Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07LAPAZ1032
2007-04-13 18:03:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy La Paz
Cable title:  

NEW GOB PROPOSAL FOR DIP NOTE EXCHANGE ON MIL

Tags:  KTIA PGOV PREL MARR MASS MOPS BL 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHLP #1032/01 1031803
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 131803Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY LA PAZ
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3169
INFO RUEHAC/AMEMBASSY ASUNCION 6695
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA 4021
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA 7909
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES 5159
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 2389
RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA 2512
RUEHMD/AMEMBASSY MADRID 3412
RUEHMN/AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO 4535
RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO 5028
RUEHSG/AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO 9615
RUMIAAA/USCINCSO MIAMI FL
RUEHUB/USINT HAVANA 0255
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/HQ USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL
C O N F I D E N T I A L LA PAZ 001032 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

WHA/AND LPETRONI, WHA/FO CSHAPIRO, L/PM THEROLD, I/T DCOOK,
PM/SNA JDETEMPLE, PJANZEN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/14/2017
TAGS: KTIA PGOV PREL MARR MASS MOPS BL
SUBJECT: NEW GOB PROPOSAL FOR DIP NOTE EXCHANGE ON MIL
ACTIVITIES

REF: A. LA PAZ 3325 (2006)


B. LA PAZ 769

Classified By: Ecopol Counselor Andrew Erickson for reasons 1.4 (a),(b
) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L LA PAZ 001032

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

WHA/AND LPETRONI, WHA/FO CSHAPIRO, L/PM THEROLD, I/T DCOOK,
PM/SNA JDETEMPLE, PJANZEN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/14/2017
TAGS: KTIA PGOV PREL MARR MASS MOPS BL
SUBJECT: NEW GOB PROPOSAL FOR DIP NOTE EXCHANGE ON MIL
ACTIVITIES

REF: A. LA PAZ 3325 (2006)


B. LA PAZ 769

Classified By: Ecopol Counselor Andrew Erickson for reasons 1.4 (a),(b
) and (d).


1. (SBU) This message contains an urgent action request
(paragraph 8).

--------------
SUMMARY
--------------


2. (SBU) As part of Embassy La Paz's continuing efforts to
work with the GOB towards a permanent Status of Forces
Agreement (SOFA) (see reftels),we have been negotiating with
the Bolivian government to renew the exchange of diplomatic
notes that has provided protection to U.S. military officials
providing humanitarian assistance in Bolivia since 1997. The
Embassy has diligently pursued a permanent SOFA agreement, as
reported in reftels, but the current political environment
rendered securing a permanent SOFA impossible in the short
term. After months of negotiations, the GOB transmitted a
diplomatic note to the Embassy on March 16. At the
suggestion of Minister of Defense Walker San Miguel, Embassy
officials met with Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials
April 11. The same day, the MFA sent a second diplomatic
note to the Embassy which retracted its previous objections
and proposed omitting one sentence from paragraph 6 of the
agreement. The MFA's Director of Special Affairs Unit said
if the GOB proposal is unacceptable, she hoped the USG would
make a prompt counterproposal so that negotiations may
continue. Because USG policy toward Bolivia is to try to
engage the GOB, completing negotiations to provide for U.S.
military humanitarian exercises is in U.S. interest.
Moreover, if the New Horizons exercise is canceled, Post
believes that such a failure will damage the bilateral
relationship and will generate significant negative press.
End summary.

--------------
BACKGROUND AND CURRENT CONTEXT

--------------


3. (C) The Embassy has diligently pursued a permanent SOFA
agreement, as reported in reftels, but the current political
environment rendered securing a permanent SOFA impossible in
the short term. Given the political storm that followed the
GOB's signing of a military cooperation agreement with
Venezuela in May 2006, which became public in October 2006,
it became obvious that the GOB would not sign such an
agreement with us. While we have made great strides toward
an amicable working relationship with the Morales government,
many high-level GOB officials harbor intense suspicion about
U.S. military activities in Bolivia. Post believes that if
the two governments can reach an agreement which will permit
the July/August New Horizons exercise to go forward as
planned, this year's trust-building exercise will help lay
the necessary groundwork for a permanent SOFA agreement next
year.


