U/S BURNS AND FM TAIANA DISCUSS REGIONAL STABILITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L BUENOS AIRES 000402

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

P FOR HEIDE BRONKE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/01/2017
TAGS: PREL PGOV ECON AR CU HA VZ BZ
SUBJECT: U/S BURNS AND FM TAIANA DISCUSS REGIONAL STABILITY
ISSUES

Classified By: AMBASSADOR E. ANTHONY WAYNE FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D)


1. (C) U.S. Participants:
Under Secretary for Political Affairs R. Nicolas Burns
Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs
Thomas Shannon
Ambassador Early Anthony Wayne
DCM Mike Matera
William McIlhenny, Member, Policy Planning Council (S/P)
Heide Bronke, P Special Assistant
David Alarid, Control Officer
Heidi Gomez, Notetaker

Argentine Participants:
Foreign Minister Jorge Taiana
Vice Foreign Minister Roberto Garcia Moritan
Under Secretary for Foreign Policy Amb. Luis Cappagli
North America Director Ambassador Vicent Espeche Gil
Maria Belen Garcia Alcat, Notetaker


2. (C) Summary. On February 9, Under Secretary for
Political Affairs R. Nicolas Burns met with Foreign Minister
Jorge Taiana and Vice Foreign Minister Roberto Garcia
Moritan. GOA officials who met with U/S Burns just prior to
the meeting made a point to underscore the message that
"there are more things that unite us than separate us." On
that note, U/S Burns and FM Taiana exchanged views on how
best to achieve stability in the region, particularly in
Haiti, Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Cuba, with U/S Burns
stressing that the USG wishes to engage the hemisphere in a
"positive and ecumenical" manner. He also extended an
invitation from Secretary Rice to Taiana to visit Washington
in the next three months. Taiana welcomed the invitation and
stressed that more dialogue between the U.S. and Argentina is
needed. As this year marks the 25th anniversary of the
Falklands/Malvinas war, he requested USG assistance in
encouraging the UK to agree to holding sovereignty talks to
resolve the long-standing dispute and stressed that
Argentina seeks to resolve the dispute diplomatically. U/S
Burns indicated that the USG does not want to interfere in
the matter, but that the USG would be willing to serve as a
messenger between both countries. End Summary.

--------------
An invitation to Washington
--------------


3. (C) On February 9, Under Secretary for Political
Affairs R. Nicolas Burns met with Foreign Minister Jorge
Taiana and Vice Foreign Minister Roberto Garcia Moritan to
exchange views on how best to achieve stability in the
region, particularly in Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Cuba
and Haiti. Just prior to the meeting, Trade Secretary
Chiaradia made the point to tell U/S Burns that "there are
more things that unite us than separate us." On that note,
U/S Burns began the meeting by extending Secretary Rice's
invitation to FM Taiana to visit Washington to review the
state of bilateral relations and discuss ways to build on
our already strong bilateral cooperation. Taiana thanked him
for the invitation and noted that it is important to improve
the dialogue between the two countries.

--------------
Nonproliferation
--------------


4. (C) U/S Burns then commended Argentina for being "a
real partner on difficult issues," especially at the IAEA,
where Argentina has voted with the USG to refer Iran to the
UNSC for noncompliance with IAEA nuclear safeguards. He
also expressed appreciation for Argentina's leadership role
in nonproliferation issues, noting that it is the only
country in Latin America to have signed on to the
Proliferation Security Initiative and one of two countries
to have signed on to the Container Security Initiative.

--------------
Regional Issues
--------------


5. (C) Turning to a discussion of regional issues, U/S
Burns stressed that the USG wishes to engage the hemisphere

in a "positive and ecumenical" manner. He reiterated that
the USG does not wish to close the door on the more difficult
countries of the region like Bolivia and Ecuador. He pointed
out that Venezuela, however, is "trickier;" the USG has a
poor relationship with Chavez, and yet has an important
economic relationship with Venezuela. U/S Burns noted that
the U.S. does not view Chavez as a direct threat to vital
interests, however, there is concern over the negative
influence he exerts in the region.


6. (C) Taiana began by explaining Argentina's own
turbulent history in recent years. In the 1990s, Argentina
completed its transition to democracy while simultaneously
adopting extensive economic reforms. Many other countries in
Latin America did as well. At first, the reforms went well,
but by the early 2000s, the public became disillusioned with
the reforms as poverty and social and political exclusion
continued to persist. As a result, different countries in
the region are now experimenting with new policies to address
their political, social and economic difficulties. Argentina
is only one example of this trend due to its own economic
crisis in 2001-02. The GOA aims to achieve a "long and
sustainable period of Prosperity," Taiana asserted, adding
that when Argentina is stable, it can exert a moderating
influence in South America.

--------------
Mercosur
--------------


7. (C) Taiana suggested that perhaps Mercosur could be
used as a mechanism to achieve regional stability, as it is
becoming a major sphere of influence in South America.
Mercosur is not a trade agreement, he claimed, but rather a
political process aimed at achieving regional integration.
For example, one of Mercosur's major successes has been to
strengthen Argentine-Brazilian relations, he stated. VFM
Garcia Moritan added that to strengthen Mercosur is to
strengthen the region. The inclusion of Venezuela should be
seen in that light, Taiana argued.

