Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07BRUSSELS2401
2007-07-30 08:05:00
CONFIDENTIAL//NOFORN
Embassy Brussels
Cable title:  

DOD GC HAYNES MEETS ON GUANTANAMO WITH BELGIAN

Tags:  PREL PTER BE 
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VZCZCXYZ0012
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBS #2401 2110805
ZNY CCCCC ZZH (CCY ADEC8177 MSI9671 538)
P 300805Z JUL 07
FM AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6017
INFO RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE PRIORITY 0218
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L BRUSSELS 002401 

SIPDIS

C O R R E C T E D C O P Y (PARA 1 MARK, ADDRESSEE)

SIPDIS
NOFORN

SECDEF PASS OGC MR. HAYNES
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/26/2012
TAGS: PREL PTER BE
SUBJECT: DOD GC HAYNES MEETS ON GUANTANAMO WITH BELGIAN
SENATOR LIZIN

Classified By: DCM William Imbrie, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRUSSELS 002401

SIPDIS

C O R R E C T E D C O P Y (PARA 1 MARK, ADDRESSEE)

SIPDIS
NOFORN

SECDEF PASS OGC MR. HAYNES
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/26/2012
TAGS: PREL PTER BE
SUBJECT: DOD GC HAYNES MEETS ON GUANTANAMO WITH BELGIAN
SENATOR LIZIN

Classified By: DCM William Imbrie, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C/NOFORN) SUMMARY. On July 20, 2007, DOD General Counsel
William J. Haynes II and Belgian Senator Anne-Marie Lizin
discussed the way ahead for finding recipient countries for
the 80 internees still incarcerated at Guantanamo naval base.
Lizin reported that the new French government, specifically
Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, was interested in engaging
on the issue, for example, with Algeria. Haynes thanked
Lizin for her efforts and inquired what she saw as next
steps. She said that an international &umbrella8 needed to
be identified that could work on the issue discreetly, and
suggested the IOM because it will have an American DG. She
suggested that USG seek other recipients for individuals than
those of their birth or citizenship, for example Bahrain or
Qatar. Lizin provided updates to Haynes and to Pol/MilOff
from Paris on July 24 on Kouchner,s desire to proceed
carefully and only with Elysee involvement. End Summary.


2. (SBU) In a meeting in the Belgian Senate on July 20,
2007, DOD General Counsel William J. Haynes II and Belgian
Senator Anne-Marie Lizin discussed next steps on finding
recipient countries for the 80 internees still incarcerated
at Guantanamo naval base. Ambassador Fox and pol/mil officer
Koch participated


3. (C/NOFORN) Haynes and Lizin exchanged updates on the
issue of finding host countries for detainees at Guantanamo
Naval Base. Lizin said that she had raised the matter twice
with the new French government and reported that both FM
Bernard Kouchner and presidential foreign policy advisor (and
former AMB to the U.S. Jean-David Levitte) were very
interested. Algeria was one country that had been mentioned.
In the meantime, at the July 26 OSCE meeting in Vienna she
would be able to address the issue only informally on the
sidelines.

Finding an Umbrella
--------------


4. (C/NOFORN) Haynes thanked Lizin for her efforts on
Guantanamo and inquired what she saw as next steps. She said
those would be determined by US judicial decisions on the
internees, but suggested that it was important to find an
&umbrella8 organization that could work on the issue
internationally. In particular, she focused on the
International Organization for Migration (IOM),in that an
American, William Swing, had been nominated to become its
next head.


5. (C/NOFORN) Lizin urged the U.S. to look beyond the birth
or citizenship identity of a detainee in seeking a place a
recipient nation. She talked about a detainee from the Sudan
who was a cameraman for Doha- based Al Jazeera network during
a royal Qatari visit to Waziristan when the Pakistanis
arrested him and turned him over to the U.S. She said she
had heard about him from Qatar,s ambassador (NFI) to Belgium
who called the man a &personal friend8 who had houses in
both Qatar and Bahrain. Lizin suggested that the U.S.
intervene with the governments of Qatar and/or Bahrain on his
and other detainees, behalves.

Follow-up from France
--------------


6. (C/NOFORN) Lizin called embassy Tuesday July 24 from Paris
on her way into and again after a meeting with FM Kouchner.
In the second call, she reported that Kouchner was
&extremely prudent8 and would need the agreement of the
Elysee to proceed. She said that Kouchner had suggested
instead an unspecified joint &European action8 on
Guantanamo resettlement, with which she disagreed. &The
broader the involvement on this, the less chance of
success,8 Lizin observed to PolMilOff. Lizin also spoke
with Haynes after her meeting with Kouchner; they agreed that
more groundwork needed to be done before moving ahead and to
remain in touch to that end. She advised that she would send
a more detailed report to Haynes.


7. (U) GC Haynes has not reviewed this message.

IMBRIE
.