FM FIRM ON CUBA ABSTENTION, BUT WILLING TO TALK

C O N F I D E N T I A L QUITO 000721

SIPDIS

STATE FOR WHA/CCA, DRL/MLA, AND IO/SHA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/31/2015
TAGS: PHUM CU EC CHR
SUBJECT: FM FIRM ON CUBA ABSTENTION, BUT WILLING TO TALK

REF: QUITO 682

Classified By: Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney for Reason 1.4 (B&D)

This is an action request for the Department. See para 7.


1. (C) Summary: FM Patricio Zuquilanda indicated to the
Ambassador on March 31 that the GOE will again abstain from
voting on the upcoming U.S. resolution on human rights in
Cuba. He also requested a meeting in Washington with
Secretary Rice on the margins of the OAS extraordinary

SIPDIS
session on April 7. We recommend that an appropriate
Department official meet with Zuquilanda to discuss Cuba and
OAS issues further. End Summary.


2. (C) The Ambassador called on the FM to raise the Cuba
vote and OAS SecGen race (SepTel). PolChief made similar
points in parallel to MFA U/S for Multilateral Affairs, Jose
Piedrahita.

Open to Dialogue
--------------


3. (C) The Ambassador told the FM that she had raised the
Cuba issue with President Gutierrez (RefTel),that the Cuba
human rights situation and the non-polemic U.S. resolution
warrants consideration, and that he or the president might be
called about the issue by U.S. officials. Zuquilanda said he
would be glad to discuss the issue further and assured the
Ambassador that he personally and his government are strong
allies of the U.S. He decried leftist inroads in South
America, and expressed interest in meeting with Secretary
Rice or other senior department officials on the margins of
the OAS session he would attend on April 7.

All About Me
--------------


4. (C) Zuquilanda said he had met the same morning with a
visiting Cuban vice minister (of education, we believe). The
VM had lobbied for a no vote, which Zuquilanda claimed to
have strongly rebuffed. "I told him he must be joking,
considering Cuban support for Ecuadorian indigenous movements
represented politically by Pachakutik, a party calling for my
impeachment," he huffed. Agitated, he provided the
Ambassador a copy of the impeachment motion, which faults him
for permitting (or not protesting) Colombian aerial
fumigation, the sinking of Ecuadorian alien smuggling vessels
by the U.S. military, and the operation of foreign
(Colombian) agents on Ecuadorian territory.

Firm on Abstention
--------------


5. (C) Asked by the Ambassador how Ecuador would vote, the
FM said "we have always abstained." The Ambassador noted
that Ecuador had voted in favor in 1999, and asked Zuquilanda
to consider voting in favor again. Zuquilanda simply
repeated his abstention mantra.


6. (C) Separately, Piedrahita said Ecuador had firmly
decided to refrain from supporting country-specific
resolutions except in extraordinary cases of massive and
egregious human rights violations. PolChief argued that the
situation in Cuba met that standard; Piedrahita said the GOE
would abstain.

Comment and Action Request
--------------


7. (C) Despite the GOE's clear inclination toward
abstention, we see value in receiving Zuquilanda in
Washington at a reasonable level. Such a meeting would offer
an opportunity to further explore the Cuba and OAS SecGen
issues. However, we should use such a meeting to raise other
priority concerns over democracy, trade (Oxy),and Venezuela.

KENNEY