VZCZCXRO5283
RR RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHBJ #3152/01 3262315
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 222315Z NOV 09
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6905
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RHMFIUU/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 003152 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/CM, EAP/PA, EAP/PD, C 
HQ PACOM FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ADVISOR (J007) 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PREL ECON KMDR OPRC CH
 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: PRESIDENT OBAMA'S VISIT TO ASIA, CHINA-U.S. 
TRADE, AFGHANISTAN 
 
-------------------- 
  Editorial Quotes 
-------------------- 
 
¶1.  PRESIDENT OBAMA'S VISIT TO ASIA 
 
a.  "Obama's strategic concerns in focusing on Asia" 
 
The Beijing-based newspaper sponsored by official intellectual 
publication Guangming Daily and Guangdong Provincial official 
publication Nanfang Daily The Beijing News (Xin Jing Bao)(11/20)(pg 
A02): "Obama's claim that the United States is a 'Pacific country' 
seems designed not only to please Asian countries, but also to 
bluntly express the United States' strategic priorities, which have 
shifted from an inordinate focus on Europe to a focus on Asia.  In 
his tour of Asia, President Obama gave people the impression that he 
is modest.  The China-U.S. Joint Statement was a high-profile 
product of Obama's low-profile trip.  The domestic and international 
challenges confronted by Obama have caused him to put more emphasis 
on cooperation with Asia.  Obama's strategy is to ensure that East 
Asia is prosperous while West Asia is peaceful, which will benefit 
U.S. interests in Asia.  Obama's comments about the U.S. not 
containing China and welcoming a larger role for China in the 
international system show that during his administration China-U.S. 
relations have started on a high level and will continue to run on a 
high level." 
 
b.  "U.S.-South Korea Free Trade Agreement is the touchstone of 
Obama's trade stance" 
 
Guangdong 21st Century Publishing Company Ltd.'s business newspaper 
21st Century Business Herald (21Shiji Jingji Baodao)(11/20)(pg 2): 
"The U.S. Congress did not approve the U.S.-South Korea Free Trade 
Agreement, which was signed in 2007, until now.  South Korea's 
position on the issue is mild on the surface but tough at the core 
by holding to the position that the FTA will not be renegotiated. 
South Korea did not sit and wait for 'hand-outs' from the United 
States, but instead recently signed a Free Trade Agreement with 
Europe.  The United States' attitude towards the U.S.-South Korea 
FTA will serve as an indication of the Obama administration's 
position on free trade.  Obama knows he has to face mid-term 
elections next November, which is less than one year away.  If he 
does not push for the passage of the U.S.-South Korea FTA before the 
elections, then it will be delayed until 2011.  That would be four 
years after the signing of the agreement, and would clearly 
demonstrate Obama's anti-free trade position.  The U.S.-South Korea 
FTA is clearly the touchstone of Obama's trade stance." 
 
¶2.  CHINA-U.S. TRADE 
 
"Open high-tech exports to boost China-U.S. trade" 
 
The official intellectual publication Guangming Daily (Guangming 
Ribao)(11/20)(pg 8): "U.S. restrictions on high-tech exports to 
China are one important reason for the trade imbalance between the 
United States and China.  Export restrictions are harming both sides 
and benefiting no one.  This policy is in fact a relic of the Cold 
War.  More insightful American intellectuals agree that unilateral 
restrictions on high-tech exports will harm the United States' own 
interests.  If the United States eases its restrictions on high-tech 
exports to China, the balance of trade will improve and trade and 
economic cooperation between the two countries will expand.  This is 
a far more effective way for the United States to address the trade 
imbalance than just being obsessed with the dollar-yuan exchange 
rate.  Unilateral barriers in this field will inevitably harm trade 
flows between the two countries." 
 
¶3.  AFGHANISTAN 
 
"Stability in Afghanistan is important for China" 
 
The official Communist Party international news publication Global 
Times (Huanqiu Shibao)(11/20)(pg 7): "Afghanistan's stability 
influences not only China's economic interests, but also its 
interests in the War on Terror and other regional situations.  A 
stable Afghanistan will help China achieve its broader regional 
interests and guarantee the survival of the government in Pakistan, 
China's traditional ally.  Chinese experts said that China-U.S. 
relations are entering a period of stability accompanied by China's 
rise.  Even if the United States continues to exert influence in 
Afghanistan, it will not pose much of a threat to China. 
Afghanistan is currently more of a burden than a negotiating chip 
for the United States.  However, an extremist government in 
Afghanistan would pose a serious threat to neighboring countries, 
affecting in particular stability in China's Xinjiang Province.  At 
this point, stability in Afghanistan is very important for China." 
 
 
 
BEIJING 00003152  002 OF 002 
 
 
HUNTSMAN