VZCZCXRO3292
PP RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHBJ #0834/01 0890436
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 300436Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3166
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA 0168
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 000834 
 
STATE PASS USTR 
DEPT FOR EEB/TPP/BA, EAP/CM, EAP/EP, WHA/AND, WHA/EPSC 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETRD EINV PREL PHUM ELAB CH CO
SUBJECT: COLOMBIAN VIEWS ON TRADE RELATIONS WITH CHINA 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY.  Chinese investor interest in Colombia has risen 
rapidly 
since the November 2008 publication of China's white paper on Latin 
 
America, Colombian diplomats told Emboff.  Colombia is wary of 
Chinese 
motives and what it sees as lax Chinese environmental and labor 
standards.  However, Colombia needs new economic partners, 
particularly 
given the lack of progress on a U.S.-Colombia Free Trade agreement 
(FTA), 
they said.  Colombia is mainly interested in Chinese investment, and 
not 
in an FTA with China, since the two countries' export products 
compete. 
President Uribe's decision to host the third annual China-Latin 
America 
Entrepreneurs Summit in Bogota in November also signals Colombia's 
growing interest in China. 
End Summary. 
 
CHINESE INTEREST IN COLOMBIA, POTENTIAL HAIER INVESTMENT 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) Chinese interest in Colombia has picked up substantially 
since 
China's November 2008 publication of a white paper outlining an 
updated 
policy on Latin America, Colombian Commercial Attache Alejandro Ossa 
 
told EmbOff on March 18.  Chinese companies that previously were not 
 
interested in the Colombian market are now showing very active 
interest 
as if responding to a clear directive, he said, citing Haier as an 
example.  After Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez visited China in 
2006, 
Haier and other Chinese companies like Huawei were instructed by the 
 
Chinese government to invest in Venezuela.  Contacts at Haier had 
told 
the Colombian Attache that they had been reluctant to invest in 
Venezuela and therefore dragged their feet.  However, they are now 
in 
discussions about investing in Colombia instead.  Haier considers 
Colombia to be more stable than Venezuela.  Because its economic 
policies are "more open" than Venezuela's, they believe Colombia to 
be a 
better base for targeting the rest of Latin America.  A Haier 
delegation 
accompanied Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping to Venezuela and 
Colombia 
on his February 2009 visit to Latin America. 
 
COLOMBIAN FRUSTRATION WITH U.S. FTA 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) Ossa said that Chinese interest in Latin America is driven 
 
primarily by a desire to expand China's influence.  It is clear that 
the 
Chinese are willing to enter into deals without strong economic 
benefits. 
Unlike the United States, Beijing makes no demands, he said. 
Colombia 
is looking for additional economic partners, particularly as there 
is 
resentment over the fact that the U.S.-Colombian FTA has still not 
been 
approved by Congress.  Ossa added that Colombia resents that human 
rights issues have been a major impediment to the U.S.-Colombia FTA, 
 
while many believed human rights were largely ignored during 
Secretary 
Clinton's February visit to China. 
 
COLOMBIA NOT INTERESTED IN FTA, ONLY INVESTMENT 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Unlike Chile, Colombia is not interested in an FTA with 
China 
because Sino-Colombian trade is not complementary.  On the contrary, 
 
BEIJING 00000834  002 OF 002 
 
 
the 
two countries' products compete. Ossa says that Colombia is not 
willing 
to be "walked all over" by China "like Africa and Venezuela."  Ossa 
 
admitted that Colombian attempts to increase some product exports, 
in 
particular fruit, have been unsuccessful due to the undeveloped 
nature 
of Colombian food and safety regulatory agencies. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Colombia is interested in Chinese investment, Ossa said. 
In 
particular, the Colombian government is interested in Chinese 
investment 
in infrastructure, chemicals, automobile plants and consumer 
electronics. 
They are less interested in investment in mining or hydrocarbons 
because 
they are suspicious of China's environmental and labor practices, 
and 
are unwilling to make concessions on those fronts.  (Note: Colombian 
 
labor laws require companies to employ 10 Colombians for every 
foreigner 
hired. End note.) 
 
COLOMBIA TO HOST CHINA LATIN AMERICA BUSINESS SUMMIT 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶6. (U) During the APEC meeting in Peru last year, President Uribe 
and 
President Hu discussed the possibility of Colombia hosting the third 
 
China-Latin America Entrepreneurs Summit.  It was officially 
announced 
in February 2009 that the summit will be held in Bogota in November 
¶2009. 
Ossa noted that this was another signal of how interested Colombia 
is in 
beefing up its economic relations with China. 
 
 
PICCUTA