The scrapped national broadband network (NBN) deal entered into by the then-Arroyo administration with China's ZTE Corp. was a low point in the relations between China and the Philippines. But the aborted project was all but forgotten amid the diplomatic niceties of President Noynoy Aquino’s state visit to China last week. A 2008 US diplomatic cable recently released by WikiLeaks reveals the scandal was followed closely by the US Embassy in Manila as a window into how America’s rising rival China uses "soft power," or a nation’s ability to get what it wants through attraction rather than force. Then-US Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney did not paint a pretty picture of how China handled the wrinkle in the relationship, and issued a blunt criticism of how China does business. "The ZTE case is typical of the deals that China uses to make friends and buy influence. Unlike the World Bank, IMF, and many bilateral providers of assistance here, China does not link its aid to issues such as good governance, rule of law or respect for human rights," Kenney wrote. “Public skepticism and scrutiny have underlined shortcomings in China's soft power efforts." Kenney goes on to describe the passive way the Chinese embassy handled the ZTE case, and suggested that the negative publicity led to the replacement of the Chinese ambassador. ZTE is a giant state-owned corporation that forged a telecommunications agreement with the Philippine government that was cancelled in 2007 after media reports and congressional probes of charges that the company bribed Philippine officials. A Chinese embassy spokesman in Manila was sent a link to the Kenney cable but declined to comment. Active on Twitter as the new US ambassador to Thailand, Kenney also chose not to comment on the leaked document. "Nice to hear from you," she told GMA News Online via direct message on Twitter. "We don't comment on the release of alleged US cables. US Emb Manila press can verify that. My best to you, Kristie." One of the most popular and visible US ambassadors to be assigned to the Philippines, Kenney has made headlines in recent days after WikiLeaks released cables she wrote that were less than flattering depictions of then-Sen. Noynoy Aquino and his late mother, the democracy icon Cory Aquino. Diplomatic cables in whatever government are meant to mince no words in conveying to the home country frank assessments of their host countries and governments. No diplomat wrote these cables believing they would one day be leaked and published. 'Amoral profiteers' Kenney wrote candidly about the attitudes of Filipinos towards ethnic Chinese, and said that the ZTE controversy revived "a latent sense among many Filipinos that the Chinese are amoral profiteers." The fallout from the cancelled deal spilled over to affect the "delicate status quo" in the Spratlys, according to the US cable. "In the wake of the ZTE scandal, allegations emerged that the Arroyo administration allowed the (Spratlys) seismic exploration deal in exchange for bribe-tainted loans," wrote Kenney wrote. Citing the intense public criticism, Kenney asserted that "China's use of soft power in the Philippines has given it another bruising lesson in the role of a free press and political opposition in a democracy." She added, however, that "the current problems are likely a temporary setback for China and the Philippines, as bilateral trade and policy ties continue to rise in concert with the growth in China's economy and influence." The state visit by Aquino seems to bear this out, as tensions over the Spratlys were papered over by an exchange of friendly words about making the region a "sea of friendship and cooperation." As President Aquino was accompanied to China by a reported 270 prominent Filipino businessmen, both sides were eager to refresh business ties after a period that Kenney called a "rough patch" in the relations. UP professor and security analyst Bobby Tuazon highlights the risk of sweeping the ZTE scandal under the rug. "This [PNoy visit] may look good in terms of Philippine-China economic relations but it also raises the question whether the [alleged] corruption cases that were linked to similar arrangements under GMA [Initials of then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo] are now buried or at least have become inconsequential in favor of promoting a new round of trade and investment ties," Tuazon told GMA News Online. "The challenge is what are the safety mechanisms that should be put in place in future transactions with China involving multi-million dollar worth of projects in order to avoid the financial scandals of the past," he said. Tuazon stressed the value of diplomatic cables as providing an unvarnished US view of host countries and their relationships with other nations. "These communications should be treated as the objective and honest appraisal of an ambassador reporting to her superiors in Washington, DC upon which the state department will make appropriate policies and decisions," he said. Kenney assured her superiors that despite China's efforts to woo the Philippines with loans and investments, Washington’s relationship with Manila remained strong. "Public opinion polls consistently show that a majority of Filipinos see the US as the Philippines' most trusted ally and, when asked which country they see as being the most important to the Philippines in 10 years, a similar majority respond that it will be the United States."