MUBARAK REBUFFS DECEMBER 6 AL SHARA'A PLEAS

C O N F I D E N T I A L CAIRO 009134

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/07/2015
TAGS: PREL PTER SY LE EG
SUBJECT: MUBARAK REBUFFS DECEMBER 6 AL SHARA'A PLEAS


Classified by DCM Stuart Jones for reasons 1.4(b) and (d).


1. (C) President Mubarak met with Syrian Foreign Minister
Farouk al Shara'a in Cairo on December 6. Presidential
Advisor Soliman Awad gave the DCM a readout of the meeting on
December 7. Awad said that Al Shara'a asked Mubarak to
mediate for Syria with Chirac and the President and to
recruit the Saudis to counter a potential UNSCR or Security
Council Presidential Statement following the release of the
next Mehlis report. Al Shara'a reportedly complained that
the Saudis -- and Bandar in particular -- had failed the
Syrians. Awad said Mubarak rebuffed Shara'a's request and
said Syrian cooperation, until recently, had been lacking.
Mubarak did, however, note that sending the witnesses to
Vienna was a positive step. Mubarak advised al Shara'a that
Syria had relied too much on Russia, and said that blocking a
UNSCR or statement would be impossible.


2. (C) Al Shara'a then asked Mubarak to help ensure that any
tribunal established to prosecute the Hariri murderers not be
international, but instead fall under the Arab League
(modeled on the Sudan Tribunal, overseen by the AU) and based
on Lebanese or Syrian law. Awad said Mubarak rejected this
request also, remarking that discussing a tribunal is
premature and implied guilt. Awad said Mubarak then asked al
Shara'a whether Syria had indeed killed Hariri. Al Shara'a
then asked for an Arab summit, but Mubarak said Algeria (as
Chair of the Arab League) had already refused. When al
Shara'a asked instead for a mini-summit, Mubarak said "no"
and said that only Egypt and Saudi Arabia could help Syria
and only if Syria cooperates fully with Mehlis.


3. (U) Local press ran front page stories on the visit,
emphasizing Mubarak's statement following the meeting that
the Mehlis investigation "could last another six months, a
year, or even longer." According to reports in the Arabic
language daily "Al Akbar", al Shara'a said that Syria wants
better relations with Lebanon and to uncover the truth about
Hariri's death, but noted that "some inside and outside of
Lebanon" are trying to internationalize the matter and use it
to pressure Syria. Articles in the pro-government Arabic
language daily "Al Ahram" reported that al Shara'a complained
that although Syria supports the Mehlis investigation, it
does not support the politicization of the inquiry because an
investigation with a political objective does not aim to
uncover the truth.


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