VZCZCXYZ0009
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHIN #0515/01 0650950
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 060950Z MAR 07
FM AIT TAIPEI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4340
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 6428
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 7679

UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 000515 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/TC, EAP/PA, EAP/PD - LLOYD NEIGHBORS 
DEPARTMENT PASS AIT/WASHINGTON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO TW
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: U.S.-CHINA-TAIWAN RELATIONS 
 
 
¶1. Summary:  On March 6, the impact generated by President Chen 
Shui-bian's "Four Wants and One Without" remarks Sunday continued to 
receive considerable coverage in the Taiwan media.  The pro-status 
quo "China Times" ran a front-page banner headline that said "Bian's 
Call for Taiwan Independence Has Severely Traumatized Taiwan's Stock 
Market."  The pro-independence "Liberty Times," however, front-paged 
and attributed the tumble of the Taiwan stock market Monday to the 
fall in other Asian stock markets. The same paper also ran a banner 
headline on page two that read "Presidential Office: the Pursuit of 
Independence Does Not Violate the 'Four Nos' Pledge." 
 
¶2. Several papers editorialized on President Chen's "Four Wants and 
One Without" remarks.  An editorial in the mass-circulation "Apple 
Daily" totally disregarded Chen's remarks and said he just made the 
announcement to pander to his independence supporters and also to 
satirize former President Lee Teng-hui.  A "Liberty Times" 
commentary, however, said Chen made the remarks to highlight 
Taiwan's position in the new global strategic situation.  A "China 
Times" editorial said Chen has seen through all the tricks that 
Washington can play with regard to his 'surprise' remarks and that 
the best Washington will do is to issue a statement in response to 
Chen's "Four Wants and One Without" remarks.  A column in the 
pro-unification "United Daily News" said Chen tried to play various 
tricks by turning the "Four Nos" into "Four Wants," but actually he 
is holding on tightly to the basis of "maintaining the status quo." 
A separate "United Daily News" analysis discussed Chen's behavior 
pattern in dealing with the United States after he made 'surprise' 
remarks.  An editorial in the limited-circulation, conservative, 
pro-unification, English-language "China Post" said, "[a]ccustomed 
to his habit of double-talk, Chen's enemies in Beijing, uneasy 
friends in Washington and critics at home appear unprovoked by his 
seeming retreat from his long-standing no-independence pledge."  An 
editorial in the limited-circulation, pro-independence, 
English-language "Taiwan News," on the other hand, discussed China's 
growing defense budget and said, "the United States itself also 
deserves criticism for its lack of political courage to defend 
international justice and uphold the interests of fellow 
democracies."  End summary. 
 
A) "Earthen Crock Sounding Like Thunder - an Unworthy Man in a High 
Position" 
 
The mass-circulation "Apple Daily" [circulation: 520,000] 
editorialized (3/6): 
 
"... No one takes A-Bian's remarks seriously any more.  The United 
States, as usual, spanked A-Bian - a move that was meant to show 
China.  China, on the other hand, was disinclined to take those 
remarks seriously; as long as Washington has showed its stance, 
Beijing would simply toss off some tough remarks and act like a 
hoodlum for a while, then the whole thing would be over.  It was the 
people in Taiwan that were panicked and confused, full of anxiety 
and complaints.  The [reactions of] the opposition party were of 
course expected, but the local stock market even went so far to take 
A-Bian's words seriously -- it plunged together with the tumble of 
the global stock markets.  This is really pathetic and ridiculous. 
 
 
"It goes without saying that, among the Four Wants, everything 
except 'development' - independence, name change, and a new 
constitution - will have to be approved by the Legislative Yuan 
first.  Is it possible [to realize them all]?  [We] have yet to 
mention the U.S. attitude.  What is there to be afraid of with a 
lame-duck president who has less than a year left of his term, since 
even God cannot do what Chen has preached?  He just made those 
remarks to entertain and pander to those old men at the Formosan 
Association for Public Affairs (FAPA) and also to mock Lee Teng-hui. 
..." 
 
