PORTUGAL'S VIEWS ON JANUARY 22 GAERC MEETING

C O N F I D E N T I A L LISBON 000182 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/19/2017 TAGS: YI PREL PGOV ENRG EAID MARR PO SUBJECT: PORTUGAL'S VIEWS ON JANUARY 22 GAERC MEETING REF: SECSTATE 5256 Classified By: Dana M. Brown, Pol-Econ Officer, Embassy Lisbon Reason 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: MFA's Deputy European Correspondent Ana Filomena Rocha offered the Portuguese perspective on items scheduled for January's General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) meeting. Portugal agrees with the EU consensus on most issues but (1) favors greater flexibility in dealings with Serbia, and (2) insists that the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) remain a broad initiative rather than focus on select nations. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) SERBIA: Portugal supports Ahtisaari's proposed timeline for a February 2 report followed by four weeks to allow for commentary, according to Rocha. While France suggested a postponement on Ahtisaari's report, Rocha stated that other EU members would not be interested in further delays. Regarding war crimes, the GOP is willing to be "flexible" on timing to bring Serbia into compliance, and Rocha insisted that Serbia needs carrots to continue cooperating. ¶3. (SBU) IRAN: Germany proposed that the Iran discussion be split into two phases: nuclear proliferation in January and economic, political, and human rights in February. Rocha predicted that the EU would find it too early to endorse sanctions beyond the scope of UNSCR 1737 and would probably adopt a "wait and see" approach for the full 60 days allowed under the resolution. ¶4. (C) SOMALIA: Rocha reported that the EU has learned from its mistakes in Darfur and will cap assistance funding at 50 million euros for Somalia. She noted that, when the African Union (AU) requested funding from the EU, it failed to declare a mission or offer a budget. Rocha is pessimistic that the AU will be successful in Somalia given the lack of planning to date and the AU's inability to make headway in its Darfur mission. ¶5. (C) SUDAN: Rocha was openly critical of the AU's efforts in Darfur and characterized the mission as "AU autonomy gone awry." She said the EU is unwilling to continue funding the AU mission further and suggested that other African nations with resources, such as South Africa or Nigeria, attempt to support the mission when funds run out this spring. ¶6. (SBU) EUROPEAN NEIGHBORHOOD POLICY (ENP): Portugal strongly opposes the suggestion to split the "neighborhood" into eastern and southern nations of concern during the German and Portuguese EU Presidencies. She remarked that the German-backed policy of focusing on select eastern partners (reftel) would make the policy more unstable and diminish its usefulness over time. Hoffman