VATICAN: ISRAELI VISIT ADDRESSES FUNDAMENTAL AGREEMENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 VATICAN 000241

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EUR/WE LARREA; NEA/IPA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/22/2016
TAGS: IS KIRF PHUM SOCI VT
SUBJECT: VATICAN: ISRAELI VISIT ADDRESSES FUNDAMENTAL AGREEMENT

VATICAN 00000241 001.2 OF 002


CLASSIFIED BY: Peter Martin, Pol/Econ Chief, Vatican, State.
REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)
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Summary

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1. (C) The Director General of the Israeli Foreign Ministry
will visit the Vatican November 27 to discuss issues related to
the Fundamental Agreement between Israel and the Holy See, an
attempt to break the logjam on negotiations. Some Vatican
contacts fear the visit may turn out to be an Israeli ultimatum.
Holy See Deputy Foreign Minister Parolin told us the Israelis
had assured him that they simply wanted to take a step back and
see how the two sides might overcome existing obstacles (mainly
taxation issues) in the negotiations. Some prominent Jewish
religious leaders have urged the GoI to continue negotiations in
good faith. Ambassador Rooney has pointed out to interested
parties that finalizing the Fundamental Agreement would be an
important step for both sides that would help ensure the
viability of the Christian community in Israel. The inability
to finalize the agreement is also an unnecessary impediment to
relations between two parties that should generally be on the
same side in the "war of ideas" underway in the Middle East.
End summary.



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DG Visit

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2. (C) Various contacts have told the Ambassador that the
Director General of the Israeli Foreign Ministry will visit the
Vatican November 27 to discuss issues related to the Fundamental
Agreement between Israel and the Holy See. Negotiations have
stalled between the two sides, according to our Vatican contacts
because the Israelis have refused to schedule further rounds of
negotiating sessions. While talks on unresolved issues in the
Fundamental Agreement (mainly on taxation and financial issues)
are normally held between two teams of negotiators, the November
27 meeting will be held at a higher level (with Holy See Foreign
Minister equivalent Mamberti) without technical experts present.



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Ultimatum?

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3. (C) Israeli-born Fr. David Jaeger, Holy See negotiator on
Fundamental Agreement issues, told the Ambassador he feared the
Israelis were planning to offer an ultimatum to the Holy See.
"Why else would they step outside the normal channels of
negotiation?" he asked. He thought the DG might unveil a new
offer to the Vatican FM that he would have to take or leave.
"That is hardly negotiating in good faith," Jaeger observed.
Israeli Ambassador Oded Ben-Hur seemed to add credence to
Jaeger's fears when he told Ambassador Rooney some weeks ago
that the Israelis were coming to Rome and planned to make a
"breakthrough" on the issue. When pressed, he intimated that
the "breakthrough" would be more or less what Jaeger predicted -
the Israeli's "best offer" on some of the financial issues at
stake.



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Other Voices

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4. (C) Holy See Deputy Foreign Minister Pietro Parolin is
convinced that the Israelis are simply stepping outside the
normal negotiating channels to give the process a fresh start.
"We emphasized to them that this will not be a negotiating
session or a chance to debate a proposal," he said, "since we

VATICAN 00000241 002.2 OF 002


already have a mechanism in place for that." Instead, Parolin
said, he hoped that the meeting would be a chance to review the
principles involved in the negotiations at a high level, in the
hopes of finding a helpful ways to move forward.




5. (C) The Israelis have heard from several interlocutors that
an ultimatum would not be welcomed by the Holy See. Fr. Norbert
Hofmann, Vatican point man for Jewish relations, normally sticks
to the religious relationship with Judaism and steers clear of
the Holy See - Israel political relationship. In this case,
though, he told us he had weighed in with Jews who are prominent
in inter-religious relations, asking them to use their contacts
in the Israeli government to press for good-faith negotiations.
Hofmann told us that prominent rabbis Israel Singer and David
Rosen had both spoken to contacts in the GoI, who assured them
that Israel did not plan to ambush the Holy See November 27.



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Comment

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6. (C) We understand that the Secretary has raised the impasse
on the Fundamental Agreement with the Israelis. When the
Ambassador mentions the issue to visitors with an interest in it
(e.g., recent guests Abe Foxman and the Anti-Defamation League,
and Rabbi Arthur Schneier of the Appeal of Conscience
Foundation),he makes the point that finalizing the Fundamental
Agreement would help ensure the viability of the Christian
community in Israel - a good thing for both the Holy See and
Israel. The move might also have helpful ramifications for
Christians elsewhere in the Middle East, where they have often
been a force for moderation and stability.




7. (C) The roadblock on the agreement is also an unnecessary
distraction and impediment to relations between two parties that
should generally be on the same side in the "war of ideas"
underway in the Middle East, even if they may disagree on some
particular policies. Officials on both sides have recognized
this point; it remains to be seen if the desire for common
ground on larger issues will influence an agreement in which
there is cold cash at stake.
ROONEY