SPAIN ON IRAN, SYRIA, HAMAS, NATO, WESTERN SAHARA,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 05 MADRID 001564 SIPDIS NOFORN SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/05/2016 TAGS: PREL NATO SP AF VZ IR IZ WI IS MO GG RS SUBJECT: SPAIN ON IRAN, SYRIA, HAMAS, NATO, WESTERN SAHARA, OSCE, AFGHANISTAN, BMENA REF: A. SECSTATE 83457 ¶B. BRUSSELS 1828 ¶C. SECSTATE 86455 ¶D. MADRID 01385 Classified By: PolCouns Kathy Fitzpatrick for reasons 1.4 (B)&(D). ¶1. (C/NF) SUMMARY: During meetings at MFA, MOD, and the presidency on June 1, top GOS policymakers told EUR PDAS Kurt Volker and NEA DAS Scott Carpenter that Spain strongly supports the recent US announcement on Iran and will continue its significant commitment to Afghanistan. They said that the GOS supports the international consensus on Syria, but also believes that Spain needs to keep lines of communication open with the Syrian government and they did not rule out future visits. The GOS supports a proposed humanitarian measure for Palestinians, and is already directing its bilateral aid through the Presidency, but worries that Hamas is being isolated. On NATO, the GOS isn't sure that now is the time for Intensified Dialogue for Georgia, but supports building additional support for the NATO Response Force. The GOS would consider requests from Iraq for additional training through the NATO Training Mission-Iraq. The GOS said that it will continue on its own course in dealing with Venezuela. The GOS is concerned about stagnation in Western Sahara, and again invites the US to work more closely with it to restart negotiations. MFA officials were also grateful for Volker,s ideas for the OSCE on dealing with aggressive Russian proposals that whittle down the OSCE,s human rights and elections monitoring capabilities. END SUMMARY. 2.(U) EUR PDAS Kurt Volker and NEA DAS Scott Carpenter met on June 1 with National Security Adviser Carles Casajuana, MFA Policy Director Rafael Dezcallar, MOD Policy Director Francisco Torrente, MFA DG for Europe and North America Jose Maria Pons, and MFA DG for Middle East and Africa Alvaro Iranzo. They shared a working lunch with foreign affairs analysts and pundits at the Royal Elcano Institute, and gave an interview to a newspaper writer who attended the lunch. The DCM hosted a dinner for Volker and Carpenter with a group of current and former government officials and parliamentarians. -- IRAN -- ¶3. (C/NF) Volker thanked the GOS for its public statements on Iran and Iraq, emphasizing the importance of international unity on these issues. Casajuana said that the GOS is extremely happy with the new US policy on Iran, because it forces Iran to focus on the substance of negotiations. He was reluctant to predict the Iranian reaction, but said that his previous experience with the Iranian government was that it typically makes last minute decisions and is likely to send mixed signals till the end. Casajuana said that Spain fully supports the EU-3 and predicted that at some point the UN Security Council would have to take action against Iran. He also acknowledged that at times it is useful for the US and the international community to make tough statements. Dezcallar noted that, in addition to talking about Iran with his EU-3 counterparts, he also talks with countries like India, South Africa, and Brazil, which he said are an important part of the international consensus on Iran. He underscored that Spain is playing a helpful role in building consensus, and that the GOS "understands its place." -- IRAQ -- ¶4. (C/NF) Casajuana said that the GOS wants to see a stable, prosperous Iraq. Spain will continue to contribute to that effort, but without sending troops. Volker noted Spain's 150 million euro contribution to Afghanistan's reconstruction and development and encouraged consideration of a similar sign of support for the new Iraqi government. Dezcallar detailed Spain's current contributions to Iraq, including financial assistance, participation in the EU mission in Baghdad, and NATO Training Mission Iraq (NTM-I) training for Iraqi security forces both in Spain and in cooperation with Germany. Torrente said that the GOS would consider possibilities for additional support for Iraq through NTM-I (ref A). He said that demining training courses for Iraqi security forces were successful, but that the Iraqi government has asked Spain to consider different training areas because several of the deminers quit after their training. Torrente said that Iraq has requested courses that would teach mid- and upper-level military officers how to work with civilian leaders in MOD, MFA, and defense industries. Torrente said that with a clear request from Iraq on what it wants, Spain would be willing to consider any option. MADRID 00001564 002 OF 005 -- AFGHANISTAN -- ¶5. (C/NF) All the GOS leaders emphasized to Volker and Carpenter that the GOS is committed to Afghanistan, both militarily and financially. Casajuana noted the difficult security situation and