ISOLATING SYRIA AT THE UNGA: POLAND

C O N F I D E N T I A L WARSAW 003250 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/31/2015 TAGS: PREL PTER SY PL UNGA SUBJECT: ISOLATING SYRIA AT THE UNGA: POLAND REF: STATE 159137 Classified By: Deputy Pol Counselor Bill Mozdzierz, reasons 1.4bd ¶1. (C) Polish MFA Deputy Director for the Middle East and Africa Wojciech Bozek assured us August 31 that neither Polish Foreign Minister Daniel Rotfeld nor President Aleksander Kwasniewski has any plans to meet with Al-Asad in New York, for both reasons of policy and scheduling. Bozek indicated that the Poles have so far not been approached by the Syrians, and indicated that any eventual request would almost certainly be turned down. ¶2. (C) Having said that, however, and despite readily expressing agreement with our assessment of Syrian activities, Bozek cautioned that the Polish government believes that engagement with the Syrians will be needed to secure cooperation on the four areas outlined in our presentation. Bozek explained that his government recognizes the importance of denying propaganda opportunities such as at the UNGA, but suggested that isolation alone may be insufficient to convince Syria to alter its behavior. Ashe