CANADIAN RESPONSE TO UNGA INITIATIVES-PART II

C O N F I D E N T I A L OTTAWA 002121 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/22/2013 TAGS: PREL PHUM CA UNGA AROC UNAUS SUBJECT: CANADIAN RESPONSE TO UNGA INITIATIVES-PART II REF: A. SECSTATE 206381 ¶B. OTTAWA 02109 Classified By: POLITICAL MC BRIAN FLORA FOR REASONS 1.5 (B) AND (D) ¶1. (C) Summary: The Canadian response to U.S. priority initiatives for the UNGA 58 (ref A) was largely supportive. The GOC, however, hoped the U.S. would show more flexibility on the issue of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The GOC was also uncertain about its stance on a human rights resolution against Iran, as its opinion of that country,s human rights practices is currently being shaped by the unfolding events surrounding the death of the Canadian journalist, Zahra Kazemi (ref B). End summary. ¶2. (C) Post delivered points contained reftel to various Canadian officials at Canada,s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAIT) on July 21. On the issue of the Middle East peace process, poloff spoke with Peter Taylor, Deputy Director of DFAIT,s UN and Commonwealth Affairs Division. He said the GOC was very pleased with the U.S. led Roadmap and thought the results were, thus far, a cause for optimism. According to Taylor, the GOC also agreed that the UNGA was the wrong venue to address the Middle East peace process. He said the GOC would support a U.S. led effort to keep resolutions on the topic out of the General Assembly, however, he doubted the success of any such campaign, saying that negotiations between the EU and Arab states were sure to produce resolutions. He felt confident that Canada would play no role in the drafting process, however, once these resolutions came up for vote, Canada would look at each of them individually and support those that it felt were evenhanded. He said Canada would oppose any resolution that threatened the security or independence of Israel. ¶3. (C) Regarding the International Criminal Court (ICC), poloff spoke with Darryl Robinson, Legal Advisor in DFAIT,s UN, Human Rights, and Economics Division. He said Canada understands the U.S. has strong concerns about the ICC. He further stated that Canada would be amenable to developing agreed upon approaches to reference the ICC if it helped minimize conflicts over UNGA resolutions. According to Robinson, however, the GOC feels the U.S. has weakened or stricken several ICC references in recent years without any "quid pro quo" being granted. He felt that if further compromises were to be achieved, the U.S. would have to exhibit more flexibility on the subject and allow some debate that it has previously tried to squash. Robinson also felt, that in the past, the U.S. and its allies have achieved difficult compromises on ICC language only to have the U.S. reject the previously agreed upon language the following year. He said the GOC hoped that all sides would, where possible, adhere to previously agreed upon language from year-to-year. ¶4. (C) On the topic of General Assembly resolutions condemning human rights abuses in Burma, Cambodia, Zimbabwe, and Iran, poloff spoke with Kelty Peterson, Human Rights Officer in DFAIT,s Human Rights, Humanitarian Affairs, and Women,s Equality Division. She suggested that the GOC would likely support resolutions condemning human rights violations in Burma, Cambodia, and Zimbabwe. On the subject of Iran, however, the GOC opinion is currently in a state of flux. Both Peterson and Taylor felt that the recent case of Zahra Kazemi, the Canadian journalist who died in an Iranian jail, is causing the GOC to reevaluate its opinions about Iran and the country,s human rights practices (ref B). They suggested that how Iran handles this situation may influence Canada,s decision to support a resolution against it. Taylor asked if the U.S. would sponsor the resolution on Iran itself. ¶5. (C) Poloff spoke with Taylor about counterterrorism and he said Canada agreed with the U.S. that the General Assembly provided another excellent opportunity to focus the world,s attention on the importance of global counterterrorism efforts. He further said that the GOC has "a high view" of the UN,s Committee for Counter Terrorism (CTC) and its program to build the capacity of member nations to combat terrorism. He noted that Canada has signed and ratified all 12 of the International Conventions and Protocols pertaining to global terrorism. CELLUCCI