said that as it continues to worsen, it would become increasingly difficult for Spain to do anything new, although the Spanish parliament had just approved an increase in the troop level from 550 to 700 soldiers. He explained that all these troops were needed in the field, and therefore Spain would not be able to contribute to the headquarters force. Casajuana also said that while the GOS supports increased efficiency and cooperation between ISAF and OEF, it carefully avoids talk about merging the two operations because this causes public support for Spanish participation to drop. Torrente told Volker that the Spanish military will be in Afghanistan until the job is done, adding that the job should be done as quickly as possible. He noted that, in addition to adding troops, Spain is sending another plane to support intratheater movements, and may move its plane out of Manas airfield, which he said is logistically inconvenient. -- PALESTINE/HAMAS -- ¶6. (C/NF) Carpenter explained that he was just in Brussels discussing the proposed Temporary International Mechanism (TIM) with Christian Leffler, the European Commission pointman on Palestine issues (ref B). He said that Leffler is moving quickly on a plan that is consistent with the USG position to help as many Palestinians as possible as quickly as possible. He stressed, per ref C demarche, that it will be important to manage expectations for the TIM so that everyone understands that the TIM is not a comprehensive solution and that the Palestinian Authority government - not the international community - has created the current crisis and can solve it by accepting the Quartet principles. Casajuana said that he is uncomfortable with the idea that Hamas, which won the election, has no partner to talk to, but called the TIM a good possibility. He said that while it is important to keep pressure on Hamas, it is also important to send the message of need for change in a way that does not play into the terrorists' hands. The TIM could address this issue by showing that the international community is not abandoning the Palestinian people. Iranzo said that Spain already directs its bilateral assistance to President Abbas rather than the Hamas-controlled Palestinian Authority government. Iranzo noted that the salary issue would have to be addressed at some point, because "you can't have doctors unless someone pays their salaries." Dezcallar said that it would be important to build broad support, including Israel, for the TIM. Dezcallar also emphasized the need for dialogue between Israel and President Abbas. ¶7. (C/NF) Carpenter and Dezcallar also discussed President Abbas's recent announcement of a referendum and its potential to change the political dynamic in the territories. Dezcallar called Abbas's referendum plan "the first imaginative move of his political life." Iranzo said that the plan shows that Abbas is regaining some authority and that the international community, including Israel, should do all it can to support him because he is the best partner for the future. He also mentioned that Israel has encouraged Foreign Minister Moratinos to stay involved in Palestine related discussions. -- SYRIA -- ¶8. (C/NF) Carpenter and Volker both stressed USG concern regarding Spain's official contacts with Syria. They reminded GOS officials that the international community has agreed to isolate the Syrian government until it takes certain steps, and thus there should be no ministerial contact. They pointed out Syria's interference in Lebanon, support for Hamas, and failure to control the Iraqi border, among other current problems. Carpenter said that Syria is always looking for signs that it can break out of its isolation without changing, and therefore cannot be permitted any meeting that it could exploit as daylight between the members of the international community. Casajuana said that he understood the message, that Spain would not stray from the consensus, and that there should be no daylight in positions on Syria. He said, however, that FM Moratinos has special links to Syria and the GOS continues to see utility in keeping open a line of communication, which has been useful, he claimed, "even to the French." ¶9. (C/NF) Dezcallar said that the EU has made no decision on the appropriate level of contact with Syria, and said that MADRID 00001564 003 OF 005 Syria needs incentives as well as pressure. He worried that there are no good alternatives to Bashar Assad and that Iran is reaching out to Syria, so the international community shouldn't push too hard without giving Syria some breathing space. Iranzo called for "constructive engagement without affecting the overall international pressure." Carpenter said that Syrian moves toward Iran would be Syria's own choice, rather than the result of external pressure. He reminded Dezcallar that Syria is quick to publicize international contacts and is always trying to open new channels of diplomacy and communication. Dezcallar replied that