CHARLES TAYLOR DEMARCHE

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABUJA 000114 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/14/2015 TAGS: PREL SL LI NI SUBJECT: CHARLES TAYLOR DEMARCHE REF: STATE 8930 Classified By: Ambassador John Campbell for Reasons 1.5 (B & D). ¶1. (C) Ambassador presented reftel demarche and talking points to MFA PermSec N.U.O. Nadibia-Anyanwu on January 19, and also sent a copy to National Security Advisor Aliyu Mohammed. The PermSec responded that such fears of Taylor's influence had been investigated in the past and proved overblown, but she would forward this newest and it would be investigated. Taylor had more or less run out of sufficient funds to influence Liberian politics, the PermSec noted, and she hoped President Bryant would use his frequent visits to Nigeria to provide the GON directly with any evidence he might have of Taylor meddling. ¶2. (C) The PermSec was accompanied by MFA UnderSecretary for Africa Ukonga, who added a new wrinkle to the PermSec's restatement of GON policy on Taylor. Amb. Ukonga said Taylor was prohibited from interfering in Liberian politics, not prohibited from making telephone calls to Liberia per se. "He is Liberian with family and friends there," she continued, "it is natural that he calls them." ¶3. (C) The MFA PermSec and UnderSecretary said they had not heard of the GON discussing transfer of Taylor to Sierra Leone at UNSC request, as mentioned in the reftel talking point. The GON had made no such proposal. The bottom line for Nigeria, they said, was that President Obasanjo must keep his word to keep Taylor in Nigeria until such time as a democratically elected Liberian government requests further action, as agreed with the other ECOWAS leaders at the time and also with other countries such as the USG. CAMPBELL