MOROCCO ON U.S. PRIORITIES FOR THE 62ND UN GENERAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L RABAT 001513 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/21/2017 TAGS: PREL UNGA MO SUBJECT: MOROCCO ON U.S. PRIORITIES FOR THE 62ND UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY REF: A. STATE 130775 ¶B. RABAT 1441 Classified by Polcouns Craig Karp for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Drawing from ref A, Polcouns provided MFA IO Chief (A/S equivalent) Nasser Bourita an overview of U.S. priorities for the upcoming UN General Assembly session during a September 18 meeting. Bourita reacted to several points in the presentation: -- On Iraq, he noted Morocco's consistent support for the Iraqi government and its hope that Iraqi national unity will be strengthened; -- On the Middle East, he asserted that Morocco has been working quietly to convince fellow members of the Arab Group that repetitive and "inflated" UNGA resolutions on the Arab-Israeli dispute were counterproductive. He noted a trend toward decreasing international support for such resolutions - "Europe and most of Latin America no longer vote for these resolutions," he observed; -- On Kosovo, he reminded us that Morocco has contributed troops to the peacekeeping contingent there; -- On Human Rights, Bourita said that Morocco would submit a statement calling on member states to recognize the political and legal import of the Universal Declaration on the 60th anniversary of its passage. Morocco was looking at suggestions on how the declaration could be "enriched" by additional (unspecified) commitments on rights; -- On UN reform, he asserted that Morocco was supportive but "for us it is less technical and more political... we need your political vision... there should be an opportunity to reflect on the process and consider what our ultimate objective should be." Reform should not become a perennial agenda item, he concluded. ***************************************** Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/rabat ***************************************** RILEY