SPANISH PARTICIPATION AT KOBE TSUNAMI CONFERENCE

UNCLAS MADRID 000149

SIPDIS

FOR OES/EGC (SHIRA YOFFE) AND EUR/WE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID SENV KSCA SP UNESCO
SUBJECT: SPANISH PARTICIPATION AT KOBE TSUNAMI CONFERENCE

REF: A. SECSTATE 89430

B. MADRID 105


1. ESTHOFF and ECONOFF passed Ref A points January 14 to:
(A) Juan Pablo de Laiglesia y Gonzalez de Peredo, the number
two-ranking official in the Spanish Aid Agency (AEC); (B)
Maria de la Concepcion Soto Calvo, the Director General of
the Education and Science Ministry's Oceanographic Institute;
and (C) Juan Segovia de la Torre, an official attached to the
Environment Ministry's National Meteorology Institute. De
Laiglesia and Segovia de la Torre plan to attend the Kobe
Conference. De la Concepcion may attend.


2. COMMENT: Spain has consistently "punched above its
weight" in response to the Asian tsunami disaster (see Ref
B). Thus, we are not surprised that they are taking quite
seriously Kobe's World Conference on Disaster Reduction.
MANZANARES