B) "Preventing War Ranks Higher Than Preventing Independence" 
 
Strategic scholar Wang Kun-yi noted in the pro-independence "Liberty 
Times" [circulation: 500,000] (3/6): 
 
"... Judging from the current international situation, the 
resolution of the nuclear crisis on the Korean Peninsula seemed on 
the surface to be the dawning of peace in East Asia, but it is in 
fact the start of another crisis.  Washington was eager to yield to 
Pyongyang mainly because it was China that is really in charge of 
the North Korean nuclear crisis.  The United States, as a result, 
did not want to clash with China.  The field on which Washington 
really wants to play crisis games with China is the Taiwan Strait, 
because this is the place where the United States can exercise 
control. ... 
 
"Under such a new strategic situation and atmosphere, the fact that 
A-Bian tossed off the 'Four Wants and One Without' announcement was 
simply a move designated to highlight Taiwan's position in the new 
strategic layout. ..." 
 
 
C) "We Really Don't Feel Like Dancing to His Tune, But [We] Can 
Hardly Avoid It" 
 
The pro-status quo "China Times" [circulation: 400,000] 
editorialized (3/6): 
 
"... As for the reactions of Beijing and Washington, those are not 
too difficult to deal with, either.  It would be better that Beijing 
overreacts, which will then become an excellent campaign aid for the 
Green camp.  What about Washington?  It is easy to deceive it as 
long as there is some artfully and sophisticatedly woven rhetoric 
for [Taiwan's representative to the U.S.] David Lee to say.  Still 
remember the upheaval of 'abolition of the National Unification 
Council' last year?  The uproar then raised tensions between 
Washington, Beijing and Taipei for a while, but now that that is 
over, no one seems to remember it.  A-Bian could transit the United 
States as smoothly as before, and Washington also sold weapons to 
Taiwan as usual.  Nothing has changed!  A-Bian has seen through all 
the tricks that Washington can play; the best Washington can do is 
to make a statement.  Over the past six years, starting from 
[Chen's] 'one country on either side of the Taiwan Strait' remarks, 
writing a new constitution, holding a referendum on buying missiles 
to the cessation of the functions of the National Unification 
Council, what else could the U.S. authorities do about Bian except 
to issue a statement or slightly punish him during his transits? 
This time, when Bian has announced the 'Four Wants and One Without,' 
the most Washington can do is just to issue a statement to respond 
to Beijing's pressure.  At most, it will just reiterate Chen's 'Four 
Nos' pledge and add '[we'll] take it seriously', and that will be 
all. ..." 
 
D) "The Cheap 'Four Wants and One Without'" 
 
The "Black and White" column in the pro-unification "United Daily 
News" [circulation: 400,000] noted (3/6): 
 
"Chen Shui-bian cried out 'Four Wants and One Without.'  Those 
Taiwan independence supporters will likely be disappointed if they 
rejoice over the fact that Chen has finally become braver and 
decided to walk out of the framework of the 'Four Nos and One 
Without.'  According to the timely interpretation provided by people 
at the Presidential Office, the so-called '[Taiwan] wants 
independence' means [Taiwan] 'wants to maintain Taiwan's 
independence status.'  Chen did not move a step forward, nor did he 
violate the 'Four Nos and One Without' pledge. 
 
"No one knows Chen better than Lee Teng-hui!  It was completely 
correct when Lee said Chen can only run the country by shouting 
slogans, and he was perfectly right when he said Chen is afraid of 
the Americans; so is he right about saying that Taiwan independence 
is a bogus issue?  Chen deliberately played tricks by turning 'Four 
Nos' into 'Four Wants,' but in reality, he is still holding tightly 
to the basis of 'maintaining the status quo.' ..." 
 