while he doesn't expect many high level visits, he can't understand why the US overreacts to such things. He said that Spain is helpful to the US on issues like the CIA planes, and deserves respect in return. PolCouns reminded Dezcallar that it was not the US that had put into the press the US-Spain disagreement on Moratinos' recent stopover in Damascus. Dezcallar said that while he doesn't expect another such visit for a long time, Spain thought that the previous visit was well-timed. -- OSCE/RUSSIA -- ¶10. (C/NF) Volker explained the USG concept that the OSCE needs to focus on Russia. He said that Russia has been advocating certain "reforms" to reframe the debate, and that democratic countries need to push back with their own reforms. Volker explained that with all of the problems in Russia at the moment, it is time to be more frank. The overall message would be that while Russia is working well with the international community on some issues (e.g., Iran) it needs to address some of the international community's growing concerns about its internal problems and the problems that it is creating for its neighbors. Volker shared these views in detail with MFA DG for North America and Europe, Jose Pons, who also covers OSCE issues, and Jose Lopez Jorrin, who will serve as primary coordinator for Spain's OSCE Chairmanship-in-office and will represent Spain on these issues on behalf of FM Moratinos. Pons expressed appreciation for Volker's ideas and looks forward to our more detailed strategy when it is available. Pons said the GOS was concerned about approaches that would put Spain in a difficult position as Chairman-in-Office in any confrontational efforts toward Russia, but said that the US ideas as Volker presented them could be very helpful in because they represented a positive agenda rather than a confrontational one. -- NATO -- ¶11. (C/NF) On NATO issues, Volker told all interlocutors that major issues to consider in the run up to the defense ministerial and the Riga Summit would be partnership, training, the NATO Reaction Force (NRF),and the need for strategic airlift capacity. Volker emphasized the importance of supporting the NRF, explaining that the US had just made a substantial contribution and hoped the allies would make significant pledges as well. Torrente talked about the need for broader and deeper support of the NRF by countries other than Spain, which he said is the biggest troop contributor (ref D). Dezcallar said that Spain is anxious to talk about common funding of NATO operations, particularly given costs it has born in association with NRF activities. He said that the GOS supports US ideas on Global Partnership, but that the regional partnerships need to retain their individuality. Dezcallar said that it may be time to consider Serbia for Partnership for Peace, as a way to bolster the worsening political situation there. On caveats, Torrente said that Spain has only one, but then pointed out that Spain would be have to study the possibility that the ISAF commander would be able to move Spain's Quick Reaction Force (QRF). Torrente said that the entire QRF are needed to protect the four PRTs in their zone. Torrente said that Spain would support a slow, careful transition from Phase 3 ops to Phase 4 in Afghanistan. On the question of strategic airlift, Torrente noted Spain's past airlift problems, including the crash of a leased plane that killed Spanish troops returning from Afghanistan and the huge cost of airlift to take Spanish troops into Pakistan for the recent NRF relief mission. However, he said that with USD 30 billion in current infrastructure programs, it would be hard for Spain to find funds to buy into such a program. He also noted that the A400-M program would complicate the issue for all the Europeans. ¶12. (C/NF) Volker also told them that it is time for Georgia to begin an Intensified Dialog with NATO. He said that this step would be reassuring to Georgian democrats, and pointed out that because the EU can't do anything for Georgia, this NATO step would be particularly important. Dezcallar said MADRID 00001564 004 OF 005 that Spain agrees that Georgia should begin Intensified Dialogue, but worried that Georgia may not yet be advanced enough so it is a question of timing. Nonetheless, if the determination is made that Georgia is ready, the GOS wouldn't let Russia stand in the way of granting ID. -- VENEZUELA -- ¶13. (C/NF) Dezcallar said that the US overreacted to Spanish sale of ships and planes to Venezuela, saying that Spain has balanced the deal with pro-democracy activities like meetings with opposition. He said that the Venezuelan opposition has not complained to Spain about the defense sale. He said that Spain continues to coordinate with Venezuela's neighbors, like Brazil and Colombia, on how to deal with Chavez. Dezcallar said that Chavez is his own worst enemy, as the local reaction to his interference in elections in Peru and Mexico showed. He said that no one pays attention to