FM STOERE WANTS A BIGGER ROLE IN MIDDLE EAST

C O N F I D E N T I A L OSLO 000338

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/20/2016
TAGS: PREL EAID XF NO KPAL
SUBJECT: FM STOERE WANTS A BIGGER ROLE IN MIDDLE EAST

Classified By: P/E Counselor Mike Hammer, reason 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (U) On March 16, FM Stoere went public with a complaint
that the Quartet will not agree to an early date for a
meeting (without the parties) of the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee
(AHLC) to discuss donor coordination. "It's a problem that
we did not get this," Stoere told the widest selling
Norwegian daily Dagbladet. "It would have been wise. Now we
are losing valuable time."


2. (U) Stoere goes on to tell Dagbladet that he is launching
a new (undefined) Middle East initiative with his Spanish
colleague Miguel Angel Moratinos. "We are going to discuss
what possibilities our two countries have in this situation.
We cannot be passive about the situation if we have even a
small chance for success." The paper also notes that Stoere
has been elected as the leader of the Socialist
International's Middle East Committee, and reports that
Stoere plans to lead a Socialist International delegation to
the region sometime in the coming months.


3. (U) In the course of the interview with Dagbladet, Stoere
does make clear that Norway fully supports the central
conditions that the international community has laid down for
Hamas, including accepting Israel's right to exist, and
renunciation of the use of violence. "It is impossible for
Norway to economically support a government that has the
annihilation of Israel as its explicit goal." However,
Stoere told the paper "we have to avoid painting the
Palestinian political milieu into a corner. We have to make
it possible for the new Palestinian leadership to accept the
previously agreed commitments that the peace process must be
built upon."


4. (C) We spoke on March 16 to MFA office Director for
Middle East Affairs Joern Gjelstad to seek clarification as
to what Stoere hopes to accomplish with his Spanish
colleague. Gjelstad had not seen the Dagbladet article, but
said that to his knowledge Norway is not planning to launch
any new policy initiative with Spain on the international
stage. What Norway seeks is increased bilateral
consultations with Spain on Middle East issues. When Spanish
FM Moratinos visited Norway in summer 2005, one of the topics
he discussed with his Norwegian hosts was increasing expert
dialogues on matters of common interest. Gjelstad said that
what is now under consideration is bilateral discussions of
this nature, not a new international initiative towards the
Middle East.


5. (C) Commenting on Stoere's statements about the AHLC,
Gjelstad (strictly protect) said that the Norwegian Foreign
Minister really is anxious for a political role in the Middle
East. Stoere was disappointed that his overture to meet with
the Quartet in London in January had been rejected, but still
hopes that Norway (and other leading donor nations) will be
included in the international political process through a
"Quartet-Plus framework."


6. (C) Comment. FM Stoere just will not stay still and
wants to be everywhere. Riding high in domestic opinion
polls -- he recently came out as the most popular Norwegian
minister ever/ever -- Stoere wants to be an international
player. He does not seem to grasp that hyper-activism
combined with scattershot and ill considered public diplomacy
can get him into trouble with friends. Stoere probably needs
to hear from Washington that too many unexpected antics
(whether substantive or only media created) will call his
credibility into question.

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