Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07MADRID402
2007-03-05 13:00:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Madrid
Cable title:
SPANISH BACKTRACK ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS
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C O N F I D E N T I A L MADRID 000402
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/WE AND PM/WRA (KATHERINE BAKER)
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/05/2017
TAGS: MOPS PARM PREL NATO SP
SUBJECT: SPANISH BACKTRACK ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS
REF: A. MADRID 134
B. STATE 6667
Classified By: DCM HUGO LLORENS PER 1.4 (B/D)
C O N F I D E N T I A L MADRID 000402
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/WE AND PM/WRA (KATHERINE BAKER)
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/05/2017
TAGS: MOPS PARM PREL NATO SP
SUBJECT: SPANISH BACKTRACK ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS
REF: A. MADRID 134
B. STATE 6667
Classified By: DCM HUGO LLORENS PER 1.4 (B/D)
1. (C) During a March 2 meeting scheduled to discuss other
disarmament-related issues, MFA Disarmament Affairs Deputy
Director General Ignacio Sanchez sheepishly informed ESTHOFF
that the information he had provided on January 24 regarding
Spanish policy on cluster munitions (REF A) had been
inaccurate. REF A reported that Spain had not been invited
to the February 22-23 Oslo Cluster Munitions Conference, that
Spain would probably not attend even if invited, and that
Spain opposed a ban on the use of cluster munitions.
2. (C) Sanchez explained that Spain was eventually invited
to attend the Oslo conference and did indeed decide not to
attend. But then, just days before the conference, while
Sanchez was out of Madrid on official travel, an unidentified
NGO succeeded in convincing Deputy Foreign Minister Bernadino
Lean and Sanchez's boss, Disarmament and Terrorism Affairs
Director General Angel Lossada, that Lossada should attend
the Oslo conference after all. At Oslo, according to
Sanchez, Lossada agreed that Spain would support a ban on
some of the "dirtiest" or "worst" kinds of cluster munitions.
3. (C) ESTHOFF probed as to whether Spain now supported an
Ottawa type negotiation to ban certain types of cluster
munitions or preferred to see the talks remain in the context
of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW).
Sanchez said this remains under debate inside the Spanish
Government. He believed that if the CCW process did not show
movement in the upcoming months, Spain might then support an
Ottawa style negotiation.
4. (C) COMMENT: Previous conversations with Sanchez had
revealed a split between his views and those of DG Lossada.
Sanchez, the technical expert, is more supportive of the U.S.
position on cluster munitions. His views appeared to prevail
until the Spanish NGO community succeeded in raising the
profile of this issue. Now that his more PR-minded superiors
are engaged, we expect Spain to be more supportive of efforts
to ban or curb the use of cluster munitions.
AGUIRRE
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/WE AND PM/WRA (KATHERINE BAKER)
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/05/2017
TAGS: MOPS PARM PREL NATO SP
SUBJECT: SPANISH BACKTRACK ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS
REF: A. MADRID 134
B. STATE 6667
Classified By: DCM HUGO LLORENS PER 1.4 (B/D)
1. (C) During a March 2 meeting scheduled to discuss other
disarmament-related issues, MFA Disarmament Affairs Deputy
Director General Ignacio Sanchez sheepishly informed ESTHOFF
that the information he had provided on January 24 regarding
Spanish policy on cluster munitions (REF A) had been
inaccurate. REF A reported that Spain had not been invited
to the February 22-23 Oslo Cluster Munitions Conference, that
Spain would probably not attend even if invited, and that
Spain opposed a ban on the use of cluster munitions.
2. (C) Sanchez explained that Spain was eventually invited
to attend the Oslo conference and did indeed decide not to
attend. But then, just days before the conference, while
Sanchez was out of Madrid on official travel, an unidentified
NGO succeeded in convincing Deputy Foreign Minister Bernadino
Lean and Sanchez's boss, Disarmament and Terrorism Affairs
Director General Angel Lossada, that Lossada should attend
the Oslo conference after all. At Oslo, according to
Sanchez, Lossada agreed that Spain would support a ban on
some of the "dirtiest" or "worst" kinds of cluster munitions.
3. (C) ESTHOFF probed as to whether Spain now supported an
Ottawa type negotiation to ban certain types of cluster
munitions or preferred to see the talks remain in the context
of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW).
Sanchez said this remains under debate inside the Spanish
Government. He believed that if the CCW process did not show
movement in the upcoming months, Spain might then support an
Ottawa style negotiation.
4. (C) COMMENT: Previous conversations with Sanchez had
revealed a split between his views and those of DG Lossada.
Sanchez, the technical expert, is more supportive of the U.S.
position on cluster munitions. His views appeared to prevail
until the Spanish NGO community succeeded in raising the
profile of this issue. Now that his more PR-minded superiors
are engaged, we expect Spain to be more supportive of efforts
to ban or curb the use of cluster munitions.
AGUIRRE