LEBANON: UN ENVOY PEDERSEN ON UNIFIL RENEWAL AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIRUT 000818 SIPDIS SIPDIS NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/MARCHESE/HARDING E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/07/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL LE SUBJECT: LEBANON: UN ENVOY PEDERSEN ON UNIFIL RENEWAL AND 1701 REPORT REF: BEIRUT 769 Classified By: Ambassador Jeffrey D. Feltman for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d ). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: The UN SYG's Special Coordinator for Lebanon Geir Pederseon shared his thoughts about UNIFIL renewal, the upcoming UNSCR 1701 report, and Hizballah thinking on dialogue with March 14, at a dinner hosted by the Ambassador for IO A/S Kristin Silverberg on June 4. Pedersen noted that UNIIIC,s Brammertz has not received his June-December 2007 contract and asked for USG help in reaching out to the UN SYG to ensure that Brammertz' contract is extended and that a letter guaranteeing his onward employment be sent as quickly as possible. Pedersen,s assistant Rami Shehadeh and Embassy notetaker also attended the dinner. END SUMMARY A Simple UNIFIL Rollover Needed to Maintain National Consensus -------------- ¶2. (C) At June 4 dinner hosted by the Ambassador for Assistant Secretary for International Organizations Kristin Silverberg, the UN SYG's Special Coordinator for Lebanon Geir Pedersen advocated a simple rollover when UNIFIL,s mandate comes up for renewal in August. Pedersen said he feared that Lebanon,s national consensus regarding UNSCR 1701 and UNIFIL might unravel if the international community attempted to introduce new responsibilities such as extending the mandate north of the Litani River or deploymen of UNIFIL along the Syrian border. He saw UNIFIL renewal as the most important item on the Government of Lebanon,s agenda with the international community, now that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon had been established. Acknowledging the problem of arms smuggling across the Syrian border, Pedersen urged that other means, not UNIFIL, be explored to combat it. 1701 Report to be Complete Next Week -------------- ¶3. (C) In response to the Ambassador,s query about the upcoming report on implementation of UNSCR 1701, Pedersen said he would travel to Israel and to Damascus next week to gather information. His report would recommend no changes for UNIFIL and praise the excellent work of the troops. He would also note both a lack of movement on prisoner exchanges and information about Israel,s abducted soldiers. Pedersen said he would be hiring three new staff members for his Lebanon mission as soon as the budget is approved. He understood that the Third Committee was blocking its adoption. Brammertz Doesn't Have Contract; Doesn't Have Hints of Onward Job -------------- ¶4. (C) He noted that UNIIIC,s Brammertz has not received his contract for June-December 2007, and asked for U.S. help in reaching out to the UN SYG. The UN needed, in Pedersen's view, to do thing things simultaneously: extend Brammertz contract, and send a letter that reassures Brammertz that there will be onward employment after the UNIIIC. Syria,s Attention Changes Hizballah,s Tone -------------- ¶5. (C) Pedersen considered that Hassan Nasrallah,s recent speech about the Lebanese Armed Forces battle against Fatah al Islam (FAI) was "not completely negative" and even posed good questions to the LAF. He observed that Hizballah tended to take a harder line and more strident tone when Syria had sent it instructions or funding. Syria seemed less concerned than Iran about a Sunni-Shia split in Lebanon. Pedersen is encouraging Hizballah to engage members of the March 14 to seek a resolution to the current political impasse. He has encouraged Hizballah's Wafiq Safa to meet with ISF intelligence chief Wissam Hassan (close to Saad Hariri),who meet regularly already, to expand their discussions to cover steps they might take together in the coming months. Pedersen hoped that if an agreement could be reached on a unity government, then talks might quietly begin on the Presidency. Rami Shehadeh was skeptical, however, that a solution was possible: Syria's goal, he argued, was chaos that would provide President Lahoud with the pretext of national security to remain in power. BEIRUT 00000818 002 OF 002 ¶6. (C) The Ambassador expressed his concerns about the formation of a second government and outlined possible scenarios (reftel). He emphasized the importance of March 14 seizing the initiative to offer a proposal to the opposition that came across as reasonable to the majority of the Lebanese people who, while sharing March 14 principles, support the concept of a National Unity Government. ¶7. (U) A/S Silverberg did not have the opportunity to clear this cable. FELTMAN