EGYPTIAN MFA ON EGYPTIAN-SYRIAN RELATIONS, THE

C O N F I D E N T I A L CAIRO 003003

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

NEA FOR FO; NSC FOR WATERS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/09/2017
TAGS: PREL PGOV EG LE
SUBJECT: EGYPTIAN MFA ON EGYPTIAN-SYRIAN RELATIONS, THE
LEBANESE-SYRIAN BORDER, AND THE TRIBUNAL

REF: A. STATE 139303


B. BEIRUT 1504

C. BEIRUT 1565

Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission Stuart Jones
Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) MFA Cabinet Advisor on the Levant Nazih el Naggary
told POLOFF October 9 that recent GOE overtures to get Syria
a seat at the fall peace meeting are partly an effort to
empower moderates in the Bashir regime. He said that Syrian
advisors are divided on whether Syria should attend. The
moderate camp argues for attendance in order to ensure its
claim on the Golan. Hardliners argue that Syria should not
attend, assert itself in Lebanon, and cause problems for the
US in Iraq. Nazih said it is critical to help the Syrian
moderates win this internal debate. To that end, Egypt has
passed a paper to the SARG urging attendance at the fall
meeting.


2. (C) At the same time, the Egyptians want to be in a
position to assure the Syrians that they will have the
opportunity at the meeting to raise the Golan issue, even if
the focus of the meeting is the creation of a Palestinian
state. He argued that it was important for the Syrians to
have a "full seat" at the table, as opposed to attendance as
part of the Arab League Peace Initiative Committee (the
mandate of which only covers the Palestinian aspect of
Israeli-Arab issues, according to Nazih). Ultimately, he
said the ideal strategy would be to leverage the Golan for
Syrian cessation of interference in Lebanon. He admitted,
however, that he was not sure the Syrians would find this an
attractive bargain.


3. (C) Nazih had a pessimistic view of the international
efforts to monitor the Syrian-Lebanon border (reftels b and
c). He said the Syrians cannot be trusted to use equipment
to prevent smuggling into Lebanon, nor would the SARG allow
international observers to do their job on the Syrian side of
the border. The best way to address the weapons smuggling is
by providing equipment and supplies to the Lebanese security
forces, he said.


4. (C) Nazih said that the GOE is averse to sending names of
Egyptian candidates to the United Nations to be considered as
judges for the UN Special Tribunal on Lebanon (reftel a).
Although Egypt fully supports the tribunal and MFA officials
believe it could deter future assisinations, they fear that
overtly supporting the tribunal in this way would undermine
their efforts to bring Syria along.
RICCIARDONE