VZCZCXRO0211
OO RUEHCN RUEHGH
DE RUEHBJ #0232/01 0281035
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 281035Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7817
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUEHKG/AMEMBASSY KINGSTON 0001
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL 0725
RUEHTA/AMEMBASSY ASTANA 0121
RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO 0882
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS 1888

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 000232 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PHUM PARM MASS EINT TINT SENV CH AF JM
 
SUBJECT: JANUARY 28, 2010 MFA PRESS BRIEFING: TALKS WITH DALAI LAMA 
REPRESENTATIVES, EU ARMS EMBARGO, U.S. STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS, 
AFGHSANISTAN CONFERENCE, GAO ZHISHENG 
 
¶1. Key points at the January 28 MFA press briefing were: 
 
-- Chinese officials will meet with representatives of the Dalai 
Lama for talks in the "near term." 
 
-- The EU arms embargo against China was the result of "political 
prejudice" and China demanded that it be lifted. 
 
-- Requests for information on the whereabouts of rights activist 
Gao Zhisheng were "unreasonable" and journalists had no right to 
make such requests. 
 
Talks with Dalai Lama's Special Envoy 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. Ma stated that talks between the Chinese government and 
representatives of the Dalai Lama would take place "in the near 
term."  He would not confirm whether the talks were currently 
ongoing or where they would take place.  Ma said the Tibet issue was 
clearly an internal affair of China and that the international 
community, including the United States, recognized Tibet as an 
inalienable part of China.   He referred additional questions on the 
subject to the "competent authorities" for more specific 
information. 
 
EU Arms Embargo on China 
------------------------ 
 
¶4. China had seen reports of comments by Spanish officials that 
Spain would like to use its presidency to begin discussions on 
lifting the EU arms embargo on China, Ma said.  China's position on 
the EU arms embargo was consistent - China demanded an end to the 
embargo because it represented "political prejudice" against China 
and was contrary to "world trends."  Lifting the embargo would 
remove this issue as an obstacle in EU-PRC relations. 
 
State of the Union Speech 
------------------------- 
 
¶5. Asked about President Obama's State of the Union address, Ma 
replied that China was "looking into it."  The U.S. was the country 
with the greatest influence in the world, Ma said, and China hoped 
that its policies would continue to contribute to peace. 
Cooperation between the United States and China continued to be 
important to world peace. 
 
Afghanistan Conference; Clinton-Yang Meeting 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶6. Ma confirmed that Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi was in London to 
participate in the London Conference on Afghanistan.  FM Yang would 
engage in in-depth discussions and an objective review of the 
situation in Afghanistan which would help increase coordination to 
help Afghanistan with its reconstruction efforts, Ma said. 
 
¶7. Ma confirmed that Secretary Clinton and FM Yang would meet in 
London on January 28 to discuss US-China relations and international 
and regional issues of mutual interest.  Ma had no comment on 
whether internet issues would be discussed. 
 
Google 
------- 
 
¶8.  Ma had no comment on whether the Chinese government would engage 
in talks with Google, adding that China's position on the issue was 
well known. 
 
Kazakhstan: Cross-border River Issues 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶9. China attached great importance to partnership with Kazakhstan 
and to fair and reasonable protection of natural resources, Ma 
stated.  China and Kazakhstan had signed agreements on cross-border 
river management and maintained close cooperation on the issue of 
cross-border rivers.  China supported sustainable development, 
respected other countries' rights and interests, and the recognized 
the responsibilities of upstream-river countries with regard to 
their impact on downstream-river countries. 
 
DPRK: American Detained, Artillery Exchange 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶10. China had seen reports that an American citizen had been 
detained by North Korea, but Ma said he was not aware of the 
 
BEIJING 00000232  002 OF 002 
 
 
specifics of the case.  Asked whether the individual had entered 
China legally Ma had no comment. 
 
¶11. China had taken note of reports of artillery exchanges between 
the DPRK and South Korea and hoped that the parties involved would 
make efforts to maintain the peace and stability of the Korean 
Peninsula. 
 
Whereabouts of Gao Zhisheng 
--------------------------- 
 
¶12.  The BBC asked for a commitment by Ma to provide information on 
the whereabouts of lawyer and rights activist Gao Zhisheng, missing 
since February 2009.  Ma responded that the request was 
"unreasonable."  China was a country ruled by law with 1.3 billion 
people and the BBC had "no right" to ask such a question.  Calling 
the request "absurd," Ma refused to discuss the issue further. 
 
Sri Lanka 
--------- 
 
¶13. China had seen the results of Presidential elections in Sri 
Lanka and had taken note of the re-election of Sri Lankan president 
Mahinda Rajapaksa.  As a close and friendly neighbor, China hoped 
for stability in Sri Lanka and for an enduring and lasting peace in 
that country. 
 
Jamaican Visit to China 
----------------------- 
 
¶14. Ma announced that, at the invitation of Premier Wan Jiabao, 
Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding will visit China February 1 to 
5, his first visit to China since taking office in 2007.  During the 
visit, the two sides will sign economic and trade agreements. 
 
HUNTSMAN