GOVERNOR ROSALES AND EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE EAGER

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CARACAS 000206 SIPDIS SIPDIS HQSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD DEPARTMENT PASS TO AID/OTI (RPORTER) E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/29/2017 TAGS: PREL EAID PHUM PGOV SNAR VE SUBJECT: GOVERNOR ROSALES AND EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE EAGER FOR U.S. COOPERATION REF: A. CARACAS 00182 ¶B. CARACAS 00148 CARACAS 00000206 001.3 OF 002 Classified By: AMBASSADOR WILLIAM R. BROWNFIELD, REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D) ¶1. (SBU) Action Request -- See Paragraph 12. ¶2. (C) Summary. During the Ambassador's January 23-24 visit to Maracaibo, Zulia Governor and former presidential candidate Manuel Rosales expressed strong interest in enhancing programs of cooperation with his state administration. Rosales said he is not deterred by potential pushback from President Chavez' administration, and stressed that Venezuela needs more visible U.S. engagement now. Rosales remains interested in a visit to Washington and other U.S. cities soon and will get back with specific dates and meeting requests. Archbishop and President of the Venezuelan Conference of Bishops Ubaldo Santana similarly said the Catholic Church would like to enhance its ties with the USG, as well as with American firms and the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops. Ambassador reiterated the USG's readiness to be helpful to the Church, especially in the wake of Chavez' recent verbal attacks on Church officials. End Summary. -------------- Rosales: U.S. Needs To Engage More -------------- ¶3. (C) Zulia Governor and de facto Venezuelan opposition leader Manuel Rosales hosted the Ambassador for breakfast January 26 at the Governor's Residence in Maracaibo. Rosales, flanked by Peter Malberg, Director of the Zulia Airports, Cabinet Member Marisela Rincon, and Zulia Director of Sports Oslando Munoz, said his state administration is very interested in enhancing cooperation with the USG. He expressed particular interest in fostering closer ties in education, culture, medicine, sports, and tourism. Ambassador briefed on possible social engagement, anti-drug, cultural, and agriculture projects and pledged to follow up with an outline of concrete ideas. He also highlighted the possibility of facilitating greater partnership with the Catholic Church. ¶4. (C) The Ambassador noted that any U.S. cooperation with Zulia would be publicized and transparent. Rosales would need to weigh the potential political price that Zulia and he may pay in their relations with the Chavez government for openly cooperating with the USG. Responding immediately, Rosales said the Zulia government wants to cooperate with the USG "as much as possible," and added firmly, "We are not afraid." He stressed that Zulianos are looking for an alternative to Chavez' anti-American vision and want to "deepen" their relations with the United States. He urged the U.S. policy-makers to pay more attention to Venezuela. ¶5. (C) The Ambassador reviewed efforts to foster a dialogue with the BRV on a practical agenda of shared interests. The USG remains interested in assigning diplomatic personnel to Maracaibo; the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (BRV) has not responded to the USG request for over ten months. Referring to President Chavez' January 25 threat to declare the Ambassador persona non grata (Ref A),Rosales lamented, "There's your response." Rosales and his advisors nevertheless said they would encourage constituencies such as business groups to convey to the BRV their strong interest in re-opening the "consulate." ¶6. (C) Rosales and Ambassador discussed some notional ideas for a Rosales visit to the Washington, New York, and perhaps one other U.S. city sometime in the near future. The Ambassador urged Rosales to consider the potential political blowback, as well as ways to maximize the potential value of such a trip. Rosales said he remains interested in a visit -- or series of visits -- to the United States. He will weigh his meeting requests carefully and try to find the "right balance" in Washington. The Zulia governor promised to get back with specific dates and ideas. ¶7. (C) Surrounded by state technocrats rather than close political advisors, Rosales did not discuss his ongoing efforts to keep the opposition united or his vision for opposing Chavez' plans to implement "Socialism of the 21st Century." At Rosales' request, the Ambassador shared his CARACAS 00000206 002.3 OF 002 perspectives on oil price trends, as well as the growing value of U.S.-Venezuela trade in goods and services. Seizing on the latter, Rosales called Chavez' anti-American rhetoric "pure hypocrisy" and said that he intends to call the Venezuelan president on it publicly. -------------- -------------- Archbishop Santana: Ready to Enhance Ties with USG -------------- -------------- ¶8. (C) Ambassador met Maracaibo Archbishop and Venezuelan Episcopal Conference (CEV) President Ubaldo Santana January 25 in the Archbishop's Maracaibo office. Santana said he had had a good recent visit to the United States arranged by the American Bible Society. Asked about ties between the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and the CEV in the wake of Cardinal McCarrick's 2006 retirement as Archbishop of Washington D.C., Santana said a small committee of bishops from Florida (Orlando),Chicago, and Alaska are focusing on Latin America. Catholic Relief Services is also assisting the NGO Caritas. The Maracaibo Diocese is considering sending a few priests on three-year rotations to tend to the needs of the growing Venezuelan population in Florida. ¶9. (C) Archbishop Santana said the Venezuelan Catholic Church is interested in boosting cooperation with the United States. He specifically mentioned ongoing Church efforts to reach "youths at risk." The Ambassador suggested the CEV and USG look for ways to foster both direct and indirect (e.g., Venamcham) cooperation on projects. He noted that greater public engagement from the Vatican for social programs would also give the Church greater visibility and protection from the BRV. Santana confirmed that Pope Benedict XVI is planning a trip to the Brazil CELAM Conference (but not Venezuela) in May 2007. The Ambassador urged the CEV to seek a brief stopover, even a re-fueling stop, from Pope Benedict to help counter increasing BRV attacks on the Catholic Church (Ref B). Santana agreed with the idea, but thought it would be difficult to bring the Vatican around. His fallback was a high profile meeting between the Pope and the Venezuelan Church leadership at the Brazil CELAM. ¶10. (C) Ambassador reiterated the USG's commitment to promoting international religious freedom in Venezuela. Cardinal Urosa and Archbishop Santana may convey any pressing Church concerns in which the USG could be helpful directly to the Ambassador. The American Embassy wants to assist without getting out in front of Church officials. Santana thanked the Ambassador for the USG's predisposition to cooperate quietly and effectively. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶11. (C) Zulia offers especially promising ground for U.S.-sponsored anti-drug, agricultural, and cultural cooperation. Zulia Governor Manuel Rosales stands ready to ensure that his administration, one of only two opposition governorships in Venezuela, will be a supportive and effective partner. That said, we must be careful not to burn Rosales with too warm an embrace. Similarly, the Catholic Church, which to date has been somewhat cautious about direct cooperation with the USG, seems more ready to work with us. An USG-Zulia Government-Church triangle of mutual support and cooperation could serve as a bulwark against Chavez' increasingly radical plan of government. Moreover, the courage of Rosales and Catholic Church leaders to engage publicly with the U.S. government should not be underestimated, but rather rewarded with sufficient allocation of U.S. resources. ¶12. (C) Action Request: That the Department instruct Embassy Vatican to urge the Pope to make a brief Venezuela stop on his way to or from the Brazil CELAM. BROWNFIELD