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SECDEF WASHINGTON DC//OSD/ISA/EAP//

C O N F I D E N T I A L SEOUL 001145 

SIPDIS 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/21/2018

TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR KS KN

SUBJECT: GNP LEADERSHIP REACHES OUT TO U.S. ON BEEF 
Classified By: AMB Alexander S. Vershbow.  Reasons 1.4 (b,d). 
¶1.  (C) Summary:  On June 6 the Ambassador met with leaders

of the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) to discuss ongoing

public outcry over the U.S.-ROK agreement to lift the Korean

ban on U.S. beef imports.  GNP chairman Kang Jae-sup, who

requested the meeting earlier in the week, said the party was

concerned about the possible ramifications the protests could

have for President Lee Myung-bak’s efforts to restore the

bilateral relationship.  Kang said he understood that

changing the agreement was difficult but that something needs

to be done to address the public’s and the opposition party’s

“obsession” with renegotiation.  The Ambassador assured the

GNP leaders that the U.S. understood the sensitivity of the

issue; while the beef agreement was a sound scientific

agreement that did not need to be renegotiated, the U.S.

understood that Korean consumer concerns were real and was

working to address them without renegotiating.  We hoped the

GNP (and ideally the opposition United Democratic Party)

would emphasize that what matters is an outcome that

addresses people’s concerns about over-30-month beef rather

than the method used to get there.  Kang raised the

possibility of sending a bipartisan National Assembly

delegation to Washington but said the United Democratic Party

(UDP) has not yet signed on; UDP chairman Sohn Hak-kyu, Kang

said, is no longer taking his calls.  End Summary. 
—————–

Comments to Media

—————– 
¶2.  (U) At the start of the meeting, GNP Chairman Kang

delivered an opening statement in front of about 60

reporters.  He noted that beef was a sensitive item in Korean

culture, and reflects sentiment that cannot be explained by

science alone.  The two governments had been making faithful

efforts to resolve the issue.  Kang urged the Ambassador to

fully report on the situation to Washington and help make

every effort to smoothly resolve the situation.  The

Ambassador thanked Kang for inviting him to meet, said he was

sensitive to the Korean public’s concern, and appreciated the

cultural heritage of Korea and place of beef in it.  He

explained that he had been working hard with Washington to

try to find a solution that can address public concerns.  (At

this point the press departed).  (NOTE:  Substance of press

opportunity was coordinated with Kang’s staff beforehand. End

note.) 
———————————

Protests Possible Throughout June

——————————— 
¶3.  (C) In the private meeting, Kang Jae-sup pointed out

that, since the first candlelight vigil was held in early

May, there have been 27 such vigils with up to 60,000

participants. (Note: Estimates of participation in the

protests vary.  Organizers claim 100,000 showed up to last

weekend’s protests, while the police claim the number was

closer to 40,000. End note.)  More rallies will be held over

the three-day holiday weekend with an even bigger rally on

June 10, the anniversary of the beginning of the 1987

pro-Democracy protests.  The problem, Kang said, is that

these protests have taken on a symbolic meaning, with

candlelight vigils having a symbolic meaning in U.S.-Korean

relations. 
¶4.  (C) Kang pointed out that the month of June is full of

anniversaries that could cause ongoing problems.  In addition

to the June 10 anniversary, June 13 is the anniversary of the

day when two middle school girls were struck and killed by a

vehicle operated by U.S. servicemen in 2002, and June 15 is

the anniversary of the first inter-Korean summit in 2000.

The month culminates with President Bush’s planned visit to

Korea, making it likely that protests will continue. 
————————–

Impact on Bilateral Issues

————————– 
¶5.  (C) Kang said the source of these protests is complex.

He did not believe the U.S. government was responsible for

the current situation, but he worried that the continuation

of the protests could carry over to other bilateral issues.

