INDIAN AMBASSADOR ON UNMIN MANDATE AND CONCERNS OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L KATHMANDU 001665 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/04/2017 TAGS: PREL PGOV UN IN NP SUBJECT: INDIAN AMBASSADOR ON UNMIN MANDATE AND CONCERNS OF "MISSION CREEP" Classified By: AMBASSADOR NANCY J. POWELL FOR REASONS 1.4 (B/D). ¶1. (C) During a meeting August 31 with the Ambassador, Indian Ambassador Shiv Shankar Mukherjee noted that he is increasingly concerned about UN mission creep in Nepal. He started by saying that unless work begins now in New York on an extension of the current mandate, the UN staff here will soon be directed to start liquidation of its programs, personnel, and facilities. He noted that this was impractical just as Nepal approaches the Nov. 22 elections and indicated he believes India would not oppose a limited extension of UNMIN,s current mandate. ¶2. (C) Noting that the second area of mission creep was more serious, he referred to recent press reports that SRSG Ian Martin had publicly offered to assist in talks with Madhesi groups, provided he is asked by the GON. Mukherjee, who was personally involved in the Nepal government,s discussions with several Madhesi groups and claimed a key role in the recently concluded agreement between the MJF and GON, sees Martin,s offer as interference and beyond the current mandate for UNMIN. Mukherjee,s private warning to Martin appears to have been unheeded as the offer was repeated in September 3 press article. ¶3. (C) Mukherjee has also complained to UNDP Resident Representative Matthew Kahane about the recent visit of WFP staff to Bihar to talk to militant Madhesi groups, including the Jawala Singh faction, in an attempt to ensure security for flood relief deliveries. The staff members had applied for Indian visas to visit Delhi and had not informed the Indian government of their intention to visit Bihar or meet with Madhesi factions. The staffers have had their visas cancelled and will be placed on Indian visa watch lists. ¶4. (C) According to Mukherjee, JTMM faction leader Goit is in a Patan (Bihar, India) hospital recovering from a heart attack. Mukherjee does not believe that he can continue his opposition to the upcoming elections and that his followers are likely to join other groups. BERRY