DEMARCHE ON UNSCR 1701: ITALY

C O N F I D E N T I A L ROME 002285 SIPDIS SIPDIS NSC FOR ABRAMS/DORAN/SINGH/HARDING E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/12/2016 TAGS: PREL PTER MOPS IS LE SY IT SUBJECT: DEMARCHE ON UNSCR 1701: ITALY REF: STATE 132517 Classified By: POL M/C David D. Pearce ¶1. (C) Pol M/C August 12 delivered ref points to Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema's vice chief of staff, Alfredo Conte. Conte noted that the Secretary and D'Alema had spoken by telephone the previous evening, shortly after agreement was reached on the draft resolution. He said the FM had reiterated to the Secretary Italy's readiness to "do our part". ¶2. (C) Asked about next steps, Conte said he expected a New York meeting to be convened at expert level, to include military representatives, at which Italy would coordinate with other potential troop contributors. He expressed the hope that the resolution would be satisfactory to the parties and bring progress on the ground. ¶3. (U) The daily Corriere della Sera headlined August 12: "Lebanon: UN Votes for Truce; Resolution Approved Unanimously. Yes from Israel, Peace Force to Arrive; (Prime Minister) Prodi: We'll Be There." The newspaper also quotes Prodi as saying he had spoken to French President Chirac and both favored the idea of troop contributions by Muslim countries such as Turkey, Malaysia, and Indonesia. SPOGLI