Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07ACCRA731
2007-04-02 17:35:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Accra
Cable title:  

FOREIGN MINISTER ON GHANA AS AFRICAN UNION (AU)

Tags:  AORC ECON GH IV PREL SO SU ZI 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO2144
RR RUEHMR RUEHPA RUEHRN RUEHTRO
DE RUEHAR #0731/01 0921735
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 021735Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY ACCRA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4118
INFO RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS 0011
RUEHLI/AMEMBASSY LISBON 0030
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0214
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 0042
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 0012
RUEHZO/AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ACCRA 000731 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/02/2017
TAGS: AORC ECON GH IV PREL SO SU ZI
SUBJECT: FOREIGN MINISTER ON GHANA AS AFRICAN UNION (AU)
CHAIR

REF: ACCRA 678

Classified By: PolChief Scott Ticknor for reasons 1.4 d and e.

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ACCRA 000731

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/02/2017
TAGS: AORC ECON GH IV PREL SO SU ZI
SUBJECT: FOREIGN MINISTER ON GHANA AS AFRICAN UNION (AU)
CHAIR

REF: ACCRA 678

Classified By: PolChief Scott Ticknor for reasons 1.4 d and e.


1. (U) Summary: In a March 23 speech to parliament Ghanaian
Foreign Minister Nana Akufo-Addo noted President Kufuor's
busy agenda of upcoming meetings in his capacity as AU Chair.
The centerpiece is the AU Summit in Accra on June 25-July 3,
which he said would focus on how the Union should be
organized. The Minister provided details about Kufuor's
recent trips to the UK, Portugal and Algiers. He urged
completion of the AU peacekeeping force deployment in
Somalia, was hopeful about the potential role of the new UN
Undersecretary General focused on Darfur, and praised the new
political agreement on Cote d'Ivoire. The opposition NDC
party criticized the Foreign Minister for his failure to
mention Zimbabwe. In paras 7-8 we offer additional
perspectives on Kufuor's position on Zimbabwe. End summary.


Ghana's Active Diplomacy
--------------


2. (U) On March 23, Foreign Minister Nana Akufo-Addo
addressed parliament about Ghana's role as AU Chair. He
depicted Ghana's selection as an acknowledgment of Ghana's
50th anniversary and record of good governance, while
acknowledging that Ghana's diplomacy would be "tested to the
limits" this year. The image of Ghana has never been higher
and the country should contribute to "the flowering of a new
African civilization" of freedom, democracy and prosperity,"
he said.


3. (U) Akufo-Addo praised President Kufuor's recent visit
to the U.K. as the first of its kind by a Ghanaian leader and
a matter of pride for all Ghanaians. Kufuor's subsequent
one-day official visit to Portugal focused on expanding
bilateral ties and the planned December Africa-Europe summit,
which Akufo-Addo hoped would transform Africa's relationship
with Europe.


4. (U) After Portugal, Kufuor went to Algiers to
participate in the AU Heads of State Implementation Committee
on NEPAD, which had several accomplishments, according to the

Foreign Minister. First, African states agreed that NEPAD
would be integrated into AU structures within one year.
Second, they agreed to create a new NEPAD Development Agency
chaired by Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. Third, the
Committee decided that Kufuor would lead a seven-man African
delegation to the G-8 meeting in June.

Upcoming Meetings
--------------


5. (U) According to Akufo-Addo, President Kufuor will
attend or host a number of upcoming meetings important to the
continent:

- African Partnership Forum in Berlin in May

- G-8 Summit in Germany in June

- Turkey-Africa summit in Istanbul in June

- AU Summit in Accra June 25-July 3

- AGOA meeting in Accra in July

- India-Africa Summit in late July (venue TBD but probably in
India, according to MFA sources)

- African-European Summit in Lisbon in December


6. (U) The Accra summit will focus on the direction of the
Union. One option is a federal structure - a "United States
of Africa." Another option is to continue with the current
arrangement in which the Union is an inter-governmental
association along the lines of the European Union. There may
also be a desire to adopt some other cooperative political
arrangement, he said. This decision needs to reflect the
preferences of the African people, he said, emphasizing the
need to consult within each country's political system prior
to the Accra meeting. He pledged to consult with Ghana's
parliament on this issue. Anticipated achievements of the
Accra summit also include election of a new Commission
membership and Chairperson, as well as NEPAD peer reviews of

ACCRA 00000731 002 OF 003


Algeria, Nigeria and South Africa.

