FAO OECD Group: Term Limits and Bureaus

UNCLAS ROME 002582

SIPDIS


USDA FOR FAS/LYNN REICH AND DICK HUGHES
STATE FOR IO/EDA SETH WINNICK, OES/ENV JULIE GOURLEY AND
IO/S GEORGE ABRAHAMS
USAID FOR RALPH CUMMINGS
ATHENS FOR CLEVERLEY

FROM FODAG

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: AORC EAGR KUNR FAO
SUBJECT: FAO OECD Group: Term Limits and Bureaus


1. (U) Summary: The OECD group met June 9, 2003 to
discuss bureau positions for FAO Council and Conference.
The outgoing Chair (New Zealand) asked for views on
expanding the mandate of the group beyond allocating
bureau positions. Those who spoke (including USDel) did
not support expanding the mandate. A smaller group of
OECD countries met afterwards on Director General Term
Limits. The group shared concerns that the Secretariat
had yet to issue documentation on the item, and agreed to
urge Ambassador Mekouar, Chair of the Term Limits
"Friends" Group to request the secretariat to issue a
document on the item as soon as possible. End Summary.

Council and Conference Bureau Positions
--------------

2. (U) The OECD group (thus called as it is composed of
FAO members who are also members of OECD) met June 9,
2003 under the Chairmanship of Simon Draper of New
Zealand. The group discussed Bureau composition for the
June 23-28 124th FAO Council, and put forth some
preliminary ideas for the November 29-December 10, 32nd
FAO Conference.

-- FAO 124th Council: Chair: Ambassador Aziz Mekouar
(Morocco); Vice-Chairs: The Group endorsed OECD member
Germany for the OECD Vice-Chair position. The two G-77
Vice-Chairs are not yet known. Similarly, the G-77 Chair
and members for the drafting committee are not yet known.
The OECD members of Drafting Committee are: U.S.,
Australia, Italy, Germany, Finland and Japan

-- FAO 32nd Conference: New Zealand will Chair
Conference. The OECD group will have one of the three
Vice-Chairs. OECD will chair Commission I this year; G-
77 will chair Commission II. The Chair reported that
Sweden was interested in the Vice-Chair position and
Austria interested in chairing Commission I. No final
decision was taken.

Mandate of OECD Group
--------------


3. (U) Mandate of OECD: As this was his last meeting as
Chair of the OECD Group (the Chairmanship will move to
Norway in July),the Chair asked whether members had
views on the question of expanding the mandate of the
OECD group to include policy coordination. USDel stated
that the OECD should continue to coordinate bureau
positions; it served as a useful body for exchanging
views, and certainly members used it as a platform to
encourage "convergence" of views; but it should not
coordinate country positions. Japan noted that having
OECD coordinate country positions would compromise
Japan's (and the Republic of Korea's) ability to continue
as a member of the Asian Group. Poland raised another
point concerning those non-OECD members of the European
regional group which were not members of the G-77,
reminding the group that these countries were left out
when it came to bureau positions which were allocated on
the basis of OECD/G-77 membership.

Term Limits
--------------

4. (U) A smaller group of OECD members of the "Friends of
the Chair" on Director General Term Limits met to discuss
the situation of the upcoming Council agenda item on term
limits. It was recalled that OECD members of the
"Friends" had written to the "Friends" Chair, Ambassador
Aziz Mekouar, expressing concern that his last report did
not accurately capture the views of the "Friends" on
transition measures. OECD members objected to Mekouar's
reference to "the understanding that any country had the
right to nominate any candidate for the office of
Director-General" and "the understanding that the
Conference...shall have authority to elect under the new
system any of the nominated candidates, including the
incumbent Director General."


5. (U) The group noted with concern that Ambassador
Mekouar -- possibly as a result of his final report being
contested -- had still not communicated to the
Secretariat the outcome of the Friends of the Chair

SIPDIS

Group. Absent any communication, the Secretariat has
informed us that they cannot issue a document. The group
agreed that a second communication to Ambassador Mekouar
was in order (in fact, the Greek EU President has already
written to him along these line) urging him to instruct
the Secretariat to prepare a proposal for Council which
simply states the agreement reached in the Friends of the
Chair, viz that the FAO Basic Texts be amended so that
the Director General may serve two terms only, with the
first term being six years and the second term four
years.


6. (SBU) The Group also discussed concerns that certain
African countries would still try to link the change in
the Basic Texts to some "understanding" that the current
Director General may run again. As noted in reftel, the
DG is not barred from running, but OECD members seek to
ensure that there is no implicit support for him doing
so; any "understanding" that he may run again provides
that implicit support. The EU members of the group
argued that the most important outcome was the change to
the basic texts, and that this should not be lost. U.S.
and Australia noted that their instructions on this issue
were quite firm: "silence" on the question of transition
measures, or no agreement. Hall
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2003ROME02582 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED