EGYPTIAN AND ARAB LEAGUE ASSISTANCE FOR LEBANON

C O N F I D E N T I A L CAIRO 005389

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/29/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV EAID EG LE
SUBJECT: EGYPTIAN AND ARAB LEAGUE ASSISTANCE FOR LEBANON
RECONSTRUCTION

REF: A. STATE 139903


B. CAIRO IIR 6899017300

Classified by Minister Counselor for Economic and Political
Affairs William R. Stewart for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) According to MFA Cabinet staff member Ezzedine
Shukry, Minister for International Cooperation Fayza Aboul
Naga will represent Egypt at the August 31 Stockholm donors
conference for Lebanon. MFA Deputy Assistant Minister for
Arab Affairs Amal Mourad will also attend. Minister Aboul
Naga is expected to describe Egypt's current bilateral
assistance to Lebanon, but is not expected to announce any
substantial new aid contribution.


2. (U) To date, Egypt has provided 18 (eighteen) planeloads
(C-130's) of relief supplies containing medical and
humanitarian items. Egypt also set up a medical field
hospital outside Beirut (ref B) and sent teams of engineers
to southern Lebanon to assess the electricity grid
infrastructure. Egypt is considering sending engineers to
repair damaged bridges (ref B),and offered to coordinate
donations from Arab states. Egypt reportedly shared a paper
on the coordination issue with Lebanon's foreign minister
during an August 20 Arab League ministerial in Cairo. The
Lebanese representative reportedly agreed to "study" Egypt's
offer.


3. (C) Post shared ref A demarche with Arab League
Secretariat Chief of Staff Hisham Youssef on August 27. The

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League, Youssef said, had no funds of its own for assistance
for Lebanon, although AL Secretary General Amre Moussa was
encouraging member states to give maximum relief to Lebanon.
The League will be represented at the Stockholm conference by
Assistant Secretary General for Economic and Social Affairs
Nancy Bakhir. Arab ministers of trade and economy will meet
in Cairo in early September to discuss Lebanon's
reconstruction; Youssef said they may also decide to hold a
special session in Lebanon in the coming weeks. He said that
a senior United Nations representative who attended the
August 20 AL foreign ministers meeting in Cairo recommended
that the Government of Lebanon define a "long-term vision"
for reconstruction, to which Arab governments could donate.
The League Secretariat is collecting information on Arab
contributions to Lebanon's reconstruction and should share
this information in Stockholm. The League is also
considering convening a meeting of representatives from all
Arab specialized agencies to review potential assistance to
Lebanon.


4. (C) Mohamed Shousha, Economic Researcher in the Cabinet
of the Minister for International Cooperation told emboff on
August 29 that Egypt will focus its assistance efforts on the
construction and electricity sectors. Two delegations, he
said, had been to Lebanon, one led by the Ministry of
Electricity and the other led by a private Egyptian firm
called Arab Contractors. The Ministry of International
Cooperation had not yet received a read-out on either
delegation's visit, Shousha reported.
RICCIARDONE