MAURITANIA: EGYPT MAINTAINING A LOW PROFILE ON

C O N F I D E N T I A L CAIRO 006494

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/23/2015
TAGS: PREL PGOV MOPS KDEM EG MR
SUBJECT: MAURITANIA: EGYPT MAINTAINING A LOW PROFILE ON
COUP

REF: STATE 153870 (NOTAL)

Classified by ECPO Counselor John Desrocher for reasons 1.4
(b) and (d).


1. (C) During an August 22 meeting on other topics with MFA
Cabinet staff member responsible for Arab affairs, Alaa
Hadidi, poloff inquired into GOE policy toward the recent
coup d'etat in Mauritania. Hadidi acknowledged Egypt's
relatively quiet public posture on the coup and stated that
Egypt was taking a "wait and see" approach. Egypt, he added,
had neither sent envoys to Nouakchott nor received
representatives of the military regime ("as some states
recently have" - i.e., Algeria and Morocco). The Egyptian
ambassador to Mauritania, he said, continued to report on
events from the capital but was not meeting with coup
leaders. Hadidi suggested that the U.S. had offered coup
leaders "de facto recognition" by meeting with them. Poloff
responded by stating USG policy on the coup (reftel),
stressing condemnation of the take-over and support for
African Union leadership on the issue.


2. (C) Poloff inquired whether the coup leaders intended to
send a representative to attend the Arab League's annual
meeting of foreign ministers scheduled for September 6 in
Cairo. Hadidi was uncertain but responded to poloff's
question on GOE visa policy by noting that Egypt "would not
deny visas" to government representatives to attend Arab
League events in Cairo. He added that it would be "logical
to assume" that the new military regime would want to send a
senior representative to the meeting in order to seek
diplomatic support and recognition from the other 21 Arab
League member states.


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JONES