. 
 
3.  (C) Lee also assured the Director that his remarks in the 
U.S. would not touch on Taiwan independence but would instead 
focus on "democracy, freedom, and liberty."  He argued that 
it was a "mistake" to characterize him as the leader of an 
"independence movement," emphasizing that he was merely 
interested in Taiwan becoming a "normal country," not in 
Taiwan independence.  Lee stated that he would present no 
problems for U.S. policy and that he would not talk about 
U.S. policy during his trip.  He explained that he wanted to 
visit the United States as a representative of the Taiwan 
people to help "U.S. friends . . . understand the real Taiwan 
domestic situation."  Lee concluded by stressing that he did 
not want to cause problems and that it was his longstanding 
goal not to give the United States "too much trouble." 
 
4.  (C)  On September 14, Lee Teng-hui's former Presidential 
Secretary General Huang Kun-hui (now Vice President of the 
 
SIPDIS 
"deep-Green" Taiwan Advocates) called on the AIT Acting 
Director to convey a further message from former President 
Lee Teng-hui regarding his planned trip to the U.S.  Huang 
said he had been instructed by Lee to convey Lee's 
appreciation for the Director's August 30 visit to see him. 
Lee, Huang continued, fully understood and respected the 
Director's message delivered at that time, which he, Huang, 
summarized in two points:  (1) U.S. concern about the 
proximity of Lee's planned early October U.S. visit to 
President Chen's U.S. transit, and (2) U.S. concern that Lee 
not talk about independence or cause problems for U.S. policy 
during his visit.  With respect to the second point, Huang 
conveyed Lee's pledge not to push for independence while 
visiting the U.S., explaining that Lee, in fact, does not 
advocate independence but rather that Taiwan should become a 
"normal country."  When questioned about the distinction 
between independence and a "normal country," Huang responded 
that "there is a difference."  Lee's purpose in going to the 
U.S., Huang explained, was to visit friends and talk about 
democratization, not to create problems for the U.S. 
government. 
 
5.  (C) With respect to the Director's first point, Huang 
said that, in order to address U.S. concern about the 
proximity of Lee's trip to Chen's, Lee had rescheduled his 
trip to mid-October.  Huang emphasized that Lee's trip would 
be private and personal, with no connection to the Taiwan 
Government.  Noting that it would be difficult for Lee to 
avoid speaking opportunities during his trip, Lee's message 
would focus on shared democratic values between the United 
States and Taiwan.  Lee would emphasize the universal values 
of democracy, freedom, and human rights. 
 
6.  (C) Huang told the Acting Director that the China visits 
of opposition Pan-Blue leaders Lien Chan and James Soong 
following the passage of the anti-secession law had misled 
the people of Taiwan and the U.S.  He noted that U.S. 
"policymakers'" comments welcoming dialogue and interaction 
across the Taiwan Strait had led many Taiwan people to assume 
the U.S. government supported the opposition leaders' trips. 
Lee's trip, Huang suggested, would serve to balance the 
political information and promote regional peace and 
stability. 
7.  (C)  The Acting Director responded that Lee's prior 
position as President and his active role in Taiwan politics 
meant that his trip would inevitably have political 
implications, regardless of whether or not he traveled in his 
private capacity.  Therefore, he cautioned, any remarks by 
Lee would attract close media attention.  The Acting Director 
reiterated the importance of Lee's visit remaining low-key 
and not causing problems for U.S. policy.  In early 
September, former Premier Vincent Siew called on Lee, later 
telling the Director that the former president was 
outspokenly critical of President Chen's inconsistency and 
his wife's personal corruption.  This adds to indications 
from Presidential Office personnel of "very bad relations" 
between the two men. 
 
8.  (C) Comment.  Lee Teng-hui's U.S. visit was organized by 
his personal staff with some assistance from Taiwan 
Advocates, a Lee think tank.  AIT found the Taiwan Solidarity 
Union (TSU), of which Lee is usually termed the "spiritual 
leader," to be totally out of the loop on Lee's trip.  (In 
fact, TSU officials indicated they have little contact at all 
with former President Lee and his staff.)  Lee's associates 
and staffers were extremely skittish and close-hold about the 
trip, necessitating the Director's personal intervention with 
Lee himself.  Presidential Secretary General James Huang and 
other government officials repeatedly emphasized to AIT that 
Lee's visit was purely private and had nothing to do with the 
Taiwan government.  They also indicated that President Chen 
was none too happy about the Lee visit.  They did, 
nonetheless, request AIT and USG facilitation of Lee's travel 
in the U.S.  End Comment. 
PAAL