PRESIDENT'S UNGA SPEECH: HOLY SEE WELCOMES

C O N F I D E N T I A L VATICAN 004483 SIPDIS FOR ERU/WE (MENNUTI) E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/13/2007 TAGS: PREL PHUM VT UNGA SUBJECT: PRESIDENT'S UNGA SPEECH: HOLY SEE WELCOMES EMPHASIS ON UN ROLE, BUT STILL WARY OF MILITARY ACTION REF: A) STATE 175469 B) VATICAN 4444 C) VATICAN 4398 D) VATICAN 4388 CLASSIFIED BY: CHARGE D'AFFAIRES, A.I. D. BRENT HARDT, REASON E.O. 1295 8 1.5 (B),(D). ¶1. (C) WITH FM TAURAN OUT OF TOWN, CHARGE DELIVERED REF A POINTS ON THE PRESIDENT'S UNGA ADDRESS TO VATICAN DFM CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 02 VATICA 04483 131612Z CELESTINO MILGIORE, EMPHASIZING THE PRESIDENT'S FOCUS ON THE UN'S ROLE IN ADVANCING HUMAN DIGNITY, AND THE CHALLENGE TO THAT DIGNITY AND TO THE UN POSED BY SADDAM'S DECADE OF DEFIANCE OF UN RESOLUTIONS. MIGLIORE WELCOMED THE PRESIDENT'S DECISION TO WORK WITH THE UN AS WE GO FORWARD. HE EXPRESSED SOME DISCOMFORT WITH THE SPEECH'S IMPLICATION THAT THE U.S. WOULD ACT WITH OR WITHOUT THE UN. NOTING THAT FOREIGN MINISTER TAURAN HAD JUST OUTLINED THE HOLY SEE'S POSITION ON CONFLICT IN IRAQ IN A SEPTEMBER 11 INTERVIEW (REF B),AND THAT TAURAN WOULD BE CALLING IN THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS SEPTEMBER 16 TO OUTLINE FURTHER THE HOLY SEE'S VIEWS, MIGLIORE DID NOT PROVIDE A MORE DETAILED REACTION. ¶2. (C) MIGLIORE DID SAY THAT A RECENT ARTICLE BY UK CARDINAL CORMAC MURPHY-O'CONNOR (WHICH CAN BE READ AT: HTTP://WWW.CATHOLIC-EW.ORG.UK) WAS BEING WIDELY READ WITHIN THE VATICAN, AND CONSIDERED AS A "BALANCED AND WISE" PERSPECTIVE. MIGLIORE SAID THE HOLY SEE SHARES MURPHY-O'CONNOR'S VIEW THAT MILITARY ACTION WOULD BE DIFFICULT TO JUSTIFY IN THE ABSENCE OF MORE CONVINCING ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS INCLUDING: -- WHETHER THE PURPOSE OF MILITARY ACTION IS TO NEUTRALIZE A THREAT OR EFFECT A CHANGE IN REGIME; -- WHETHER MILITARY ACTION WILL STABILIZE OR DESTABILIZE THE REGION; -- WHETHER IT WILL DELAY OR ADVANCE THE MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROCESS; CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 03 VATICA 04483 131612Z -- WHETHER THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL AND EU WILL ENDORSE IT; AND -- THE IMPLICATIONS FOR THE BROADER STRUCTURE OF INTERNATIONAL LAW. IN ADDITION, MIGLIORE ASSERTED THAT THERE NEEDED TO BE MORE THINKING ABOUT A POST-SADDAM "END-STATE." (POST HAS PREVIOUSLY PROVIDED MIGLIORE WITH BACKGROUND ON OUR EFFORTS WITH IRAQI OPPOSITION GROUPS.) HE QUERIED WHAT THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY COULD DO TO ENSURE THAT A CONFLICT WOULD NOT RESULT IN EVER-GREATER SUFFERING. ¶3. (C) CHARGE PROVIDED MIGLIORE WITH A COPY OF THE BACKGROUND PAPER, "A DECADE OF DECEPTION AND DEFIANCE," STRESSING THAT IT LAYS OUT A DETAILED, IMPARTIAL, AND FACTUAL CASE ON THE NATURE OF IRAQI DEFIANCE OF THE UNITED NATIONS AND ITS THREATS TO ITS PEOPLE, THE REGION AND THE WORLD. HE URGED THE HOLY SEE TO REVIEW THIS IN DETAIL AS IT FURTHER EVALUATES THE PRESIDENT'S SPEECH AND THE WAY FORWARD ON IRAQ. ¶4. (C) RESPONDING TO CHARGE'S COMMENT THAT THERE HAS BEEN MUCH PUBLIC DISCUSSION RECENTLY IN VATICAN CIRCLES OF THE TENETS OF JUST WAR, MIGLIORE SAID THE HOLY SEE IS MOVING AWAY FROM REFERRING TO "JUST WAR" IN FAVOR OF DISCUSSING "CRITERIA FOR THE ETHICAL PROSECUTION OF CONFLICTS AMONG STATES." ¶5. COMMENT: MIGLIORE REITERATED HIS VIEW (REF C) THAT THE HOLY SEE RECOGNIZES THE PROBLEMS POSED BY SADDAM, AND HE WAS CLEARLY GRATIFIED THAT THE U.S. HAD DECIDED TO ENGAGE THROUGH THE UNITED NATIONS. THE DEBATE WITHIN THE HOLY SEE NOW IS CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 04 VATICA 04483 131612Z WHETHER THE WAY FORWARD OUTLINED BY THE PRESIDENT -- WITH ITS CLEAR IMPLICATION OF EVENTUAL MILITARY ACTION -- IS THE ONLY WAY FORWARD, OR WHETHER IT CARRIES MORE RISKS THAN THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS IT WOULD BRING. FM TAURAN'S SEPTEMBER 16 BRIEFING WILL PROVIDE THE HOLY SEE'S INITIAL ANSWER. HARDT SKODON CONFIDENTIAL