E) "Set Fire First Then Put it out Later: to Contest with Lee, Bian 
Does Short Trading and Tries to Boost His Accomplishments" 
 
Journalist Huang Ya-shih wrote in an analysis in the pro-unification 
"United Daily News" [circulation: 400,000] (3/6): 
 
"... Ever since President Chen came to power, he has usually tossed 
off significant remarks on major holidays or at gatherings with 
pro-independence supporters in a 'surprise' way to challenge the 
United States' bottom line for cross-Strait policy.  But what Chen 
normally would do in the past was to wait for a 'brewing period' 
after he made the remarks; he would 'stay unmoved' for a while, 
regardless of the turmoil inside and outside Taiwan, be it protests 
from the United States or pressure from China, and regardless of the 
tumble in the local stock market.  Then he would seek to modify or 
justify his remarks at occasions when he met with foreign guests. 
 
"The price for Chen's 'act first and report afterwards' pattern was 
that he had to swallow and tolerate the increasingly severe public 
statements coming from the United States.  But as long as he could 
survive and try to explain to Washington privately via national 
security or diplomatic channels, and consequently wait until the 
United States had no alternative but to 'accept' his remarks, it 
would be a 'big achievement' for him.  The combination of a 
referendum and the presidential elections in 2004 was a typical 
example.  Until now, Bian has often complained to his independence 
supporters about how 'unimaginable' the U.S. pressure was then and 
how he had 'endured and suffered all disgrace and insults' to create 
an unprecedented history for holding Taiwan's first-ever referendum. 
..." 
 
F) "Chen Revoking His Pledges?" 
 
The conservative, pro-unification, English-language "China Post" 
 
[circulation: 30,000] editorialized (3/6): 
 
"President Chen Shui-bian, whose time in office ends in May next 
year, again has used strong pro-independence rhetoric to provoke 
China and the U.S. to shore up his fundamentalist base ahead of the 
December legislative elections. ...  The 'four wants and one no' 
remark was in sharp contrast to his famous 'four noes and one not' 
pledge of no Taiwan independence.  Accustomed to his habit of 
double-talk, Chen's enemies in Beijing, uneasy friends in Washington 
and critics at home appear unprovoked by his seemingly retreat from 
his long-standing no-independence pledge.  The U.S. has made no 
comment yet.  Beijing responded with a caution for the media: 
'Don't listen to local leaders.'  So electioneering slogans are 
lies." 
 
G) "Heed the Warning in PRC War Budget" 
 
The pro-independence, English-language "Taiwan News" [circulation: 
20,000] editorialized (3/6): 
 
"The announcement by People's Republic of China Premier Wen Jaibao 
that Beijing will hike its military budget by another 17.8 percent 
this year to over 350 billion yuan and the PRC's stiff warning to 
the United States not to sell arms to Taiwan constitute grave 
warnings of 'clear and present' threats to our national security 
that must receive the full attention of our governing and opposition 
parties as well as Washington. ...  The pan-KMT camp's drive to 
delay passage of the procurement of P-3C Orion anti-submarine 
aircraft, Patriot III-C anti-missile missiles and a few conventional 
submarines achieves their strategic goal of constructing a tacit 
alliance with the PRC's ruling Chinese Communist Party for the sake 
of ending the democratic control of Taiwan by the Taiwan people. 
 
"However, the United States itself also deserves criticism for its 
lack of political courage to defend international justice and uphold 
the interests of fellow democracies.  Under the 'unilateralist' 
rightist Republican Party administration of President George W. Bush 
and its obsessive 'war on terrorism,' Washington has striven to 
enhance cooperation with the authoritarian PRC in a futile effort to 
use Beijing to 'constrain' the even more dictatorial North Korea 
regime or curb China's ballooning trade surplus with the U.S., 
regardless of the resultant sacrifice of Taiwan's legitimate 
interests.  As a result, the U.S. is losing credibility in the 
region.  A survey conducting by the private Institute of National 
Policy Research last March showed that 27.1 percent of the 
correspondents had good feelings toward Japan, Taiwan's former 
colonial ruler, compared to 22.7 percent who had good feelings about 
the U.S., the touted leader of the world democratic camp." 
 
YOUNG