AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES UN REFORM PRIORITIES WITH

C O N F I D E N T I A L LIMA 003113

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/14/2015
TAGS: PREL PGOV KUNR AORC PE UNSC
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES UN REFORM PRIORITIES WITH
FOREIGN MINISTER RODRIGUEZ

REF: A. LIMA 3075


B. STATE 111657
...


id: 36700
date: 7/15/2005 23:02
refid: 05LIMA3113
origin: Embassy Lima
classification: CONFIDENTIAL
destination: 05LIMA3075
header:
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.



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C O N F I D E N T I A L LIMA 003113

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/14/2015
TAGS: PREL PGOV KUNR AORC PE UNSC
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES UN REFORM PRIORITIES WITH
FOREIGN MINISTER RODRIGUEZ

REF: A. LIMA 3075


B. STATE 111657

C. LIMA 2748

Classified By: Ambassador Curtis Struble for Reason 1.4 (B, D)


1. (SBU) On 7/13, the Ambassador discussed Ref B talking
points on overall UN reform priorities of the USG with
Foreign Minister Manuel Rodriguez; their exchange on Security
Council Reform and the G-4 Resolution was reported in Ref A.
The Ambassador emphasized the critical nature of the reform
process for restoring credibility to the UN after the Oil for
Food scandal, and highlighted our support for Commission on
Human Rights (CHR) reform, the Democracy Fund, the new
Peacebuilding Commission, and improved management practices
under the leadership of U/SYG Christopher Burnham. The
Ambassador stressed USG interest in the Comprehensive
Convention on Terrorism (CCIT) and in implementing the
Monterrey Consensus on development objectives, and he said we
wanted to see these matters reflected in the outcome document
of the September High-Level Event.


2. (C) Rodriguez said the GOP agreed with our emphasis on
resisting terrorism and on the CCIT, and noted that he had
hoped to see more activity by the UN Counterterrorism
Committee in the wake of the recent London bombings.
Rodriguez said Peru also agreed with the idea of creating a
Peacebuilding Commission, which should be very operationally
oriented. The only caveats Rodriguez registered re the new
Commission were that it should not interfere with existing
mechanisms, in particular the Security Council, and should
recognize long-standing principles such as the right to
legitimate self-defense.


3. (C) Regarding CHR reform, Rodriguez said that a way must
be found to make this organization practical and relevant.
Referring to Peru's reform proposal (described in Ref C),he
indicated the need for creating a Council to evaluate
situations in individual countries, and for an Oversight
(Tutela) Group, to deal with crises like that in Sudan.
Rodriguez stressed the need to do away with flawed mechanisms
(like the 1503 Procedure) and to focus on what works.


4. (C) Rodriguez also addressed the general issue of the
unwieldy nature of existing geographic groupings at the UN,
and the need to reassess these alignments. He said existing
structures are a reflection of Cold War, north-south
polarities. Peru can work practically and effectively in the
context of the South American Community, but encounters a
much more disparate situation within the Latin American and
Caribbean Group (GRULAC). With Cuba, for example, there is
little communality for Peru to be able to engage on issues
such as human rights, economics, or the UN budget.


5. (C) Turning to development issues, Rodriguez said he was
aware of some imaginative social and economic proposals
relating to the activities of the UN Development Program, and
he wanted to see a more vigorous debate on implementing the
principles of the Millennium Declaration and Monterrey, which
should be the points of reference. The UN needed to pick up
the pace on addressing development issues for certain groups,
such as women, although this was a difficult topic to advance
in areas like the Middle East. When the Ambassador
contrasted two development models, one based on dependency,
and the other based on the thinking of Peru's Hernando de
Soto, which emphasizes mobilization of national resources and
market incentives, Rodriguez acknowledged that the latter
must be promoted, as development is basically an internal
problem.


6. (C) EMBASSY COMMENT: Despite Rodriguez's favorable
comments on the development policy framework supported by the
U.S., we would still expect Peru to push for more Official
Development Assistance, as that is traditionally an important
issue for Peru's MFA.
STRUBLE

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