SLOVENIA RESPONSE TO APRIL 25 GAERC DEMARCHE

UNCLAS LJUBLJANA 000271 SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPT FOR EUR/EEA, EUR/NCE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KPAL PREL SI SUBJECT: SLOVENIA RESPONSE TO APRIL 25 GAERC DEMARCHE REF: SECSTATE 72185 ¶1. (U) Pol/Econ Chief delivered reftel points to Peter Grk and Vesna Hojnik, of the MFA's office for EU affairs. On Iraq, MEPP, and Lebanon, Grk said the Government of Slovenia (GOS) and EU views tracked closely with the United States. He expected that a decision on the Iraq conference would be reached at a PSC meeting in Brussels, April 21. Grk said the EU and Slovenia were very supportive of the US and French approach on Lebanon, and he expected the EU to field election monitors if asked by Lebanon. Slovenia would almost certainly contribute to that mission. ¶2. (U) The GOS does not take strong positions within the EU on Africa issues, and it tends to go with the consensus. Nevertheless, Slovenia has provided modest donations to humanitarian efforts in Darfur, and it would like to see the African Union take more responsibility for finding lasting solutions in Sudan. ¶3. (SBU) Saying that the GOS and EU share US concerns and views on Zimbabwe, Grk thought the upcoming EU review of sanctions on Zimbabwe would result in a healthy debate and would reinforce the original decision to apply sanctions. Considering Slovenia's consistent and principled stand on human rights and democracy issues, Pol/econ Chief asked Grk if Slovenia would participate in the debate. He suggested Slovenia would go with the consensus decision, but he clearly took the point that Slovenia could develop a position on general principle. ¶4. (U) In addition to the topics raised by reftel, Grk said the upcoming Russia-EU summit, the Western Balkans and the Tsunami Action Plan were on the GAERC agenda. SIPDIS HAAS NNNN 2005LJUBLJ00271 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED v1.6.2