AZERBAIJAN HOPES TO STRENGTHEN OIC'S INTERNATIONAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 06 BAKU 000836 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/05/2016 TAGS: PREL PGOV KISL AJ SUBJECT: AZERBAIJAN HOPES TO STRENGTHEN OIC'S INTERNATIONAL TIES TO OSCE AND OTHER INT'L ORGANIZATIONS REF: A. STATE 78445 ¶B. BAKU 757 Classified By: CDA Jason P. Hyland for Reasons 1.4 b and d. ¶1. (C) Summary: Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister (DFM) Vagif Sadiqov told Charge June 5 that the GOAJ planned to use its chairmanship of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to expand the OIC's cooperation with regional bodies such as the OSCE, ASEAN and other organizations, on terrorism, law enforcement and transnational issues. The GOAJ will begin its chairmanship by hosting the OIC ministerial in Baku from June 19-21. Sadiqov reported that the OIC Ministerial Agenda includes issues that are rolled over from meeting-to-meeting, such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as well as education and social development in the Muslim world. However, the DFM reported that he did not believe there were any (for the OIC) inflammatory resolutions on the table for the ministerial. The OIC ministerial will also discuss Iran's nuclear program urging a peaceful settlement to the problem consistent with the position of the international community. The DFM informed Charge that after the Baku ministerial, OIC member states that neighbor Iraq plan to remain in Baku to discuss the Iraqi political situation. The DFM did not report any new information on the GOAJ position regarding Magen David Adom (MDA) (ref. A). End Summary. DFM: BAKU MINISTERIAL AGENDA EXTENSIVE, NO SURPRISES -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) Sadiqov told us that the June 19 - 21 OIC Ministerial in Baku would cover 31 political issues out of a total of 105 agenda items that ranged from the problem of refugees in the Muslim world to the food deficit in Niger. (Full agenda text reprinted below). Separately, the MFA's protocol chief said they expected at least 40 foreign ministers for the event. Sadiqov said several of these agenda items have been rolled over from ministerial meeting-to-meeting and did not represent a departure from past OIC practices. In addition, the DFM noted that the OIC, as a recognized regional body under the UN charter, did not as a rule permit inflammatory language - such as the Iranian president's call for the elimination of the state of Israel - in the drafting of OIC resolutions. Rather, he noted OIC ministerial statements traditionally focused on diplomatic calls for enforcement of UN resolutions, adding that "stupid things" are not on the June agenda. The Ministerial will, however, conduct a discussion on Iran in the context debating the passage of a resolution on the right of any nation to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes however OIC ministers will state that the Iranian problem must be settled in a peaceful way, which he said was consistent with the USG's position. Sadiqov also told Charge that the Palestinian Authority would be represented at the Ministerial by its Ambassador to Tashkent who is dually accredited to Baku. A MORE MOBILE, OIC WITH STRONGER INTL TIES -------------- ¶3. (C) DFM told Charge that GOAJ objective for its chairmanship of the OIC was to push the organization to expand relations with other regional cooperation bodies such as the OSCE, the African Union, European Union, ASEAN and even the OAS. Sadiqov commented that the GOAJ believed the OIC should become "more mobile and goal-oriented" by cutting out elements of its internal structure deemed redundant. The DFM added that the USG push to advance democracy in the Greater Middle East provided the opportunity for the OIC to expand its relationship with these regional bodies. Sadiqov suggested that cooperation begin with activities such as youth exchanges and journalism roundtable programs to encourage mutual understanding between the Muslim world and the West. He opined that OIC-organized exchanges might include bringing reporters from CNN and Al Jazeera together to discuss the image of