Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05VIENNA3246
2005-09-29 15:50:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Vienna
Cable title:  

DEMARCHE TO AUSTRIA ON UNESCO CONVENTION ON

Tags:  SCUL ETRD AU UNESCO 
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UNCLAS VIENNA 003246 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

STATE FOR IO/UNESCO - CROWLEY AND EUR/AGS - VIKMANIS-KELLER

E.O. 12958: N/A

TAGS: SCUL ETRD AU UNESCO
SUBJECT: DEMARCHE TO AUSTRIA ON UNESCO CONVENTION ON

CULTURAL EXPRESSIONS

REF: STATE 170909

This cable is Sensitive but Unclassified. Please treat

accordingly.

UNCLAS VIENNA 003246

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

STATE FOR IO/UNESCO - CROWLEY AND EUR/AGS - VIKMANIS-KELLER

E.O. 12958: N/A

TAGS: SCUL ETRD AU UNESCO
SUBJECT: DEMARCHE TO AUSTRIA ON UNESCO CONVENTION ON

CULTURAL EXPRESSIONS

REF: STATE 170909

This cable is Sensitive but Unclassified. Please treat

accordingly.


1. (SBU) Economic-Political Counselor delivered reftel

demarche to Ilona Hoyos, the Austrian Foreign Ministry's head

of UNESCO affairs. We reviewed U.S. concerns about the text

of the preliminary draft convention on the protection and

promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions, and urged

Austria to support our position that the draft remain open

for futher negotiation.


2. (SBU) Hoyos said she participated in the last two

negotiating rounds on the document. She had found

discussions with the U.S. delegation to e "very fruitful."

That said, with the exception of some minor textual changes

which Austria has distributed in capitals, Austria considered

the current draft to be the best outcome that such a large

group of countries could achieve. There is both

parliamentary and governmental support for the draft text in

Austria, she added.


3. (SBU) Hoyos argued that there were many international

legal mechanisms to safeguard culture, but UNESCO properly

took on the task of developing "something readable." In the

Austrian view, the text should now go to all potential

parties for a vote.


4. (SBU) Concerning the relationship of the convention to

other agreements, the Austrian position was that the Vienna

Convention on treaties was sufficient protection against a

hierarchy that would give the UNESCO convention precedence

over other agreements. On trade issues, the WTO decided not

to give an opinion, leaving the matter in UNESCO.

Brown