(C) SOMALIA: FCO SEEKS CLOSER COORDINATION

C O N F I D E N T I A L LONDON 004022 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/E E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/05/2016 TAGS: PREL SO UK SUBJECT: (C) SOMALIA: FCO SEEKS CLOSER COORDINATION Classified By: PolMinCouns Maura Connelly; reason 1.4 (b, d) ¶1. (U) Action Request - please see paragraph 4. ¶2. (C) FCO East Africa Section Head Ben Lyon told Poloff June 5 that the UK is keen to coordinate more closely with the USG on Somalia. He said Africa Director James Bevan tried to phone A/S Frazer June 2 to ask for a response to the draft "US/UK Joint Policy Paper" on Somalia that he had given her in Washington in early May. FCO Minister for Africa Lord Triesman and Secretary of State for International Development Hilary Benn have ordered a policy review on Somalia, and Triesman told A/S Frazer of his interest during the lunch he hosted for her in London on May 16. The underlying premises of the British policy review are that "rebuilding the Somali State is essential" to addressing threats of terrorism, piracy and uncontrolled migration, as well as the humanitarian problems of poverty and drought, and that the Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs) provide an opportunity to move towards "a permanent democratically elected parliament and government in 2010." ¶3. (C) Lyon suggested that Bevan's draft be seen as a way to get the ball rolling, not a specific blueprint to be followed in every detail. Lyon said the UK is urging the EU to be more pro-active on Somalia. Key points for discussion with USG include: - how best to support the political process (UK is considering supporting capacity-building for the Transitional Federal Parliament, ministries and judiciary); - what (if anything) to do about Somaliland; - appropriateness of the CMC as a vehicle for cooperation; - USG view on accrediting diplomats to/from the TFG (TFG President Yusuf raised this with the British in April; response is pending consultation with the AU, USG and other partners); - USG view on imposition of targeted sanctions against specific violators of the UN arms embargo (Qatar is understood to be convening a meeting of the sanctions committee "soon"); - status of fighting in Mogadishu, and significance thereof; - prospects of supporting the TFIs' national security plan once it is presented; and - clarification of USG funding process and prospects. ¶4. (C) ACTION REQUEST: We would be grateful for Department guidance responsive to this FCO request. Visit London's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/london/index. cfm Tuttle