Islam and the United States in our respective societies. Secondly, Sadiqov stressed that the GOAJ believed the OIC could be a vehicle for expanding international cooperation on transnational issues such as terrorism, narco-trafficking, illegal immigration and the environment. Sadiqov also told Charge it would be helpful for the USG to be more supportive of expanded cooperation between regional bodies and the OIC. (He noted that the last time cooperation was floated at the 1998 Istanbul summit the USG seemed less than enthusiastic about efforts to strengthen links between regional institutions and the OIC.) Charge promised to explore with USOSCE and the Department our thinking on such a proposed initiative. BAKU 00000836 002 OF 006 OIC STRUCTURE HAMPERS PROGRESS -------------- ¶4. (C) Sadiqov said the OIC suffered from a structural flaw in that there are two parallel chairmanships within the OIC at any given moment that compete and complicate the OIC's operations. First, the OIC has a "summit chairman" which convenes an OIC summit of heads of government every three years. Second, OIC has a "ministerial chairman" who convenes the annual meeting of the foreign ministers of the OIC membership. The GOAJ is currently the ministerial chairman of the OIC and will therefore host two ministerials during its 12-month chairmanship, the first between June 19 - 21 and then a second a year from now. Sadiqov implied that the duplicative chairmanships have previously undermined the OIC's effectiveness and left its without strategic direction or focus. To improve its operation, the OIC has established a new Executive Committee comprised of the incoming, outgoing and current ministerial chairs joined by the OIC Secretary General (currently Turkey) who is charged by the OIC with providing regular recommendations and guidance to the body. IRAQ MEETING AFTER OIC -------------- ¶5. (C) Sadiqov said that immediately following the Baku Ministerial, OIC member states adjacent to Iraq planned to hold a meeting on the situation in Iraq. The GOAJ is not/not invited to participate in the meeting because Azerbaijan does not border Iraq but would likely be asked to assist with logistical arrangements for the expected half-day session. NO NEW POSITION ON MDA -------------- ¶6. (C) Charge reaffirmed that the GOAJ could again demonstrate its unique role as a secular Shite Muslim nation by voting in favor of the Magen David Adom in Geneva as President Aliyev told Deputy Secretary Zoellick during his recent Washington visit (ref B). The DFM said that he was not aware of new guidance to date from the President's office on the issue. He said that he did not expect this issue to come up at the OIC and that it was a Geneva issue. Post will follow-up with the MFA. OIC Ministerial Agenda -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Begin Text: DRAFT AGENDA OF THE 33RD SESSION OF THE ISLAMIC CONFERENCE OF FOREIGN MINISTERS Session of Harmony of Rights, Freedoms and Justice) BAKU. REPUBLIC OF AZERBAIJAN 23-25 JUMAD ULAWWAL 1427H (19-21 JUNE 2006) OPENING SESSION: ¶1. Election of Chairman and other members of the Bureau. ¶2. Adoption of the Agenda. ¶3. Adoption of the Programme of Work. (A) POLITICAL AFFAIRS: ¶4. The Cause of Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict: a) Development of Situation in Palestine and the City of AI-Quds AI-Sharif, comprising AI-Quds Funds and Bait Mal AI-Quds Agency. b) The Occupied Syrian Golan. c) Israel's continued occupation of parts of Lebanon and detention of Lebanese citizens in its jails and detention camps. d) The current situation of the Peace Process in the Middle East. ¶5. Islamic Office for the Boycott of Israel. ¶6. The Situation in Iraq. ¶7. The Situation in Afghanistan. ¶8. The Situation in Somalia. ¶9. Rejection of American Unilateral Sanctions imposed on the Syrian Arab Republic. ¶10. The Situation in Cyprus. ¶11. Solidarity with the Republic of the Sudan. ¶12. The Jammu and Kashmir Dispute. ¶13. The Peace Process between India and Pakistan. ¶14. The Aggression of the Republic of Armenia on the Republic of Azerbaijan. ¶15. The Problem of Refugees in the Muslim World. ¶16. The Imposition of Unilateral