SOUTH AFRICA EXPANDING COOPERATION IN BOLIVIA

C O N F I D E N T I A L PRETORIA 003182

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/01/2016
TAGS: PREL BO SF
SUBJECT: SOUTH AFRICA EXPANDING COOPERATION IN BOLIVIA

REF: A. PRETORIA 151


B. PRETORIA 128

C. PRETORIA 38

Classified By: DCM Don Teitelbaum. Reasons 1.4(b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary. South Africa plans to expand its cooperation
with Bolivia, particularly in the mining and energy sectors,
according to DFA Director Swanepoel. Minister in the
Presidency Essop Pahad led a high-level delegation to Bolivia
July 17-20 to discuss a South African-Bolivian bilateral
cooperation agreement. At the invitation of the Bolivians,
Minister of Transport Radebe will attend the opening of the
Bolivian Constituent Assembly August 6 in La Paz. South
Africa has invited Bolivian Vice President Garcia to visit
Pretoria before the end of the year. The ANC-led government
has pursued responsible economic, mining and energy policies
since the end of apartheid, and their influence in Bolivia
could be positive. End Summary.

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South African Delegation Travels to Bolivia
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2. (C) Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Director for
Mexico, Central America, The Andean Community and the
Caribbean, Ambassador Pieter Swanepoel (protect) briefed
PolOff July 28 on the recent South African Government trip to
Bolivia. (Note: Swanepoel also discussed SAG policy on Haiti
(septel). End Note.) The SAG delegation, led by Minister in
the Presidency, Essop Pahad, visited Bolivia July 17-20.
Pahad was accompanied by Minister of Mineral and Energy
Buyelwa Sonjica, Speaker of the National Assembly Baleka
Mbete, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Sue van der Merwe,
and Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development
Johnny de Lange. This trip was a follow up to
then-President-elect Morales' trip to South Africa in January.

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Seeking Areas of Cooperation
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3. (C) The purpose of the Pahad-led trip was to initiate
negotiations on a bilateral cooperation agreement and
identify specific areas for partnership. Swanepoel frankly
admitted that the visit was "quite disorganized" on the
Bolivian side. The delegation met with both the President
and Foreign Minister, but those discussions were largely
superficial. Swanepoel noted that Pahad was fascinated by
Morales' description of the "People's Trade Treaty," between
Bolivia, Cuba and Venezuela, and asked a number of questions
about the accord.


4. (C) Swanepoel said that the only area where concrete
cooperation is likely, at least in the short-term, is in the
minerals and energy arena. Given its large domestic mining
operations, South Africa has considerable policy expertise in
this area, which Swanepoel believed could be quite helpful in
the current Bolivian context. The initial plan is for South
African organizations, including PetroSA (the state
parastatal energy company) and the Council for Geoscience
(equivalent to the U.S. Geological Society),to visit Bolivia
in the coming months to exchange ideas. Swanepoel said that
the South African mining and energy companies have expressed
interest in commercial opportunities in Bolivia, but said
that these discussions were very preliminary; the SAG was
also aware that the Bolivian policy framework must to be
appropriate for investment.


5. (C) Bolivia would like to initiate yearly bilateral
meetings with South Africa at the presidential level,
something that Mbeki evidently promised during his meeting
with Morales in January. Swanepoel noted that only one other
country has this relationship -- neighboring Mozambique --
and that the Department of Foreign Affairs was trying to
lower the yearly meetings to the working level, perhaps at
the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs rank. Swanepoel
admitted that "some in the Presidency" -- likely referring to
Essop Pahad -- are attracted to Morales' personal story,
drawing some comparisons to the anti-apartheid struggle in
South Africa. He said that DFA is trying to "keep hold" of
the policy.

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Bolivia to Open Embassy in South Africa
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6. (SBU) Bolivia would like to open a diplomatic mission in
South Africa in 2007. Van der Merwe welcomed a Bolivian
mission in South Africa, but told them that South Africa
would not be in a position to open an embassy in La Paz
before 2009 at the earliest. South Africa's diplomatic
resources are focused on Africa; the SAG is in the process of
opening an embassy in every country on the African continent.
Within Latin American, South Africa has promised to open an
Embassy in Colombia next.

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Non-Governmental Contacts to Continue
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7. (C) In addition to the formal government relationship,
Swanepoel said he personally thought that South Africa might
be able to share its reconciliation experience with the
Bolivians. He noted that South Africa's initial involvement
in Bolivia was through private citizens -- Roelf Meyer and
Ebrahim Ebrahim (through the Club de Madrid) -- and he hoped
their involvement would continue. (Note: PolOff plans to
meet with Meyer and Ebrahim in the coming weeks to discuss
their future plans in Bolivia, Sri Lanka, and elsewhere. End
Note.) Both Meyer and Ebrahim played important roles in
South Africa's democratic transition. Swanepoel believed
that these personal, informal exchanges could be useful.

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Upcoming Visits
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8. (C) Bolivia invited South Africa to send an observer to
the August 6 opening of the Constituent Assembly. Originally
South Africa planned to send Deputy President Phumzile
Mlambo-Ngcuka, but the scheduling did not work. Instead,
President Mbeki is sending Transportation Minister Jeff
Radebe.


9. (C) South Africa invited Bolivian Vice President Alvaro
Garcia Linera to visit South Africa before the end of the
year, likely in October. Swanepoel said that they hope to
sign the bilateral cooperation agreement with Garcia during
his trip.

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Comment
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10. (C) South Africa has few interests in Bolivia, but
Morales' visit to South Africa in January -- and personal
story -- appears to have attracted the interest of some key
SAG leaders. We believe it is possible that the increased
cooperation between South Africa and Bolivia, particularly on
economic issues, could have a positive impact on Bolivian
policy. Since the end of apartheid in 1994, South Africa has
followed responsible economic policies, including in the
mining and energy sectors. End Comment.
Bost