YEMEN: SYRIA OUT OF LEBANON, IN DUE TIME

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 000577

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/12/2015
TAGS: PREL PARM PTER OVIP LE SY ET ER YM DEMARCHE
SUBJECT: YEMEN: SYRIA OUT OF LEBANON, IN DUE TIME

REF: A. SECSTATE 39018

B. SANAA 477

C. SANAA 564

Classified By: DCM Nabeel Khoury for reasons 1.4 b and d.


1. (C) Summary: Ambassador delivered ref A demarche to
Foreign Minister Qirbi on March 11. Ambassador conveyed the
U.S. demand for full compliance with UN Security Council
Resolution 1559, calling for a complete Syrian withdrawal
from Lebanon, including the Syrian Military Intelligence
(SMI) presence. Other issues discussed were next steps in
SALW, the security situation in HOA, and the FM's interest in
visiting Washington this spring. End Summary.

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FM Urges Caution With Syria
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2. (C) Yemen agrees with the U.S. position on Syrian
withdrawal from Lebanon, Qirbi told Ambassador, pointing out
that President Saleh made this clear to Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad in his recent phone call (ref B). At the
same time, Qirbi expressed concern over recent pro-Syrian
demonstrations by Hizbollah, claiming that they represent the
views of a large portion of the Lebanese people and should
not be dismissed. Qirbi warned that the situation is very
delicate and urged all sides to be responsible. Qirbi said
the Lebanon crisis will be discussed in detail at the March
22-23 Arab Summit in Algiers.


3. (C) The FM noted the recent withdrawal of Syrian troops to
the Biqa' as a positive step, one that the international
community should encourage. Qirbi said Assad wants the U.S.
to understand that he is "not Saddam," and suggested that the
U.S. capitalize on Syria's positive gestures. The U.S.
should make a clear statement in support of elections,
stability, and the democratic process in Lebanon, advised
Qirbi, but added that the world has lived with this problem
for 22 years and it may take longer than two months to
resolve. Ambassador agreed that Syria's withdrawal to Biqa'
was a positive move, but emphasized that in the U.S. view, it
is far from sufficient. What is needed from Syria, said
Ambassador, is full compliance with 1559, including removal
of SMI offices. Washington's will on this issue is strong,
he told the FM, Syria needs to take urgent action.

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Roadmap for Lebanon... Leads to Damascus
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4. (C) The FM recommended the U.S. take Syria's concerns over
Israel into account and suggested that all sides develop a
roadmap to resolve the crisis in Lebanon. Ambassador
responded that our roadmap for resolving the current crisis
in Lebanon is UNSCR 1559, and that Israel is not a factor at
this time. DCM added that it would be foolish for Syria to
use Hizbollah demonstrations to prove that the Lebanese
people want Syrian forces to remain; this would only serve to
polarize the country. They have played this game for two
long, and the game is up, said DCM, this message should be
delivered clearly to Syria from all Arab countries.


5. (C) Qirbi agreed with the U.S. view on open Lebanese
elections, and said Yemen backs Prime Minister Omar Karami's
current efforts to form a new consensus government. There
must be national unity regarding election results, said
Qirbi. He added that Syrian troop presence could cause the
situation to explode in the absence of an accord for the
future, and supported a partial Syrian withdrawal before the
elections.

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Small Arms, New Line at MFA
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6. (S) Ambassador summarized his meeting with President Saleh
on controlling the flow of SALW to Yemen (ref C).
Reiterating U.S. concerns over end-user certificates and the
diversion of weapons to non-military sources, he highlighted
Saleh's pledge to end the use of private arms dealers.
Ambassador noted a standing U.S. offer to help with
procurement and inventory systems to better document ROYG
arms purchases.


7. (S) Qirbi insisted that Saleh's promise was nothing new,
and that the ROYG has already been following this policy for
over a year. He did confirm, however, that "from now on" the
ROYG will deal directly with arms producing countries, and
not employ private brokers. Shifting his tone, Qirbi blamed
supplier nations for selling weapons to "unlicensed" Yemenis.
It is their responsibility, he said, to check with Yemeni
embassies and verify dealers are legitimate. Ambassador
agreed and said the U.S. would convey this message to the EU,
NATO, and China.


8. (S) The FM predicted that restricting sales would increase
SALW prices and likely encourage smuggling. Echoing Saleh's
statement on March 10, Qirbi said that in his view the only
long-term solution to the spread of SALW is for the U.S. and
the GCC countries to buy out the souks (ref C).

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Risk of Renewed Conflict in HOA
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9. (C) Having just returned from an official visit to Asmara,
Qirbi said bilateral relations between Yemen and Eritrea were
on the right track. He remained considerably
more pessimistic about the future of relations between
Eritrea and Ethiopia. Qirbi reported that the ROE was
critical of the African Union, the UN, and the U.S. for not
taking a harder line on Ethiopian withdrawal, and that both
sides were holding firmly to their positions.

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Qirbi Goes To Washington?
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10. (SBU) Qirbi told Ambassador he would like to meet with
Secretary Rice and suggested a possible May or June official

SIPDIS
visit to Washington. Ambassador promised to arrange the
visit. Qirbi offered high praise the Secretary, saying she
was "doing a good job at improving the image of U.S. policies
and clearly had the President behind her."

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Comment
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11. (C) Comment: The ROYG has placed itself with the
international community in calling for Syrian withdrawal from
Lebanon, as indicated by Saleh's unusual call to President
Assad (made public the next day in the official press). The
ROYG position on full compliance with 1559 remains fuzzy.
Qirbi indicated support for a withdrawal in advance of
Lebanese elections. The FM dropped the hint, however, that
Hizbollah demonstrations raise the specter of civil strife --
something which may indicate that the ROYG believes inthe
need for "some" Syrian presence to remain in the country.
Krajeski