VZCZCXYZ0001
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHIN #3886/01 3210923
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 170923Z NOV 06
FM AIT TAIPEI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3065
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 5945
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 7162

UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 003886 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/TC, EAP/PA, EAP/PD - DAVID FIRESTEIN 
DEPARTMENT PASS AIT/WASHINGTON 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO TW
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: U.S.-CHINA-TAIWAN RELATIONS, APEC 
 
 
¶1. Summary:  Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou's admission of his office's 
administrative defects in handling the special mayoral allowance 
stayed in the spotlight of the Taiwan media November 17.  News 
coverage also focused on a near mid-air collision in South Korean 
airspace, and the surprise victory of the Taiwan baseball team over 
Cuba in an intercontinental tournament Thursday.  The pro-status quo 
"China Times" ran the results of its latest survey on page three, 
showing that 40.2 percent of those polled said they believe in Ma's 
integrity.  The same poll also found that 39.3 percent of 
respondents said they support Ma to run for president in 2008 even 
if he is indicted, while 31 percent said that Ma should not do so if 
indicted. 
 
¶2. In terms of editorials and commentaries, an editorial in the 
pro-independence "Liberty Times," Taiwan's largest-circulation 
daily, discussed a recent "Washington Times" report on a Chinese 
submarine stalking the USS Kitty Hawk in the Pacific.  The editorial 
said the incident indicated that "China is engaging in military 
exchanges with Washington on the one hand, while getting itself 
ready for possible future military conflicts with the United States 
on the other."  The article also urged Taiwan to pass the U.S. arms 
procurements bill as early as possible to strengthen its defense 
capability.  An editorial in the limited-circulation, 
pro-independence, English-language "Taiwan News" condemned China's 
efforts to edge out Taiwan in the APEC meetings and expressed 
support for the upcoming declaration by the APEC leadership for the 
resumption of negotiations in the Doha Round.  End summary. 
 
¶3. U.S.-China-Taiwan Relations 
 
"Warning Signals to Taiwan of Chinese Submarine Stalking USS Kitty 
Hawk" 
 
The pro-independence "Liberty Times" [circulation: 600,000] 
editorialized (11/17): 
 
"The U.S. 'Washington Times' reported November 13 that a Chinese 
submarine stalked the carrier USS Kitty Hawk in the Pacific in late 
October and did not surface until it got within firing range. 
Earlier, Chinese submarines have also been spotted intruding into 
Japanese areas many times.  All these indicate that China is 
engaging in military exchanges with Washington on the one hand, 
while getting itself ready for possible future military conflicts 
with the United States on the other.  Making a decisive move to 
build submarines and naval vessels has been one of the key Chinese 
military buildup plans over the past few years, and it explained 
China's attempt to control the international waters of Asia.  In 
addition to its concerns for energy and trade, China wants to 
control the international waters in Asia mainly because it wants 
counterbalance the United States and Japan, because it has to 
outpace these two countries if it wants to become the supreme leader 
in the region. ... 
 
"Judged from this perspective, the widely-discussed 'China Threat 
Theory' as well as [statements about] the 'imminent conflicts 
between China and the United States' are by no means without 
foundation.  All related countries and the United Nations should 
attach great importance to this potential threat to regional 
stability and security and must not let China grow into an untamed 
monster.  Those who desire to diminish China's hegemonic ambitions 
via mutual military exchanges also must not overlook this 
deteriorating situation, simply because of their impractical 
imagination. ...  Taiwan, in particular, must be gravely concerned 
about possible future crises in the face of military expansion by 
China, which is deemed a hypothetical enemy even by the United 
States and Japan.  It is a big disappointment that Taiwan has yet to 
pass the long-stalled defense arms procurement budget due to 
political infighting between the ruling and opposition parties, as 
the military balance across the Taiwan Strait has long tilted in 
favor of China.  The remarks made by AIT Taipei Director Stephen 
Young in late October, reminding Taiwan to pass the arms procurement 
budget as early as possible, were slammed by those who oppose the 
arms bill as interference in [Taiwan's] domestic politics.  Judging 
from the fact that a Chinese submarine was stalking the USS Kitty 
Hawk, Young is evidently more concerned about Taiwan's security than 
those who oppose the arms bill. ..." 
 
¶4. APEC 
 
The pro-independence, English-language "Taiwan News" [circulation: 
20,000] editorialized (11/17): 
 
"... Allowing Beijing's exclusionary position to gain the upper hand 
even before serious discussions on a FTAAP have even begun would 
place Taiwan in an extremely disadvantageous position, even if 
Washington and, perhaps, Japan push for an inclusive concept.  At 
stake is the nature and degree of Taiwan's continued liberal 
integration into Asian economic trade and investment flows and 
involvement in human security and other issues of regional concern. 
 
Since nearly 54 percent of Taiwan's merchandise trade takes place in 
Asia, any hindrance to our involvement in regional and global bodies 
that make the rules governing such trade and resolving related 
disputes constitutes a direct threat to our economic prosperity. 
Hence, we support the upcoming declaration by the APEC leadership 
for the resumption of negotiations for the WTO's Doha Round and for 
Taiwan's own active involvement in helping to draft a package of 
'model measures' that can help standardize the plethora of bilateral 
and regional trade agreements and thus reduce administrative 
barriers or transaction costs to our small and medium enterprises. 
..." 
 
YOUNG