Economic Sanctions on Member BAKU 00000836 003 OF 006 States. ¶17. Combating International Terrorism. ¶18. Security and Solidarity among Member States. ¶19. Situation of Cote d'lvoire. ¶20. Reform of the United Nations and Expansion of UN Security Council's Membership. ¶21. The Conference of 2005 on Review of Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. ¶22. Establishment of Nuclear-weapons-free zones in the Middle East, Africa, Central Asia and South-East Asia ¶23. Strengthening of the security of non-nuclear weapon states against the use of the threat of use nuclear weapons ¶24. Cooperation by the Islamic Republic of Iran with IAEA. ¶25. Support of coordination and consultation among Member States to adopt a unified stand of Muslim States in international fora. ¶26. Cooperation between the organization of the Islamic Conference, international and regional organizations and other groupings. ¶27. Creation of a Mechanism for OIC-EU Dialogue. ¶28. Sponsoring the Children Victims of Tsunami. ¶29. The Dangerous Food Deficit in Niger. ¶30. The OIC Ten-year Programme of Action to meet the challenges facing the Muslim Ummah in the 21st Century adopted by the 3rd Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference held in Makkah AI-Mukarramah in December, ¶2005. ¶31. Manifestations, Dimensions and Mechanisms of Confronting Islamophobia (B) ORGANIC. STATUTORY AND GENERAL OUESTIONS: ¶32. Requests for accession to the OIC as observer. ¶33. Candidacies for international positions. ¶34. Updating the Cooperation Agreement between the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the League of Arab States. ¶35. Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation between the OIC and the office of the UN High representative for the Least Developed Countries, landlocked developing countries and small Island States ¶36. Application for affiliation with the Organization of the Islamic Conference. ¶37. The operationalization of the Executive Committee and Adoption of its Rules of Procedure. (C) QUESTIONS OF MUSLIM COMMUNITIES AND MINORITIES: ¶38. The Situation of Muslim Communities and Minorities in non-OIC Member States. ¶39. The Question of Muslims in Southern Philippines. ¶40. Turkish Muslim Minority of Western Thrace, Greece. ¶41. The Situation of the Muslim Minority in Myanmar. (D) LEGAL AFFAIRS: ¶42. The International Islamic Court of Justice. ¶43. Follow-up to the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam. ¶44. Coordination among the Member States in the field of Human Rights. ¶45. The signing/ratification of (accession to) the agreements concluded in the framework of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. ¶46. Convening of a United Nations Conference to define terrorism and distinguish it from peoples' struggle for national liberation. ¶47. Follow-up to the Convention of the Organization of the Islamic Conference for combating international terrorism. ¶48. Legal issues on the Roadmap for the Implementation of the Ten-year Program of Action. (E) INFORMATION AFFAIRS: ¶49. Enhancing the role of information and communication in promoting the causes and image of Islam in the world through updating the Mechanisms for Implementing the Information Strategy of the Member States and the Islamic Information Plan. ¶50. Supporting the activities of specialized information institutions. ¶51. Contribution of the Member States to following up the results of the second phase of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) held in Tunis in 2005. (F) - ECONOMIC AFFAIRS: ¶52. Economic Situation of Member States. ¶53. Economic Problems of the Least Developed and Land-locked Member States. ¶54. Strengthening the multilateral trading system. ¶55. Supporting the reforms of the International financial BAKU 00000836 004 OF 006 architecture. ¶56. Economic Problems of the Palestinian People in Occupied Palestinian Territories, of the Syrian citizens in the Occupied Syrian Golan and of the Lebanese citizens in Southern Lebanon and the Western Beka'a formerly under occupation. . ¶57. Economic and Social losses of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya as a result of the Security Council