VZCZCXYZ0001
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHIN #0938/01 2170936
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 050936Z AUG 09
FM AIT TAIPEI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2051
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 9318
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 0751

UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 000938 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/TC, EAP/P, EAP/PD - NIDA EMMONS 
DEPARTMENT PASS AIT/WASHINGTON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO TW
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: U.S.-TAIWAN RELATIONS, NORTH KOREA 
 
¶1. Summary:  Taiwan's major Chinese-language dailies focused news 
coverage August 5 on the legal cases involving former President Chen 
Shui-bian and his family; on the Taiwan government's move to take 
over a financially troubled local insurance company; on the looming 
water shortage for Taiwan; and on former U.S. President Bill 
Clinton's sudden visit to North Korea.  In terms of editorials and 
commentaries, an editorial in the pro-independence "Liberty Times" 
discussed the fact that no U.S. senator has visited Taiwan since 
President Ma Ying-jeou assumed office.  The article speculated that 
it was either because Washington has doubts about the Ma 
administration's pro-China policy, or the Ma administration does not 
want to deepen its relations with the United States.  With regard to 
former U.S. President Bill Clinton's visit to North Korea, a 
"Liberty Times" op-ed piece said Clinton's mission is to break the 
deadlock between Washington and Pyongyang and to handle the nuclear 
issue and missile crisis on the Korean Peninsula.  An analysis in 
the pro-unification "United Daily News" said Clinton's visit has 
done Pyongyang a big favor by offering the latter a chance out of 
its predicament.  End summary. 
 
¶2. U.S.-Taiwan Relations 
 
"The Ma Administration's Befriending [Taiwan's] Enemy Country and 
Alienating Itself from Its Allies Will Ruin Taiwan's Sovereignty" 
 
The pro-independence "Liberty Times" [circulation: 700,000] 
editorialized (8/5): 
 
"It is reported that seventeen members of the U.S. House of 
Representatives and two state governors have visited Taiwan since 
President Ma Ying-jeou assumed office, but no senator has yet to 
visit Taiwan.  In the United States, senators are political 
heavyweights, and many U.S. presidents had been senators [before 
they became president].  As a result, it has always been the focus 
of our country's diplomatic work to invite senators to visit Taiwan 
in an attempt to increase their understanding of the island.  The Ma 
administration's performance in this area, however, has not been 
very remarkable as of now.  One possibility may be that the U.S. 
side has doubts about the Ma administration's pro-China policy, so 
the senators hung back and would not visit Taiwan; another 
possibility may be that the Ma administration has no intention at 
all to spend time deepening its relations with the United States, so 
Ma did not proactively try his best to invite the senators to come 
to Taiwan. 
 
"President Ma brags about how his 'diplomatic truce' [policy] has 
encouraged both sides of the Taiwan Strait to resume peaceful talks 
and how it has put an end to the fierce diplomatic fights across the 
Taiwan Strait.  But in reality, it has sent Taiwan's sovereignty 
into a coma of 'diplomatic shock.'  Over the past year, the Ma 
administration has kept its distance from the countries that are 
friendly with Taiwan; by contrast, China, which has been bent on 
annexing and destroying the Republic of China, has been viewed by 
the Ma administration as a good friend.  The so-called 'cross-Strait 
relations surpassing everything' explains the Ma administration's 
overall policy of befriending [Taiwan's] enemy country while 
alienating itself from its allies.  This is the fundamental reason 
why Taiwan's sovereignty is in a crisis. ..." 
 
¶3. North Korea 
 
A) "Why Does [Bill] Clinton Suddenly Visit North Korea?" 
 
Former National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Parris 
Chang opined in the pro-independence "Liberty Times" [circulation: 
700,000] (8/5): 
 
"... This is the first time that [former U.S. President] Bill 
Clinton has been on an official errand.  Despite the fact that his 
wife, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, has been personally 
involved in the incident of the two [detained] journalists, Bill 
Clinton's special trip to Pyongyang may not necessarily be aimed at 
seeking a 'special pardon' for them.  A more important mission for 
his trip to Pyongyang is to break the deadlock between Washington 
and Pyongyang and to handle the nuclear issue and missile crisis on 
the Korean Peninsula. ... 
 
"The United States expects China to try its best to impose pressure 
on Pyongyang, but Beijing has other plans; it will not and cannot be 
a 'cat's paw' for the United States. ... North Korea has been [U.S. 
President Barack] Obama's biggest and hardest challenge and test 
since he took over the helm.  We are waiting eagerly to see what 
ingenious plans Clinton can come up with." 
 
 
B) "Bill Clinton Offers a Chance out of Predicament; Will Kim Jong 
Il Do Him a Favor [by Releasing the Detained U.S. Journalists?" 
 
Tokyo correspondent Chen Shih-chang wrote in an analysis in the 
 
pro-unification "United Daily News" [circulation: 400,000] (8/5): 
 
"... This is a clever move by the Obama administration towards North 
Korea. ...  What is more significant is that North Korean Leader Kim 
Jong Il has already received Bill Clinton Tuesday evening. ... 
Kim's appearance could instantly remove all the doubts that the 
outside world has had about North Korea, and Clinton's visit has 
actually done a big favor to Pyongyang, offering the latter a chance 
to get out of the current predicament. 
 
"Judging from Washington's position, it is out of humanitarian 
concerns that Clinton has visited North Korea seeking the release of 
two U.S. reporters.  Pyongyang, [on the other hand,] hopes to amend 
the cease fire agreement and establish diplomatic ties with the 
United States, and it also hopes that [Washington] would remove its 
economic sanctions on North Korea.  These are the three big wishes 
on Pyongyang's side, and it appears that Clinton's visit has opened 
a small door for communication between the two sides. ... " 
 
WANG