FRENCH EFFORTS TO BOLSTER ABUJA TALKS ON DARFUR

C O N F I D E N T I A L PARIS 006434

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PHUM PINR EAID PREF SU FR UNSC
SUBJECT: FRENCH EFFORTS TO BOLSTER ABUJA TALKS ON DARFUR

REF: A. STATE 168722 B. STATE 172323 C. PARIS 5713


1. (C) Like the USG, France took steps to dissuade Sudan
Liberation Movement (SLM) leader Menes Menawi from staging a
rival conference in Darfur during the Abuja round of talks
that began September 15, Sudan deskoff Jeremie Robert told
Africa Watcher in a September 20 meeting (ref A). The Quai
applied direct and indirect pressure, first by mobilizing
former French Abuja representative Andre Janier, now
ambassador to Cote d'Ivoire, who retains contacts within the
SLM. Second, the Quai relayed a stern message to and through
the government of Chad for SLM consumption.


2. (C) Robert noted with irony that Janier had had to break
off from a visit to Bouake, the rebel stronghold in Cote
d'Ivoire, in order to deal with the rebels in Darfur. Janier
telephoned SLM leader Mini Menawi to emphasize in no
uncertain terms the need to go forward with the Abuja program
and timetable. Janier, he said, was dismissive when Menawi
rehearsed the familiar complaint that since the African Union
had not extended to him -- but only to SLM "President"
Abdelwahid Nour -- a personal invitation, Menawi felt no
obligation to support this round of the Abuja talks. Robert
added that the French had subsequently notified AU official
Sam Ibok about the supposed oversight.


3. (C) Robert said France conveyed a similar message to the
Government of Chad on the need for Menawi's wing of the SLM
to postpone its Darfur conference and rally behind the Abuja
talks. Chad needed to demonstrate to international critics
that it could be an "honest broker" on Darfur, the French
told the MFA and the Ministry of Interior, contacting Al-Hami
and Mahamet Ali respectively (Note: phonetic spellings),both
former mediators at the 2004 N'djamena conference, Robert
said. Moreover, the French asked Chad to relay through its
own rebel contacts an admonishment that any disruption of the
Abuja peace process, e.g. by contemporaneously staging a
rival conference, could leave the SLM open to sanctions under
UNSC 1591.


4. (U) Africa Watcher also shared points regarding U.S.
efforts to combat violence against women and girls in Darfur
and our interest in greater international assistance and
coordination toward that end (ref B). Stating that France
shared U.S. concerns, Robert pledged to forward the non-paper
internally.


5. (C) Comment: Robert continues to underscore French
support for USG initiatives on Sudan and interest in close
collaboration on Darfur (ref C),a position echoed in
separate conversations with AF/E Director equivalent Le Gal.
Embassies Khartoum and N'djamena and the U.S. observer team
in Abuja are best positioned to validate how Parisian
intentions are translating into action on the ground. From
post perspective, the Quai d'Orsay would appear open to
appeals for targeted coordination, for instance, on
manifestly shared goals such as sustaining the Abuja peace
process and countering sexual violence in Darfur.
Please visit Paris' Classified Website at:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm
STAPLETON