IRELAND OPPOSES U.S. FINANCING REFORM PROPOSAL FOR

UNCLAS DUBLIN 000369

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON OECD EUN EI
SUBJECT: IRELAND OPPOSES U.S. FINANCING REFORM PROPOSAL FOR
OECD

REF: STATE 62464


1. (SBU) The Irish Government strongly opposes USG proposals
for OECD financing reform, according to John Rowan,
Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Counsellor for EU Common
Policies, JHA, and the OECD, to whom Pol/Econ Chief delivered
reftel demarche on May 10. Rowan explained that Ireland had
never accepted any linkage between OECD enlargement and
financing reform, and he added that there had been no mention
of such reform in the OECD Ministerial Council's statement
last May on the financing of enlargement. He further noted
that Ireland had joined the OECD on agreed terms and had
increased its contributions by 10 percent annually over the
last decade. (Ireland's OECD Part I contribution stands at
roughly euro 1 million, or 0.59 percent of the OECD budget,
according to Rowan.) The USG proposal, he argued, would
require Ireland and similarly sized members to triple their
contributions, while the six largest contributors would
effectively pay nothing toward enlargement. Rowan also
rejected the estimate of euro 2.4 to 5.6 million as the
recurring average cost per member, saying that this estimate
had never been agreed by the OECD Council and that the
administrative burden placed on the organization by Ireland's
two diplomats could not compare with that of much larger
members.


2. (SBU) Ireland supports bids by Estonia and Slovenia to be
included in the first tranche of new OECD members, said
Rowan. He related Ireland's position that the remaining
members of the EU-8 should be able to accede at some point,
and he explained that the Irish Government favored OECD
Secretary-General Gurria's latest proposals on the

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enlargement process, including accession by Israel and Chile.
Rowan added that the OECD should not be an "EU creature" and
that there would be benefits to diversifying the
organization's membership. At the same time, Ireland had
concerns about the difficulties posed by the OECD's recurrent
budgetary and other problems for the absorption of new
members.


3. (SBU) The Irish Government welcomes the USG decision not
to block the start of OECD accession negotiations with
Russia, observed Rowan. He remarked that Russia's
aggressiveness toward Estonia in recent days was indicative
of the challenges that would likely beset and draw out the
negotiations. Russia's eventual accession, however, would
enhance the OECD's influence at a time when the
organization's prestige had slipped in comparison with other
international financial bodies, such as the IMF. Regarding
the U.S. intention to note in the ministerial statement that
Russia does not currently meet OECD standards on open market
reform and democratic governance, Rowan expected that wording
could be worked out to reflect that reality. He cautioned,
though, against a statement categorizing Russia in a way that
might sour the prospects for beginning accession talks.
FOLEY