ARAB LEAGUE MINISTERIAL DEMARCHE: OMAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L MUSCAT 001327 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/06/2016 TAGS: PREL LE SU MU SUBJECT: ARAB LEAGUE MINISTERIAL DEMARCHE: OMAN REF: A. MUSCAT 1317 ¶B. STATE 145279 Classified By: Ambassador Gary A. Grappo for Reasons 1.4 (b, d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs Yusef bin Alawi will not attend the Arab League Ministerial in Cairo. Alawi is supportive of UNSCR 1701, but criticized Israel for refusing to lift its blockade of Lebanon. On Sudan, Alawi said that Oman will join its Arab League counterparts in rejecting any UN resolution or plan to address the situation in Darfur that does not have the consent of the Sudanese government. End Summary. ¶2. (U) The Ambassador on September 4 delivered ref B points to Minister Alawi in advance of the upcoming Arab League (AL) Ministerial in Cairo. Alawi noted that while he planned to attend the September 5 Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) meeting in Jeddah, he would not attend the AL Ministerial. Oman would instead be represented in Cairo by the head of its diplomatic mission in Egypt. ¶3. (C) On Lebanon, Alawi characterized UN Security Council Resolution 1701 as a "victory" for proponents of peace, and said that he hoped that all relevant parties would support its implementation. He continued, however, that Israel was not in compliance with UNSCR 1701 as it had yet to lift its blockade of Lebanon. Alawi said that he did not see the need for continuation of the blockade with the deployment of UNIFIL troops and a Syrian pledge to respect the UN resolution. He added that the blockade was of limited effectiveness since there was already "plenty of arms" within Lebanon, and that smugglers would not be easily deterred by the blockade from sneaking weapons into the country. ¶4. (C) Responding to the points on Sudan, Alawi strongly criticized the passage of UN Security Resolution 1706. He stated that any resolution or plan to address the situation in Darfur that did not have the consent of the Sudanese government would "cause more problems than it would solve." He also commented that sending an international force to Darfur without Khartoum's approval could be seen as "an act of war." ¶5. (C) Alawi acknowledged that the international community "cannot sit back and do nothing" in response to the situation in Darfur, and stressed that Oman was fully supportive of continued negotiations between Khartoum and the United Nations to address humanitarian concerns in Darfur. But he stated firmly that Sudan must agree to any proposed course of action and that Oman, like the rest of the Arab League, would support Khartoum's position on this matter. ¶6. (U) Alawi's statements on the contested election for the GRULAC seat on the UN Security Council are reported in ref A. GRAPPO