MDA: FRANCE LOOKING TO ENGAGE CONSTRUCTIVELY

C O N F I D E N T I A L PARIS 002836 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/28/2016 TAGS: PREL PHUM AORC ICRC SZ FR SUBJECT: MDA: FRANCE LOOKING TO ENGAGE CONSTRUCTIVELY REF: STATE 63865 Classified By: Acting Political Counselor Bruce Turner. Reasons 1.4b,d ¶1. (C) MFA IO DAS-Equivalent for Human Rights Beatrice Le Fraper told poloff on April 26 that the French MFA concurred with U.S. demarche points on the need for the June 19-21 International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement to amend its statutes to reflect the Third Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions, thereby facilitating Magen David Adom membership (reftel). The MFA wants to engage constructively and will likely make a similar demarche. ¶2. (C) However, Le Fraper believed French outreach -- particularly to African interlocutors -- would be more successful if Israel would first make a gesture with regard to recent access and parking difficulties faced by ambulances of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society in East Jerusalem. France is now reaching out to the Israeli MFA and welcomed any U.S. encouragement to that same end. Please visit Paris' Classified Website at: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm Stapleton