Chavez's rhetoric, and claimed that Chavez "has no stomach for dictatorship" which isn't "the Venezuelan way." He said that we need to focus on building democratic alternatives to Chavez, but this is difficult as long as oil is above USD 50/barrel. Dezcallar said that Spain's redlines in Venezuela are (1) intervention in foreign countries and (2) protection of political and economic freedom. Volker noted that Chavez has been both intimidating the little opposition that exists in Venezuela and interfering in neighboring countries. Dezcallar said that while Chavez clearly controls the levers of powers, he has not yet taken steps to actually disband other sources of power. He admitted that the GOS doesn't have a clear idea about how to address Venezuela, but disagreed with Volker's suggestion to coordinate more closely on Venezuela, saying that a division of labor is better. -- BMENA and ALLIANCE OF CIVILIZATIONS -- ¶14. (C/NF) Carpenter thanked the GOS for participating in BMENA and explained the status of the Forum and Foundation. Iranzo said that Spain likes the fact that BMENA is broad enough to include all of the Arab world. He said that Spain can contribute substance as well as financial assistance via its clout and knowledge of the Arab world's "hidden forces." Iranzo asked whether a Spaniard had been included in the proposed board slate for the Foundation. He said that Spain would be glad to be invited to upcoming meetings in Sanaa and the Dead Sea. On the question of locating the Foundation headquarters in Qatar, Iranzo called Qatar too rich and too close to Hamas, and suggested that Qatar would be a difficult physical location. Carpenter noted that the Italians had tried to insert an Alliance of Civilizations like concept into BMENA, but that the US had resisted, wanting to wait to see how the Alliance develops, so that BMENA doesn't duplicate work that the Alliance will do. Dezcallar suggested dialogue between the US and EU on a possible religious freedom resolution at the UN. He said that EU members had all voted against last year's version, but agreement might be possible at this year's UNGA. ¶15. (C/NF) Dezcallar expressed his thanks for USG support of the Alliance of Civilizations. He talked about his recent discussions with countries like Indonesia, Philippines, and Australia that are also supportive, and noted that the recent GAERC had endorsed the Alliance's call for dialogue. Dezcallar's deputy Felix Costales said that he had just returned from a positive Alliance meeting in Dakar and said that the Alliance of Civilizations isn't a crisis management forum, it is showing usefulness in addressing crisis-related issues. He said that the Alliance is addressing many of the issues that the Secretary had identified in her letter to FM Moratinos. Volker asked about possible references to Iraq and Afghanistan in a Alliance of Civilizations' High Level Group draft paper. Costales said that the initial draft might include some historical references, but that there wouldn't be anything on those issues in the final statement. Dezcallar and Volker agreed that the Alliance of Civilizations should not get pulled off track into immediate political concerns. -- WESTERN SAHARA -- ¶16. (C/NF) Iranzo told Carpenter that Spain is concerned about stagnation in Western Sahara. The last UNSC resolution was useless, because the parties vetoed all the substance. He said that UN special envoy Peter van Walsum was a positive force, but that his frankness has alienated the Polisario. Iranzo said that Walsum plans to tour the region starting on June 6. The GOS will provide logistical support and see how he is received. Iranzo acknowledged that any mediator is better than none, and it would be better for Walsum to MADRID 00001564 005 OF 005 continue, if possible, than to have to wait while the UNSYG selected a replacement. Iranzo said that UN involvement is important both because it contains the present situation by preventing either side from taking serious action, and also keeps focus on the ultimate resolution of the issue. Nonetheless, the parties have to understand that the UN can only create the conditions for a solution rather than the solution itself, and they must negotiate. Furthermore, Morocco needs to produce a convincing alternative, not just reject the Baker plan. Iranzo said that both parties need to be convinced that stagnation is not acceptable, and should understand that Spain is pushing dialogue, not blaming or taking sides. He suggested that the US, UK, and Spain convene a meeting (at a higher level than the current meetings in NY) to review the results of the Walsum trip and plan strategy for the next few months. Iranzo said that the French should not be included because they are too biased towards Morocco. Carpenter explained that Washington is not necessarily ready to get involved, but agrees that we need to keep pressure on Morocco to produce an alternative. ¶17. (U) NEA DAS Scott Carpenter cleared this cable. AGUIRRE