UNESCO DEMARCHE ON CULTURAL EXPRESSIONS - GOA

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 002629 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E FOR THOMAS PIERCE, WHA FOR WHA/BSC AND WHA/EPSC IO/UNESCO FOR KELLY SIEKMAN L/UNA FOR DAVID SULLIVAN EB/TPP/MTA FOR CAROL HENNINGER PASS USTR FOR SUE CRONIN AND MARY SULLIVAN TREASURY FOR ALICE FAIBISHENKO USDOC FOR 4322/ITA/MAC/OLAC/PEACHER US SOUTHCOM FOR POLAD E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON PREL AR SUBJECT: UNESCO DEMARCHE ON CULTURAL EXPRESSIONS - GOA CONCERNED BUT PLANS TO RATIFY REF: STATE 188253 ¶1. (SBU) Post delivered reftel demarche to Martin Romero, Secretary of Embassy in the Foreign Ministry's Directorate of SIPDIS International Organisms (DIOIN). According to Romero, Argentina is proceeding with the ratification process for the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, despite concerns over potential conflicts. The agreement is presently pending ratification by the Argentine parliament's upper house, but a date has not been scheduled to bring the UNESCO Convention to a vote. When the instruments of ratification are filed with the UN, the GoA plans to file a written "understanding" to express awareness of possible conflicts with other international agreements such as WTO norms (reftel). When asked what the GoA would do in case of a trade conflict with another country based on actions in name of this Convention, Romero indicated that the GoA was prepared to utilize the dispute mechanism contained in the Convention. ¶2. (SBU) Post also delivered demarche to Luis Niscovolos, Director of Multilateral Economic Negotiations at the Foreign Ministry, who expressed concernthat the Convention could violate WTO and GATT norms. He said, however, that he could not speak to the possibility of an "understanding" being submitted, as that was the responsibility of DIOIN. Niscovolos volunteered that the Secretary of Culture had also been consulted on the subject, and possibly the Ministry of Education. While he was sure that the Ministry of Economy had been consulted, Adrian Makuc, National Director of Foreign Trade Policy in the Ministry of Economy, told econoff that, despite the trade-related aspects of the Convention, he was not aware that Economy had been consulted on the substance of the Convention. WAYNE