Regional Conflicts
--------------


7. (U) Akufo-Addo highlighted the urgent need for the AU to
complete its introduction of a peacekeeping force into
Somalia and to accelerate the political dialogue. He hoped
the recent appointment of Congolese Foreign Minister Adada as
UN Undersecretary General with special responsibility for
Darfur would help bring an end to the killing in Darfur,
which he described as "a blot on the conscience of Africa."
He praised the new political agreement in Cote d'Ivoire (the
Ouagadougou Accord) and the diplomatic skills of Burkina Faso
President and ECOWAS Chair Blaise Compoare, who Akufo-Addo
said forged an Inter-Togolese Dialogue which appears to be
"bearing fruit." He noted that the AU had submitted the
Ouagadougou Accord to the UN Security Council for approval.


Opposition Critical on Zimbabwe
--------------


8. (U) Parliamentary Minority Leader Albin Bagbin responded
to the speech with disappointment that the Minister did not
mention Zimbabwe. "We expected the President to go further,
what is happening in Zimbabwe cannot be tolerated today," he
stated. The Foreign Minister's response was that President
Kufuor had already issued a "strong statement" on Zimbabwe.
(Note: According to media reports, during a March 14 speech
to members of the Royal Institute of International Affairs in
London, President Kufuor responded to a question from a
Zimbabwean in the audience stating "I know that the African
Union is very uncomfortable. This situation in your country
is very embarrassing." He continued: "I know personally that
presidents like Obasanjo and Mbeki and others have tried
desperately to exercise some influence for the better. But
they came against stiff resistance...In our own various ways
we are trying to exercise some influence. I tell you we are
serious...I think we should assume that all these
institutions, the African Union, mean well. Perhaps we
haven't exhausted the means to give us a handle on the
situation so we can help Zimbabwe return to normality."
According to a Reuters report, after a meeting with Prime
Minister Blair later that day, Kufuor stated "violence,
beating up anybody and using brutal force shouldn't be the
way forward. The rule of law, accountable governance,
allowing constitutions to work properly, should be the way
forward for all of us." End note.)

Comment
--------------


9. (C) On Zimbabwe: Akufo-Addo's remarks and our
subsequent discussions with him and others at the MFA
(reftel) clearly indicate that the GOG does not want further
public engagement on the situation in Zimbabwe. Minority
Leader Bagbin privately told PolChief he thought this was not
because Kufuor has a special relationship with Mugabe (Mugabe
was closer to Nkrumah's CPP and NDC governments, according to
Bagbin). The main reason for Kufuor's hesitation on
Zimbabwe, according to Bagbin, is a belief that the Zimbabwe
situation is not worse than other African trouble spots like
Guinea. Ultimately, Bagbin opined that the Kufuor
administration "lacks the moral courage" to criticize Mugabe.
Kufuor is naturally cautious but may be more so because of
his AU leadership position, hoping to strike a conciliatory
stance while leaving controversial arm twisting to other
African leaders. Probably reinforcing his caution is his
experience of several years ago when the GOG's public,
international criticism of Mugabe was met by domestic
accusations that Kufuor was hypocritical for not also
condemning authoritarian rule in Togo. There is also a
personal dimension that makes rebuking Mugabe difficult.
Ambassador saw Kufuor go out of his way to embrace Mugabe
during the March 6 Jubilee celebration and after the Jubilee
ceremony the GOG ferried Mugabe by helicopter to Sekundi to
visit the family of his late wife, a Ghanaian. Kufuor told
Ambassador during a preview tour and lunch at the NEC that
Mugabe has strong ties to Ghana, that Mugabe visits family
here, and that "it is difficult for us."


10. (SBU) On the AU Meetings: The long list of upcoming
meetings and trips which will take President Kufuor out of
country and occupy his attention will increase Ghana's
prestige but distract the President from focusing on domestic

ACCRA 00000731 003 OF 003


issues. He and the Foreign Minister (a top contender for the
NPP party's presidential ticket) clearly want to use the AU
Chair and Ghana's global prominence to build their legacy and
gain political points. In his response to Akufo-Addo,
Minority Leader Bagbin urged the GOG to prepare better for
the AU Summit in July than it had for the Jubilee
celebrations. Many foreign Missions (including ours) were
frustrated with the GOG's late preparations as well as
protocol and logistical lapses during the March Jubilee
celebrations. This week, the MFA hosted an evaluation team
from the AU to help them prepare for the Summit and MFA
sources say this evaluation will be used as a basis to seek
assistance from donors. It remains to be seen whether this
team and the lessons learned from the Jubilee will help the
GOG effectively handle the logistics for the high profile AU
Summit. (Note: Ambassador recently met with the Dean of the
Diplomatic Corps, the Malian Ambassador, to brainstorm about
ways the African Corps and colleague Ambassadors could help
Ghana improve its protocol performance during the AU and
other events. End note.)









BRIDGEWATER