SANADER REACHES OUT TO CARLA DEL PONTE

C O N F I D E N T I A L ZAGREB 002661 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/22/2013 TAGS: PHUM HR SUBJECT: SANADER REACHES OUT TO CARLA DEL PONTE REF: ZAGREB 2656 CLASSIFIED BY: NICHOLAS HILL, POLECON COUNSELOR, FOR REASONS 1.5 (B) AN D (D). SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) CROATIA'S INCOMING PRIME MINISTER, IVO SANADER, CALLED UP CHIEF PROSECUTOR CARLA DEL PONTE ON DECEMBER 19 TO UNDERSCORE HIS DESIRE TO MAINTAIN CLOSE COOPERATION WITH THE WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL. TOM OSORIO (STRICTLY PROTECT),THE HEAD OF THE ICTY OFFICE IN ZAGREB, TOLD US AFTER THE TELEPHONE CALL THAT THE CHIEF PROSECUTOR WAS "EXTREMELY HAPPY" AT SANADER'S INITIATIVE. THE CONVERSATION WAS CONSTRUCTIVE, HE SAID, AND PUTS THE NEW GOVERNMENT'S RELATIONS WITH THE HAGUE ON A VERY GOOD FOOTING. EARLIER ON DECEMBER 19, OSORIO MET WITH FOREIGN MINISTER-DESIGNATE MIOMIR ZUZUL, AND DISCUSSED A RANGE OF ISSUES THE NEW GOVERNMENT WILL HAVE WITH THE TRIBUNAL. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) SANADER'S CALL ON DECEMBER 19 TO DEL PONTE CAME AFTER HE TOLD THE AMBASSADOR EARLIER ON THE SAME DAY (REF) THAT HE WANTED TO MAKE THE INITIATIVE BUT WAS CONCERNED -- NAMELY, BECAUSE HE DID NOT WANT ANY CONVERSATION WITH DEL PONTE REPORTED IN THE PRESS AT THIS STAGE. SOON AFTER WE REPORTED THIS TO OSORIO, HE MET WITH ZUZUL AND OFFERED ASSURANCES. SANADER PLACED THE CALL LATER ON THE SAME DAY. FOR HIS PART, OSORIO SAID HIS MEETING WITH ZUZUL, HIS FIRST WITH THE FOREIGN MINISTER-DESIGNATE, WENT WELL. HE DESCRIBED HIS OFFICE'S WORK, WHERE RELATIONS WITH THE PREVIOUS GOVERNMENT HAD GONE WELL AND WHERE THEY FELL SHORT -- PRIMARILY WITH RESPECT TO DELIVERING FUGITIVES, MOST NOTABLY ANTE GOTOVINA. ¶3. (C) OSORIO TOOK THE OPPORTUNITY TO TELL ZUZUL THAT THE TRIBUNAL VERY MUCH APPRECIATED THE WORK OF THE HEAD OF THE GOC'S ICTY COOPERATION OFFICE, JAKSA MULJACIC AND, MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE GOC'S STATE PROSECUTOR MLADEN BAJIC. ZUZUL TOOK HIS COMMENTS ON BOARD AND APPARENTLY PASSED THEM ON TO SANADER; DURING HIS TELEPHONE CONVERSATION WITH DEL PONTE, THE PRIME MINISTER-DESIGNATE SAID HE PLANNED TO KEEP MULJACIC, WHO KNOWS DEL PONTE WELL FROM HIS TOUR AS CROATIA'S AMBASSADOR IN THE HAGUE. SANADER WAS LESS COMMITTAL ABOUT BAJIC, BUT ACCORDING TO OSORIO -- AND WE HAVE HEARD SIMILAR REPORTS -- THERE ARE NO IMMEDIATE PLANS TO REPLACE THE CURRENT STATE PROSECUTOR, WHO HAS BEEN OFFICE FOR LESS THAN TWO YEARS. BAJIC HAS DEVELOPED A REPUTATION FOR FAIRNESS AND PROVED TO BE AN EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATOR. ¶4. (C) OSORIO TOLD ZUZUL HOW THE TRIBUNAL HOPED ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH CROATIA WOULD DEVELOP UNDER THE NEW GOVERNMENT. HE REMINDED THE INCOMING FOREIGN MINISTER THAT THERE WOULD PROBABLY BE A QUICKER PACE OF ACTIVITY IN COMING MONTHS, WHICH HAD SLOWED DOWN OWING IN PART TO CROATIA'S ELECTIONS SEASON. BEFORE MEETING ZUZUL, OSORIO EXPRESSED SOME CONCERN ABOUT THE WAY THE INCOMING PRIME MINISTER HAD REPORTEDLY INDICATED A DESIRE TO BE THE GOC'S POINT PERSON FOR RELATIONS WITH THE TRIBUNAL. OSORIO TOLD US THAT THE PROSECUTOR SAW THE KEY TO A SUCCESSFUL RELATIONSHIP AS KEEPING IT FOCUSED AT THE JUSTICE SECTOR LEVEL. ALTHOUGH NOT CLEAR IF HE DISCUSSED THIS WITH DEL PONTE, SANADER TOLD THE PRESS OVER THE WEEKEND THAT HE WOULD NOT BE THE GOC'S POINT PERSON WITH THE TRIBUNAL. COMMENT -------------- ¶5. (C) WE STRESS THAT WHAT SANADER ULTIMATELY SAID TO CARLA DEL PONTE ON DECEMBER 19 CAME TO US THIRD HAND. THE KEY POINT IS THAT, FROM THE TRIBUNAL'S STANDPOINT, THE CONVERSATION SHOWED SANADER TRYING TO REACH OUT. IT WILL NOT TAKE LONG FOR THE NEW HDZ-LED GOVERNMENT TO BE PUT TO THE TEST ON ITS COMMITMENTS TO THE ICTY. WE EXPECT THE TRIBUNAL TO DELIVER SEVERAL NEW INDICTMENTS TO THE GOC EARLY IN THE NEW YEAR. THESE INDICTMENTS COMBINED WITH INCREASING PRESSURE TO TRACK DOWN ICTY FUGITIVE ANTE GOTOVINA -- WHOSE STATUS STILL LOOMS SIGNIFICANTLY AS AN OBSTACLE TO CROATIA'S EU AND NATO ASPIRATIONS -- ENSURES THAT BROMIDES WILL NOT PASS FOR COOPERATION. AND SANADER, WITH A GOOD NUMBER OF HARD LINE NATIONALISTS IN HIS RANKS, WILL BE FEELING THE HEAT FROM THE BEGINNING OF HIS TENURE. FRANK NNNN