Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
04BRUSSELS3190
2004-07-27 11:08:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Brussels
Cable title:  

EU ON UNGA PRIORITIES, ATTENDEES

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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BRUSSELS 003190 

SIPDIS

IO/UNP (NARANJO)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/22/2014
TAGS: PREL ECON PHUM KDEM AORC KSEP OVIP OTRA UN UNGA EUN USEU BRUSSELS
SUBJECT: EU ON UNGA PRIORITIES, ATTENDEES

REF: A. STATE 152009


B. STATE 132748

Classified By: Political Minister-Counselor Kyle Scott for reasons 1.4
(b/d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BRUSSELS 003190

SIPDIS

IO/UNP (NARANJO)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/22/2014
TAGS: PREL ECON PHUM KDEM AORC KSEP OVIP OTRA UN UNGA EUN USEU BRUSSELS
SUBJECT: EU ON UNGA PRIORITIES, ATTENDEES

REF: A. STATE 152009


B. STATE 132748

Classified By: Political Minister-Counselor Kyle Scott for reasons 1.4
(b/d).


1. (C) Summary: EU officials welcomed early consultation on
UNGA priorities and highlighted shared interest in combating
human trafficking and reducing the number of Middle East
resolutions -- although they underscored several times that
this would be best achieved by resolving the underlying
regional crisis. The EU is unlikely to agree on a common
approach on human cloning, leaving delegations to follow
national policies; the same will probably apply to any
discussion of UN Security Council reform. Neither the
Council nor the Commission has decided who will attend the
UNGA but will let us know when their delegations are set,
probably in early September. End Summary.


2. (C) We met July 19 with Jim Cloos, Council Secretariat
Director for Transatlantic Relations, the United Nations, and
Human Rights, to discuss ref A and B demarches on UNGA
preparations. Cloos was joined by Council UN experts Paulo
Oliveira and Morten Knudsen as well as Transatlantic
Relations administrator Margarita Comamala. Cloos thanked us
for providing our points and said the EU looked forward to
further discussion in New York. He noted that the UNGA would
also include important political issues -- particularly the
Middle East but also elements of Iraq policy, terrorism, and
crisis management -- which, although not part of the formal
UNGA agenda, the EU would want to discuss on the margins.
Asked for clarification on crisis management, Cloos said that
this meant peacekeeping rather than humanitarian issues --
the EU wanted to work with the UN on coordinating operations
in Congo as well as response to the Darfur crisis in Sudan,
and sought to move beyond case-by-case decisions to make

coordination "systemic."

-------------- --------------
Advancing Economic Freedom; Trafficking in Persons
-------------- --------------


3. (C) Regarding the specific priorities listed in the U.S.
nonpaper, the EU had no substantive comment on economic
development and our proposed focus on emphasizing in UN
resolutions the need for improved investment conditions. On
trafficking, Oliveira thought the U.S. and EU could probably
work together given our broad areas of agreement. We noted
that the U.S. has had problems with the Dutch on trafficking,
although this was based on differences with regard to
prostitution laws rather than the involvement of minors.
Cloos agreed, saying that the Dutch delegation had been firm
on the need to implement UN protocols, including those
relating to the age of consent.

--------------
Hesitation on Democracy Caucus
--------------


4. (C) The EU responded cautiously to our points on the
proposed Democracy Caucus. Asked for more detail about U.S.
ideas, we explained that we envisioned a broad-based approach
to support common ideas and to encourage more effective
efforts -- from a greater number of countries -- on human
rights. It should not always be the CUBAns pushing human
rights resolutions, we remarked. Cloos replied that the EU
was hesitant about creating new groupings; use of the term
"caucus" -- which was even more definitive than a "group" --
would be problematic for the EU. He said that this was a
purely institutional issue, however -- there was no
difficulty with the concept's substance. His second concern
was about how membership would be determined, pointing to the
liberal criteria applied to invitations for participation in
the Community of Democracies. Who would say which countries
qualified as members of such a caucus at the UN? The
important thing for the EU, Cloos continued, was working for
"effective multilateralism," which he described as a "worthy
and important objective."

--------------
EU Still Divided on Human Cloning Ban
--------------


5. (C) Noting continued U.S. support for a ban on all human
cloning, we asked what effect the apparent lack of EU
consensus would have on the European position on this issue.
Cloos said he did not know how internal EU disagreements
would play out; no one expected the issue to be settled, and
he thought that member states would probably end up following
their own policies at the UN.

-------------- --------------
Middle East Resolutions Require Political Solution
-------------- --------------


6. (C) Cloos said that the EU was looking into how to reduce
the number of Middle East-related resolutions while retaining
their substance. He pointedly noted that resolving the
Arab-Israeli crisis would put an end to the problem but
acknowledged the difficulties involved. According to
Oliveira, the number of Middle East-related resolutions had
been reduced in at least the last two UNGAs relative to
previous sessions. He said that the point in the EU's UNGA
priority paper stressing the need for UNGA revitalization
tied into U.S. efforts to reduce the number of resolutions
dealing with the Middle East. The EU agreed with the U.S. on
the need to cut back, he said, but re-emphasized Cloos' point
that the issue was linked to the situation on the ground --
easing regional tensions would, he said, result in fewer UN
resolutions. Reviewing more specific elements of our points,
Oliveira questioned the proposal to abolish organizations the
U.S. considers biased against Israel, noting that some of the
organizations listed did useful work. On the proposed
anti-Semitism resolution, Cloos said that the EU was willing
to promote a general resolution on religious intolerance
provided it was "balanced" but did not want a separate
resolution dealing solely with anti-Semitism.

--------------
EU Priorities Paper
--------------


7. (C) Oliveira reviewed key points in the EU's paper, which
he said presented the EU's major objectives within the
overall UN framework. Cloos, pointing to the paper's
reference to EU interest in encouraging universal
participation in the International Criminal Court, said that
EU found "worrisome" Congress' push to strengthen sanctions
against Rome Treaty signatories who had not signed Article 98
agreements with the U.S. Oliveira thought the U.S. and EU
were in agreement on the EU goal of reforming UN staff
recruitment and assignment of posts. He also pointed to the
final point, in which the EU pledged to "support appropriate
improvements in security for the UN, including the allocation
of the necessary resources," as another area where the U.S.
and EU could work together. Asked whether this meant
increased budgets, Cloos and Oliveira replied that the idea
was to reallocate resources within the current budget rather
than increasing the total. Noting the reference to UN reform
in the EU's paper, we asked if there was an EU position on
UNSC reform. Cloos said that he could not discuss this with
third countries due to internal EU disagreement and the
position of "one country" in particular. Given the lack of
EU consensus, this -- like human cloning -- remains an issue
for national governments.

--------------
UNGA Attendees TBD
--------------


8. (U) We asked our Council contacts as well as Kristin de
Peyron of the Commission's UN office for information about
likely UNGA attendees (ref B). Both told us that European
participants would not be determined until after the August
break.