PORTUGUESE VIEWS IN ADVANCE OF DECEMBER 10-11 GAERC

C O N F I D E N T I A L LISBON 003116 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/07/2017 TAGS: IR IZ IS PREL PGOV PO SUBJECT: PORTUGUESE VIEWS IN ADVANCE OF DECEMBER 10-11 GAERC REF: A. SECSTATE 164327 ¶B. SECSTATE 163945 Classified By: Dana M. Brown, Pol-Econ Officer, Embassy Lisbon Reason 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (U) Deputy EU Correspondent Ana Filomena Rocha responded to ref A policy interests with the Portuguese views in advance of the GAERC meeting on December 10 and 11. In addition to reftel points, Rocha mentioned that ministers would review conclusions on Lebanon and would consider proposals to strengthen EU-Israel relations. Rocha noted that Iraq and Pakistan were not on the agenda. ¶2. (C) Kosovo: Rocha stated that Ischinger would brief the ministers on the Kosovo Troika Report and make recommendations in advance of the EU Council meeting on December 14. While Rocha did not expect any significant advances, she noted that the rarely-held joint meeting of heads of state and foreign ministers, scheduled for the December 14 European Council meeting, could advance the EU's discussions, especially regarding the possibility of approving an ESDP mission deployment without a UN resolution. ¶3. (C) Iran: The ministers were expected to discuss Solana's November 13 meeting with Iranian Nuclear Negotiator Kazem Jalali, which Rocha characterized as "disastrous." Jalali told Solana that he would not abide by any agreements made by his predecessor. The EU was also slated to consider future EU action both in the case of a UN resolution and, as a next-best possibility, whether to proceed with EU autonomous measures. ¶4. (C) Middle East: Rocha predicted that the ministers would look towards the Paris talks and discuss the EU's thoughts post-Annapolis. She confirmed that the EU stood ready to support the peace process and provide financial assistance, both as a bloc and at the member state level. The ministers' discussion will be a restricted session with limited or no staff participation. The Netherlands requested 30 minutes to discuss upgrading the EU's relationship with Israel. Israeli officials have recently pushed to have more frequent, substantive meetings with the EU, but Rocha emphasized that several member states were resisting enhanced relations given their concerns about "Israel's human rights record." ¶5. (C) Sudan: The French-led EU mission to Chad and the Central African Republic has been put on hold due to the lack of a field hospital and airlift capabilities. The GAERC discussion will attempt to secure donations from individual member states and discuss contributions made to the mission thus far. The French believe they are being asked to shoulder too much of the financial burden, according to Rocha, and are pressing member states to agree to what they view as a more equitable distribution. Rocha noted that the previous hopes of having an EU mission on the ground by the end of 2007 were unlikely without strong financial and equipment commitments in the near future. She speculated that the issue would not be raised at the EU-Africa summit because it could potentially embarrass the African counterparts and fail to resolve anything. ¶6. (SBU) Burma: Rocha said the Burma discussion would be limited to a December update and would not include draft conclusions. Portugal supported the adoption of conclusions last month and backed EU sanctions against Burma, but had been urged by ASEAN partners at the ASEAN summit to encourage the EU to wait before taking additional action. In particular, Portugal was cautioned that further restrictions would not only be unhelpful, but could actually push the Burmese authorities into a more entrenched position. ¶7. (C) Lebanon elections: Responding to the ref B points on Lebanon, Rocha stated that the EU had draft conclusions that express disappointment over the continued election delays. Rocha remarked that the language was flexible, so as to allow for changes in the status over the weekend, but are ready as a baseline document for the ministers' signature. Stephenson