PLAN AFRICA: SPAIN INTRODUCES SELF TO NEIGHBORS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 MADRID 001966

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

YAOUNDE FOR MALABO
AF/FO FOR DAS DONALD YAMAMOTO

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/18/2016
TAGS: PREL EAID SMIG SOCI SP XY
SUBJECT: PLAN AFRICA: SPAIN INTRODUCES SELF TO NEIGHBORS

REF: STATE 112788

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Classified By: A/DCM Whitney Baird; reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: On July 26, Vice President Fernandez de la
Vega officially rolled out Plan Africa, an ambitious project
developed by the Zapatero government to address what it
perceives to be a glaring hole in Spanish foreign policy.
Prompted both by fears of international terrorism and by more
recent and somewhat alarmist public clamor over illegal
immigration, the Zapatero government has committed Spain to a
three year initiative that will significantly expand Spanish
diplomatic and assistance programs in Sub-Saharan Africa and
also strengthen immigration controls. Spain's projected
assistance budget for Africa in 2008 (120 million euros) will
quadruple its 2003 expenditures. GOS contacts have
repeatedly expressed interest in working with the United
States in Africa; Post has indicated some possible avenues
for cooperation (PARA. 8). END SUMMARY.


2. (U) Emboffs met with MFA Subdirector General for Africa
Antonio Sanchez-Benedito Gaspar on July 18 to deliver a
letter from former Deputy Secretary Zoellick to Deputy
Foreign Minister Bernardino Leon (reftel) regarding bilateral
cooperation in Africa and specifically in Equatorial Guinea.
Sanchez-Benedito thanked Emboffs and said that Plan Africa
was now complete and would be officially rolled out by Vice
President Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega at a July 26
ceremony. He described the plan as "ambitious but directed,
with concrete targets, clear objectives and a finite scope."

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Background: Benign Neglect
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3. (U) Sanchez-Benedito said that Sub-Saharan Africa
represents a "final frontier" of sorts for Spanish diplomacy
- an area which Spain has neglected for centuries but is now
looking to engage on a wide variety of issues. The Spanish
feel that they are uniquely positioned to serve as an honest
broker on behalf of the EU in Africa, both because of their
geographic proximity and cultural links to the region and
because Spain has much less of a negative imperialist legacy
in Africa than other Western European nations.
Sanchez-Benedito pointed to West Africa as a region that has
received very little attention of late yet has important
historical connections dating from the time of the Muslim
occupation of Spain. While Spain has had relationships with
nations in Southern Africa since the 1970s, he noted that
these relationships were mostly centered on fishing rights
and other economic concerns. Sanchez-Benedito singled out
Mali, Mauritania, and Equatorial Guinea, the only former
Spanish colony in Sub-Saharan Africa, as three nations of
particular importance.

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Motivation: "New African Reality", Self-Interest
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4. (U) The "new African reality" of notable democratic
advances coexisting with continuing widespread misery and
conflict, coupled with concern that certain regions of Africa
represent ideal growth opportunities for international
terrorist organizations, has prompted Spain to undertake this
initiative. The plan notes that Spanish society feels a
"calling to solidarity" with Africa, as well as a renewed

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spirit favoring multilateral endeavors and a more relevant
global role for Spain. In one highly visible recent episode,
Spanish tourists became voluntary aid workers when a boat
carrying nearly 100 dehydrated and starving West Africans
pulled ashore at a popular beach in the Canary Islands.


5. (U) On the other hand, critics accuse the Zapatero
government of producing this plan solely to provide cover for
their main goal of discouraging illegal immigration from
Sub-Saharan Africa. The GOS replies that although it is a
highly visible and easily sensationalized phenomenon, the
"African exodus" represents only a tiny fraction of total
Spanish immigration. (COMMENT: This is true, but this
illegal immigration is the most damaging to the government's
image. END COMMENT.) Furthermore, immigration, with its
coresponding supply of cheap labor, is one of the factors
propping up the Spanish economy.


6. (U) Counter-migration strategies represent an important
part of the plan, according to Deputy Foreign Minister
Bernardino Leon, but they are merely a part, not the key
objective. In a May 21 interview with Spanish daily El Pais,
Leon noted that Sub-Saharan migrants represent a meager three
percent of total immigrants to Spain. He called alarmist
claims of an African exodus "pure demagoguery." When asked
if the GOS really thinks it can fix Africa, Leon stated the
issue plainly: "What should we do? Stand with our arms
crossed while Africa empties itself of its youth, either
through emigration or AIDS?" He said Spain's plan would
complement other existing initiatives such as those of the
European Union, the G-8, the United Kingdom and China.

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The Plan
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7. (U) The GOS has identified seven main objectives for
Plan Africa:

A.--Financing Democracy, Human Rights, Peace & Security--
Included under this objective are existing contributions to
elections in Ivory Coast and Democratic Republic of Congo, a
commitment to contribute to future election operations,
bilateral efforts on human rights, engagement with the
African Union and a commitment to increase contributions to
peacekeeping operations in Africa. Additional goals include
the enactment of Cooperation Protocols on Security and
Defense with Angola, Namibia, Mozambique and South Africa,
and the ratification by African nations of international
conventions on terrorism and justice, as agreed to at a May
2006 Ministerial Round Table on Terrorism, hosted by Spain.