Representative Im Tae-hee, also in attendance, underscored

this concern.  Im said that U.S.-ROK relations had only

recently been restored and we should work hard to keep

relations on track.  The Ambassador agreed that the two

governments should work together to resolve the issue as

quickly as possible.  He was dismayed to see Korean

housewives holding up placards asking the U.S. not to “force

Koreans to eat mad cows,” as if an ally of 60 years would

intentionally cause harm.  It was important to resolve this,

because more than beef was at stake — we needed to move

forward in an effort to get the KORUS FTA ratified this year,

and continue building our partnership. 
¶6.  (C) Kang said he understood that private sector importers

and exporters were making efforts to address public concerns

about over-30-month beef, but he said it was the party’s hope

that the two governments could find some way to guarantee

that, either through re-negotiation or additional

negotiations (he noted the specific terms were not as

important as a government role).  The ROKG understood the

difficulty of renegotiating, but the ruling party had to find

a way to address the UDP’s and the public’s “obsession” about

renegotiating the agreement, Kang explained. 
¶7.  (C) The Ambassador replied that the existing agreement is

a good one, and in our view doesn’t require renegotiation

since it is based on science, which should be the basis of

trade between our two countries (in addition, renegotiation

would also hurt U.S. negotiations with other countries — the

same countries Korea is asking us to reach OIE-consistent

beef agreements with).  The U.S. understood, however, that

the consumer concerns right now are real, and was working to

find a way to address them.  The Ambassador expressed his

hope that the GNP leadership would be able to convince the

Korean public that getting the right outcome was more

important than the means.  Kang said that with the focus on

“renegotiation,” some kind of government role in guaranteeing

any private sector arrangement would help resolve the

political situation. 
¶8.  (C) Im said the key was to resolve public concern about

beef from cattle over 30 months of age.  Kang said that he

understood that the private sector is trying to voluntarily

restrict beef imports from cattle over 30 months of age.  He

expressed his hope that importers and exporters would take

into consideration the wishes of consumers.  Ambassador

explained that we are trying to find a way to address those

concerns, and, while requesting that it not be made public,

said there was ongoing discussion of some steps that could be

taken to address Korean concerns about beef over 30 months

old. 
—————–

Opposition Antics

—————– 
¶9.  (C) Kang said the ROKG hopes to send a bipartisan

National Assembly delegation to Washington early next week to

discuss beef and the KORUS FTA.  The UDP, however, has not

yet agreed to participate.  Kang said he had met with UDP

leader Sohn Hak-kyu shortly after the vigils began.  Kang

offered to cancel a lawsuit currently pending against the UDP

if the opposition would cooperate on the beef issue.  Kang

said the UDP refused the offer and that Sohn will no longer

take Kang’s calls.  The UDP seemed determined to drive a

wedge between Korea and the United States.  The Ambassador

said he was distressed by the opposition party’s attitude.

Noting that his comments should be kept private, he commented

that the UDP should think about Korea’s reputation in the

world as a government based on the rule of law rather than on

protests and propaganda. 
——-

Comment

——- 
¶10.  (C) GNP staff coordinated with us before the meeting,

and said the GNP’s goals were: (1) to show that the GNP was

trying to appear proactive to a disenchanted public; and (2)

to obtain direct confirmation that the U.S. is not prepared

to renegotiate the beef agreement (which they understood

based on ROG briefings is a non-starter).  In that respect,

this meeting stuck to the script, and Kang showed a readiness

to avoid inflaming the situation by not asking particularly

pointed questions about beef in front of the cameras (or at

all).  Hopefully, this will help enable the GNP to build

support for whatever solution is reached (which will clearly

not meet the demands of the street activists).  While the GNP

has a majority in the new National Assembly session and won’t

need UDP support to pass legislation, in the past week the

GNP has been trying to be responsive to UDP concerns to win

their cooperation on organization of the new National

Assembly session.  That effort appears to have been

unsuccessful. 
VERSHBOW