--------------
Venezuela: Chavez More Peron than Peron!
--------------


8. (C) The GOA views Chavez as a friend, Taiana continued,
quickly adding that the GOA does not agree with Venezuela's
foreign and domestic policies. He claimed that Chavez feels
close to Argentina because he thinks his vision for Venezuela
is similar to ex-President Peron's. "Chavez is more
Peronist than we are", Taiana claimed. He acknowledged that
Venezuela has a fragile democracy and a weak political party
system. The opposition,s 2005 boycott of legislative
actions, for example, was a disaster and a very serious
issue, he stated.


9. (C) Citing the United States own economic relationship
with Venezuela, Taiana asserted that Argentina is trying to
build its economic and commercial relationship with the
country. Garcia Moritan acknowledged that "sometimes the
GOA does not even understand what agenda Venezuela is
pursuing", and for that reason the GOA believes it needs to
engage Chavez more, particularly within the Mercosur
framework. He added that now that Venezuela is in Mercosur,
"it must act according to the rules of the club." Still, he
cautioned against "excessive U.S. leadership" given the
personalities in the region.

--------------
Bolivia: Morales must succeed
--------------


10. (C) Turning to Bolivia, Taiana described Bolivia as a
"disaster in political terms." The historic political,
social, and economic exclusion of Bolivia's indigenous
population is not just a problem for President Morales to
address. It is the problem that over 40 million indigenous
people in the Americas face. For this reason, it is
important that Morales succeeds. Otherwise, millions of
indigenous people will begin to look for solutions outside of
the traditional democratic framework. This includes Chile,
Taiana cautioned.


-------------- --------------
Ecuador: Correa, well-intentioned but facing difficult odds
-------------- --------------


11. (C) On Ecuador, Taiana described President Correa as
"young, smart, and well-intentioned," but observed that
Correa faced difficult odds in trying to restore political
stability. Correa is not ideological, and has approached
Argentina, Brazil, and Chile to learn from other countries'
experiences. Taiana suggested that the USG give Correa "some
room," and noted that Argentina is working closely with him
and his young team.

--------------
Cuba
--------------


12. (C) On Cuba, Burns shared that his Brazilian
interlocutors cautioned against a heavy-handed approach to a
democratic transition, suggesting that the USG make its
points quietly. He noted the U.S. has been very muted in its
public comments regarding Cuba since news of Castro's
deteriorating health became known. However, Burns questioned
who will stand up and demand the release of political
prisoners and urge the restoration of democracy if the USG is
quiet? He urged Argentina and its MERCOSUR partners to take
a more assertive stance in favor of a democratic transition
in Cuba.

--------------
Haiti
--------------


13. (C) On Haiti, Under Secretary Burns described the
February 1 Haiti Key Players meeting as very positive.
Taiana agreed and noted that Latin America's leading role in
Haiti is not only good for Haiti but also good for the
region. The participation of Argentina, Brazil, Chile,
Uruguay, and Paraguay in MINUSTAH has helped to build
confidence among the Southern Cone nations in the political
and defense arenas. Haiti has compelled all five countries
to work together to forge a regional consensus on defense
matters. Taiana noted that Argentina and Chile have even
decided to stand up a joint battalion together to be deployed
in peacekeeping missions.

--------------
Falklands/Malvinas
--------------


14. (C) Taiana noted that 2007 marks the 25th anniversary
of the Falklands/Malvinas War. Over the years, the GOA has
urged the UK to hold sovereignty talks to resolve competing
claims over the islands, but the UK has refused. He
complained that the UK does not permit commercial flights
from mainland Argentina to the islands, and requested U.S.
assistance in encouraging the UK to agree to sovereignty
talks.


15. (C) U/S Burns stated that the USG does not want to
interfere in this issue, but that it is willing to carry
messages between the GOA and the UK. He relayed that the UK
had expressed concerns that Argentina may try to use the 25th
anniversary to redefine the issue in a way that would violate
the UK's understanding of the 1989 sovereignty umbrella
agreement. U/S Burns then noted that when former Ambassador
Gutierrez expressed such concerns to the GOA in July 2006,
the GOA had clearly indicated that it would seek a resolution
through diplomatic means. VFM Garcia Moritan agreed,
emphatically stating that "Argentina is not a threat." He
explained that the war was undertaken during the military
dictatorship and stressed that it would be "incomprehensible
for a democracy" such as Argentina's to consider taking
military action to force the issue. He explained that when
Argentina's constitution was revised in 1994, it stipulated
that the Falklands/Malvinas issue must be resolved
diplomatically with respect for international law.


16. (C) When U/S Burns mentioned that the UK would like to
explore whether Argentina would consider commemorating the
anniversary jointly, VFM Garcia Moritan quipped that

offering a joint commemoration is easy for the victor, but
that the UK would more likely seek a celebration, rather
than a commemoration, of the war. Still, VFM Garcia Moritan
will continue to urge the UK to hold sovereignty talks, and
that the GOA remains committed to resolving the issue
through diplomatic means.
WAYNE