FRENCH LUKEWARM TO SUPPORTING PARAMILITARY

C O N F I D E N T I A L PARIS 007831

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/16/2015
TAGS: EAID PTER FR CO OAS
SUBJECT: FRENCH LUKEWARM TO SUPPORTING PARAMILITARY
DISARMAMENT IN COLOMBIA

REF: STATE 207709

Classified By: Political Minister-Counselor Josiah Rosenblatt, reasons
1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Pol/MC and PolOff delivered reftel points November 16
to MFA A/S-equivalent for WHA Daniel Parfait, DAS-equivalent
for South America Michel Pinard, and Venezuela desk officer
Lionel Paradisi. Parfait stated that the French did not
share our analysis of the success of the disarmament
campaign, pointing to what he characterized as mounting
tensions between the GoC and paramilitary forces.
Extraditions of drug traffickers and human rights abusers
were at the heart of the problem, according to Parfait, who
acknowledged the difficult situation for both the GoC and
U.S. Parfait cited the case of Don Berna as a good example
of the problem: if he is extradited, the paramilitaries will
abandon the disarmament process; if he remains in Colombia,
he will continue to run his organization's criminal
enterprises from prison and relations with the U.S. will be
damaged. Parfait also expressed concern that paramilitaries
could rearm and remobilize themselves at any time if they
wished to do so.


2. (C) The GoF would be more open to supporting disarmament
efforts if it thought they might be successful, Parfait said,
but he judged the OAS process to be an impossible task.
Additionally, Parfait noted that Europeans were being asked
to fund an OAS initiative when Latin American countries were
not participating. Ultimately, Parfait said, the
paramilitary fighters were traffickers who have benefited
financially from the drug trade, and it was difficult to
envisage spending GoF funds to disarm them. However, Parfait
suggested the GoF would be open to EU engagement in other
areas of the peace process, such as victim assistance.

Please visit Paris' Classified Website at:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm

Stapleton