JORDAN RESOLUTE ON SYRIAN COMPLIANCE WITH UNSCR

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 001651 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/27/2015 TAGS: PREL PTER SY JO SUBJECT: JORDAN RESOLUTE ON SYRIAN COMPLIANCE WITH UNSCR 1559 REF: A. AMMAN 1340 ¶B. AMMAN 1308 ¶C. AMMAN 1274 Classified By: CDA David Hale for Reasons 1.4 (b),(d) ¶1. (U) In a French television interview broadcast February 23, King Abdullah called on Syria to comply with UN resolution 1559. "What we hope for is that Syria will respect the United Nations resolution," he told France 2 television during an official visit to Paris. "We think Lebanon's future should be placed in the hands of the Lebanese." The King further said that it was "too early" to say who was behind the murder of former Lebanese PM Hariri. ¶2. (C) After returning to Jordan from Europe, King Abdullah told Charge on February 26 that French President Jacques Chirac, reflecting a mixture of French state interest and the personal loss of a close friend, was very focused on ensuring that international pressure on Syria was maintained. The King said he could not agree more. ¶3. (C) Deputy Prime Minister Marwan Muasher has told Charge that Jordan had been "very blunt" in its message to the Syrians that they "get out" of Lebanon, and said he hoped the Lebanese opposition's strategy would force Lebanese politicians to choose between their short term dependence on Syria and their long term interest in associating with the populist forces opposing Syria, which he expected would prevail. Foreign Minister Hani al-Mulki has also kept up a steady drumbeat of public statements about 1559 compliance. The candor of the Jordanian position prompted Egypt's ambassador to Amman to complain to Charge that the GOJ was being too direct and uncompromising in its communications with Damascus on this issue. HALE