resolutions No. 748/92 and 883/93. ¶58. Economic assistance to the State of Palestine. ¶59. Economic assistance to Lebanon. ¶60. Economic assistance to Afghanistan. ¶61. Economic Assistance to Guinea. ¶62. Economic assistance to Member States stricken by drought and natural calamities. ¶63. Economic assistance to Azerbaijan. ¶64. Economic assistance to Member States affected by regional war, civil insurgence or political crises. ¶65. Economic assistance to Non-OIC countries and Muslim Communities. ¶66. Economic assistance to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. ¶67. The activities of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC). ¶68. Cooperation in the field of Tourism. ¶69. The activities of the OIC Subsidiary Organs active in the Economic and Trade fields. ¶70. The activities of the Islamic Development Bank. ¶71. The activities of the OIC Affiliated Institutions active in the Economic and Trade fields. ¶72. The establishment of an Islamic Common Market. ¶73. The Promotion of Cooperation among the Stock Exchanges of OIC Countries. ¶74. Continuous assistance to the Sahelian Member States. ¶75. Cooperation in Energizing Trade and Investment in Cotton Sector. Capacity building for poverty alleviation in the OIC Member States. ¶76. The creation of a World Fund for Solidarity and Poverty Eradication. ¶77. Support to the victims of Earthquakes and Tsunami in the affected Member Countries of the OIC. ¶78. The OIC Ten-Year Program of Action to meet the challenges facing the Muslim Ummah in the 21st Century adopted by the 3rd Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference held in Makkah-AI-Mukarramah in December, 2005. (G) SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: ¶80. Science and Technology. ¶81. Activities of the Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation (COMSTECH). ¶82. Activities of the Islamic University of Technology (IUT). ¶83. Environmental issues and the negative impact on the environment in Palestine and Occupied Arab Territories. ¶84. An Advanced Medical Training and Research Centre in Bangladesh. ¶85. Report of the 2nd Meeting of the OIC Task Force for Vision 1441. ¶86. The OIC Ten-Year Program of Action to meet the challenges facing the Muslim Ummah in the 21 It Century adopted by the 3rd Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference held in Makkah-AI-Mukarramah in December, 2005. (H) CULTURAL, SOCIAL AND ISLAMIC AFFAIRS: ¶87. General Cultural Matters including ways and means of implementing the Cultural Strategy of the Islamic World; Cultural aspects of the Phenomenon of Globalization, the Universal Declaration on Dialogue among Civilization, the Unified Hijri Calendar for the beginnings of Lunar Months, Promoting Waqfs and their role in the development of the Islamic Societies and other similar subjects. ¶88. World Mosque Week. ¶89. Desecration of Islamic Sanctities and Values, to include such subjects as: the destruction of the Babri Mosque in India as well as the destruction of the Islamic Complex of Charar-e-Sharif Mosque in India and other Islamic Relics and Shrines in Azerbaijan and other similar subjects. ¶90. Resolutions on social matters, to include such subjects as: women, the child and youth. (a) Muslim Women and their role in the development of the Islamic Society. (b) Child care and protection in the Islamic World. (c) Education and Rehabilitation of Muslim Youth. (d) Cooperation on combating illegal production, abuse, processing and trafficking of drugs and psychotropic substances. (e) Cooperation among Member States in controlling epidemic diseases affecting man, fauna and the flora. (f) International cooperation on eradication of polio in OIC Member States. BAKU 00000836 005 OF 006 (g) Environment, sustainable development and ways and means of resolving problems relating to environment and health. ¶91. Islamic Universities: to cover matters relating to the Islamic Universities in Niger, Uganda, Malaysia, Bangladesh; also the proposed new building project for Zeitouna University in Tunis; and the extension of assistance to the King Faisal University in N'djamena. ¶92. Islamic Cultural Institutions and Centers: Regional