Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07ASMARA336
2007-03-27 09:27:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Asmara
Cable title:  

UGANDAN FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS ERITREAN PRESIDENT

Tags:  PREL ER UG SO 
pdf how-to read a cable
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PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHAE #0336 0860927
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P 270927Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY ASMARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8799
INFO RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1322
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 1499
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 1742
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0625
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEPADJ/CJTF-HOA J2X CAMP LEMONIER DJ
C O N F I D E N T I A L ASMARA 000336 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

LONDON FOR AFRICA WATCHERS
PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/26/2017
TAGS: PREL ER UG SO
SUBJECT: UGANDAN FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS ERITREAN PRESIDENT
ISAIAS


Classified By: AMBASSADOR SCOTT H. DELISI, FOR REASONS 1.4(B) AND (D)

C O N F I D E N T I A L ASMARA 000336

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

LONDON FOR AFRICA WATCHERS
PARIS FOR AFRICA WATCHERS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/26/2017
TAGS: PREL ER UG SO
SUBJECT: UGANDAN FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS ERITREAN PRESIDENT
ISAIAS


Classified By: AMBASSADOR SCOTT H. DELISI, FOR REASONS 1.4(B) AND (D)


1. (U) Ugandan Foreign Minister, Sam Kutesa, met with
Government of the State of Eritrea (GSE) President Isaias
Afwerki on March 19. Official reports of the meeting posted
on the GSE website www.shabait.com claimed Kutesa delivered a
message to Isaias from Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni in
which President Museveni "expressed a readiness to work
together with President Isaias to promote a lasting peace in
Somalia and his desire to jointly start practical steps to
this end." The report further indicated that Uganda and
Eritrea "agreed" that the Somalis should decide their future
for themselves and the external forces should withdraw.


2. (U) Prior to Kutesa,s trip, the GSE had published a
series of strong messages warning of the dire consequences
unless Uganda pulls its peacekeeping troops out of Somalia.
These statements included a March 9 interview with BBC news
in which GSE Minister of Information Ali Abdu claimed the
presence of Ugandan troops would only worsen the situation in
Somalia and further destabilize the region. A March 12 GSE
website statement labeled the Ugandan troops as an "invading
force" acting on behalf of the U.S. to "do away with the
political choice of the Somali people."


3. (C) The Ugandan FM visit was seemingly arranged to occur
under the radar, with little fanfare. African Union
representative, Rodney Kiwa, admitted to Poloff he had no
prior knowledge of the visit and said "I read about it in the
newspaper, just like everyone else." Usually the Asmara
rumor mill would offer some glimpse of the tone or topics of
the meeting, however, the rumor mill was silent on Kutesa's
visit. (Note: Other than Sudan, Libya, Egypt, Djibouti and
South Africa, no other African Union countries maintain
embassies in Asmara. End Note.)


4. (C) Comment: Given the GSE,s public and harsh
condemnation of Uganda's role as the first AU peacekeeping
contingent in Somalia, Kutesa's visit was unexpected. None
of our normal interlocuters in town seem to know the reason
for the FM making the trip personally, or the outcome of the
meeting from the Ugandan perspective, although a reasonable
guess is that the Ugandans are trying to keep the GSE
somewhat within the IGAD fold, in an attempt to prevent them
from becoming the regional spoiler in Somalia. If so, then
the visit seems to have been successful, at least for the
time being, in cooling new GSE rhetoric about the Ugandan
role in the Somalia peace-keeping. End Comment.
DeLisi