4. (SBU) After months of negotiations, the GOB transmitted
diplomatic note VREC-DAE-Cs-128/2007 to the Embassy on March
16, which proposed amending the previous agreement on two
points (reftel B). Embassy officials, after consulting with
Washington, informally indicated to GOB officials that their
suggestions were unacceptable, noting the need for the GOB to
reconsider its position. Minister of Defense Walker San
Miguel informed the Embassy's milgroup commander that the GOB
would review its objections. After progress stalled, San
Miguel referred Embassy officials to the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs (MFA) for further discussion. To that end, poloff
and milgroup commander met with the MFA's Director of Special
Affairs Unit Mireya Duran and U.S. desk officer Rimac Zubieta

April 11. Both officials expressed keen interest in reaching
an agreement so that U.S. military forces could move forward
with planned humanitarian assistance and thanked the Embassy
for past assistance. Duran said the GOB would transmit
another diplomatic note within 24 hours withdrawing its
previous objections and asking that one "duplicative"
sentence be omitted from the agreement.

--------------
TEXT OF GOB PROPOSAL AND GOB ARGUMENT
--------------


5. (SBU) Post received the GOB's diplomatic note
VREC-DAE-Cs-185/2007 late April 11. An informal translation
follows:

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship- Special Affairs
Unit, cordially salutes the Honorable Embassy of the United
States of America and in reference to the note
VREC-DAE-Cs-128/2007 dated March 16 of this year, regarding
the text of the Agreement Between the Government of the
Republic of Bolivia and the Government of the United States
of America on the Entry and Activities of U.S. Government
Civil and Military Personnel to Implement Projects of
Technical, Scientific and Humanitarian Cooperation under the
auspices of the U.S. Armed Forces, presents the following
counterproposal:

In consideration of the conversations held today with
officers of the U.S. diplomatic mission and considering that
the text of the second paragraph of point 6 is fully
supported by point 3 of the Proposed Agreement, we propose
the elimination of that paragraph; therefore the new text of
point 6 would read:

"The Government of the Republic of Bolivia and the Government
of the United States of America reciprocally shall waive any
and all claims against one another for property damages
related to the equipment and materials used for development
projects in connection with this assistance."

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship- Special Affairs
Unit, reiterates to the Honorable Embassy of the United
States of America the assurance of its highest and most
distinguished consideration.

La Paz, April 11, 2007

End informal translation.


6. (SBU) In our April 11 meeting, Duran and Zubieta argued
that because paragraph/point 3 of the proposed agreement
contains administrative and technical protections, paragraph
6's provision -- that "Claims by others arising out of these
assistance activities shall be referred to the Government
alleged to be responsible for resolution in accordance with
the laws of the Government" -- is duplicative and should be
omitted. They acknowledged that the same text has been used
to provide for U.S. humanitarian activities over the past ten
years, but noted that under the Morales administration, "this
is a different political time." They said that while
congressional approval will not be required for the
agreement, the MFA needs to be able to defend the agreement
to Congress. With the suggested modification, Duran and
Zubieta believe they can do so.

--------------
COMMENT AND ACTION REQUEST
--------------


7. (C) Duran reported that President Morales, FM
Choquehuanca, Minister of Defense Walker San Miguel, and Vice
Foreign Minister Hugo Fernandez want negotiations to move
forward. She said if the GOB proposal is unacceptable, she

hoped the USG would make a prompt counterproposal so that
negotiations may continue. In this regard, and recognizing
the limited immunity provided by A & T status in paragraph 3,
we suggest that one way forward might be a stiffening of
paragraph 3 to refer to full diplomatic immunity, which could
indeed offer the protections we require.


8. (C) URGENT ACTION REQUEST: With the passage of time, the
New Horizons exercise currently scheduled for July/August is
increasingly jeopardized. Because USG policy toward Bolivia
is to try to engage the GOB, completing negotiations to
provide for U.S. military humanitarian exercises is in U.S.
interest, particularly since the exercises are planned for
departments hardest hit by recent Bolivian flooding. If the
New Horizons exercise is canceled, Post believes that such a
failure will damage the bilateral relationship and will
generate significant negative press. Please advise regarding
how post should respond to the GOB's overture. END COMMENT
AND ACTION REQUEST.
GOLDBERG