B.--Fight Poverty, Develop Sub-Saharan Africa--
This objective includes programs for food assistance,
education, water/sanitation, urban housing, gender equity and
public health. Further, Spain will provide technical
assistance and advice to African fishing and agricultural
industries, as well as tourist sectors. Spain also intends
to remain a leader in debt forgiveness, with an eventual
total cancellation of 800 million euros through the
Gleneagles initiative, as well as bilateral cancellation of
200 million dollars.

C.--Cooperation with African Nations on Migration--
This objective puts in place domestic border controls and
resources for immigrant integration. It also seeks to

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establish bilateral agreements on migration and repatriation
with Senegal, Mali, Ghana, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Cape Verde,
Guinea, and the Gambia. Additionally, Spain cosponsored and
co-organized with Morocco the first Ministerial Conference on
Migration and Development among European and African nations.
Spain considers the summit, which took place in Rabat on
July 10-11, a success and proof of their emerging leadership
role in the EU on African concerns.

D.--Active Participation in the EU-Africa Strategy--
Spain intends to actively involve itself in EU policies on
Africa, especially in peace and security matters, as well as
supporting the second EU-Africa summit in Lisbon.

E.--Commercial Investment, Fishing, Energy Security--
Spain runs a modest trade deficit with Sub-Saharan Africa.
Spanish exports to Sub-Saharan Africa amount to only 4
percent of total European exports to the region, compared to
21 percent each for France and Germany. Spain intends to
counter this trade imbalance by capitalizing on geographical
proximity, Spain's squeaky clean image in Africa (as compared
to France and Germany),and Spanish industry's recent
experiences in successfully globalizing their operations via
Latin America. The plan identifies South Africa, Nigeria,
Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Namibia, Uganda and Cameroon as
nations of immediate interest. Spain will use development
assistance funds both to stimulate growth and to promote
Spanish businesses in the region. It will also seek to
earmark funds from the World Bank for infrastructure and
employment projects in its areas of interest.

On fishing, Spain will maintain or renegotiate its 1970s-era
fishing agreements with most coastal African nations and will
seek to establish respect for sustainability in African
fisheries, as well as targeting EU funds to modernize African
fishing industries.

Spain will press for the inclusion of Spanish energy firms in
exploratory operations in Africa, as well as taking measures
to support the democratic and financial rights of citizens in
hydrocarbon producing countries. Target areas are the Gulf
of Guinea, Nigeria, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, San Tome and
Principe, and Angola.

F.--Cultural and Scientific Cooperation--
Spain will increase by 20% their cultural budgets in African
embassies, as well as increasing their cultural staff.
Additionally, Spain will create Spanish language classrooms
and Cervantes Institutes in several African countries.
Scientific cooperation will be in the form of technical
advice and exchanges. Lastly, Spain will inaugurate Casa
Africa, a regional center focused on Spanish-African
relations, in Las Palmas, Canary Islands.

G.--Expansion of Political and Institutional Presence --
Spain's diplomatic presence in Africa has remained basically
unchanged since the 1970s, with 17 embassies. Spain will
open embassies in Mali, Sudan and Cape Verde, cooperation
offices in Cape Verde, Ethiopia and Mali, and Defense Attache
offices in Cape Verde, Senegal and Gabon. Additionally,
Spain will be creating new positions in almost all of its
African embassies to expand their diplomatic presence in the
region. The Spanish Foreign Ministry will also create an
Africa working group with civil society leaders.

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Requests for USG Cooperation
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8. (C) Spanish officials including VP de la Vega, FM
Moratinos, Deputy FM Leon, and Director General for the
Mediterranean, Middle East and Africa Alvaro Iranzo have
expressed interest in working with the USG on Africa
development issues. We look forward to working with the
Africa Bureau to review possible areas for joint
collaboration. Countries of mutual interest include but are
not limited to Equatorial Guinea, Nigeria, Sudan, and Congo.
Possible areas for cooperation include justice and democracy
building, development assistance coordination,
counter-terrorism, human rights, organized crime,
narco-trafficking and global health.

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Comment
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9. (C) While Plan Africa says all the right things with
respect to development, it is certainly as preoccupied with
abating the perceived hordes of Sub-Saharan African migrants
heading to Spain as it is with improving conditions in
Africa. Deputy FM Leon practically said as much at a June 23
press conference in Bamako when he noted that "Spain does not
have the capacity to accept more workers." Nevertheless, the
fact that Spain has repeatedly sought U.S. input and
cooperation in this area is an indication of their sincerity
and presents an opportunity to direct Spanish diplomacy and
funds toward key U.S. policy goals, simultaneously improving
visuals on bilateral relations.
AGUIRRE