Institute for Islamic Studies and Research in Timbuktu (Mali); Regional Institute for Complementary Education (Rice) (Islamabad, Pakistan); Islamic Centre in Guinea-Bissau; and the Islamic Institute of Translation in Khartoum (Sudan). ¶93. Project for the Establishment of a World Islamic Authority for the Holy Quran. ¶94. PALESTINIAN AFFAIRS: (a) Twinning of Palestinian Universities, Schools, Kindergartens and Hospitals with similar institutions in the Member States. (b) Teaching the subjects of History and Geography of Palestine. (c) Educational situation in the occupied Palestinian territories and the occupied Syrian Golan. (d) Preservation of the Islamic character, human heritage, and to address the policy of judaization of the City of AI-Quds AI-Sharif. (e) Israeli aggressions against Islamic shrines in AI-Khaleel ¶95. Activities of OIC organs and institutions involved in the cultural field: (a) SUBSIDIARY ORGANS: The Research Centre for Islamic History, Arl and Culture; The Islamic Fiqh Academy. Islamic Solidarity Fund and its Waqf. (b) SPECIALIZED INSTITUTIONS: Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Islamic Committee of the International Crescent. (c) AFFILIATED INSTITUTIONS: Islamic Solidarity Sports Federation. World Federation of Arab Islamic International Schools. Islamic Conference Youth Forum. ¶96. The OIC Ten-Year Programme of Action to meet the challenges facing the Muslim Ummah in the 21st Century adopted by the 3rd Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference held in Makkah-Al-Mukarramah in December, ¶2005. ¶97. Manifestations, Dimensions and Mechanisms of Confronting Islamophobia. . ¶98. Islamic Dawa Activities and Committee for Coordination of Joint Islamic Action: (a) Dawa Activities and Coordination of Joint Islamic Action. (b) Strategy of Joint Islamic Action in the Field of Dawa and their Implementation Mechanisms. (c) Consideration of Challenges Facing the Islamic Ummah in the Twenty-first Century. (d) Educating pilgrims on the rites of Haj. (e) Holding seminars to promote the cultural image of Islam. ¶99. The OIC Ten-Year Programme of Action to meet the challenges facing the Muslim Ummah in the 21st Century adopted by the 3rd Extraordinary Session of the Islamic Summit Conference held in Makkah-Al-Mukarramah in December, ¶2005. (I). ADMINISTRATIVE AND FINANCIAL AFFAIRS: ¶100. Final Report of the Thirty-fourth Meeting of the Permanent Finance Committee: ¶101. Review of the 266 Report of the OIC Finance Control Organ on the General Secretariat and its Subsidiary Organs' Closing Accounts for the fiscal year ending 30 June 2005(FC0/26-FINAL) and replies of the General Secretariat and its Subsidiary Organs on the said Report. ¶102. Proposed budgets for the year 2006/2007 of the: OIC General Secretariat. Islamic Fiqh Academy. Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries, Ankara. Islamic University of Technology, Dhaka. Research Centre for Islamic History, Art and Culture, Istanbul. Islamic Centre for the Development of Trade, Casablanca ¶103. (a) Draft amendments to the Financial Regulations of the OIC and Report of the Meeting of the Intergovernmental Group of Experts considering the proposed amendments to the Financial Regulations of the OIC. (b) Discussion of the Budget for transition period of lit July-31lt December 2007 for changing the period of the BAKU 00000836 006 OF 006 Financial Year to calendar year as of lit January 2008. ¶104. (a) A Study of the Ankara Centre and the Report of the General Secretariat for new scale of Member States' mandatory contributions to the annual budgets of the General Secretariat and its subsidiary organs ofthe OIC. SIPDIS (b) General Secretariat's report on Memer States' contributions and arrears (for information and consideration). ¶105. A study on the financial implications for the possibility of opening an OIC Office in Somalia. (J) SESSION FOR ANNOUNCING VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS IN FAVOUR OF THE ISLAMIC SOLIDARITY FUND. (K) ANY OTHER BUSINESS. (L) CLOSING SESSION: (M) Date and venue of the 34th Session of the ICFM (N) Adoption of Final Reports, Resolutions, and the Final Communique. End Text. HYLAND