Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06ASMARA489
2006-06-06 14:56:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Asmara
Cable title:  

DEMARCATION AND NORMALIZATION: A KERNAL OF HOPE

Tags:  PREL PGOV PINR ET ER 
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PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHAE #0489 1571456
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 061456Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY ASMARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8208
INFO RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA PRIORITY 5897
RUEHDJ/AMEMBASSY DJIBOUTI 2803
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1144
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 4579
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 1317
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA
C O N F I D E N T I A L ASMARA 000489 

SIPDIS

LONDON, PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/06/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV PINR ET ER
SUBJECT: DEMARCATION AND NORMALIZATION: A KERNAL OF HOPE
FROM THE GSE?

CLASSIFIED BY: AMB Scott H. DeLisi, for reasons 1.4 (b)
and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L ASMARA 000489

SIPDIS

LONDON, PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/06/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV PINR ET ER
SUBJECT: DEMARCATION AND NORMALIZATION: A KERNAL OF HOPE
FROM THE GSE?

CLASSIFIED BY: AMB Scott H. DeLisi, for reasons 1.4 (b)
and (d).


1. (C) On June 6, MFA Director General for the Americas and
UN Ghirmai Ghebremariam requested a meeting with the
Ambassador to express GSE concerns about the June 2nd VOA
interview of DAS Yamamoto. Ghirmai claimed to be troubled
by DAS YamamotoQs statement that the failure of the parties
to resolve issues associated with villages split by the new
border line, risked planting the seeds for future conflict.
This, he said, echoed the position of Ethiopian PM Meles.
In response the Ambassador declined to accept GhirmaiQs
assertion, noting that this was merely a reaffirmation of
what we have been saying for some time; that we are not
arguing to change the delimitation line to avoid splitting
the villages, but we do believe that the parties must
ultimately decide what they will do to deal with the impact
that splitting a village would have.


2. (C) Ghirmai, then offered a surprising rejoinder. He
acknowledged that the GSE realized that demarcation may
split villages or towns (though he quibbled over the
number) and he acknowledged that the GSE "can understand"
that this is could be a problem. However, he suggested
that these issues could be addressed as demarcation
unfolds. Noting that the villages affected are small to
begin with, he argued that the GSE was not going to worry
about having to adjust the delimitation line to keep the
village intact. "No one is going to divide a church," he
claimed. Ghirmai, reiterated that these issues could be
addressed as demarcation proceeds. He also commented twice
on DAS YamamotoQs comment that normalization was a
necessary part of the search for peace, saying that the GSE
"has no problems with normalization" -- although he added
the caveat that normalization should nonetheless not be a
precondition for demarcation.


3. (C) Comment: In voicing his concerns about DAS
YamamotoQs interview, GhirmaiQs delivery was half-hearted
at best. But when he followed his complaint with a
nonchalant, shoulder-shrugging assurance that of course the
"split village" question could be easily resolved by
adjusting the delimitation line -- which has always been
sacrosanct for the GSE he did get our attention. Equally
his repeated, and equally off-hand acceptance of YamamotoQs
call for normalization as "OK" so long as it is not part of
a precondition to demarcation, was also a new nuance in the
GSE position. Whether this is the first kernel of hope
regarding a new GSE approach remains to be seen. In that
regard, the messenger must be considered. In a few weeks,
Ghirmai will be the new Eritrean Ambassador to the United
States and he has, in any event, traditionally been one of
our most reasonable and sympathetic interlocutors in the
GSE. Nonetheless, he has seldom strayed from the party line
and has generally been the channel through which messages
from the Office of the President are delivered. As is the
norm here, we will continue to read these and other tea
leaves to try and assess whether we are seeing a true shift
of GSE perspective or not. End Comment.


DELISI