LEBANON: ITALIAN CONTRIBUTION TO SPECIAL TRIBUNAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L ROME 001994 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR IO/UNP ANNELIESE REINEMEYER E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/18/2017 TAGS: UNSC LE PTER IT SUBJECT: LEBANON: ITALIAN CONTRIBUTION TO SPECIAL TRIBUNAL UNCERTAIN REF: SECSTATE 129919 Classified By: Acting Pol M/C Jonathan R. Cohen, for reasons 1.4 (b) an d (d). ¶1. (C) Poloffs delivered reftel demarche to MFA UN Desk Officer Gabriella Biondi and Lebanon Desk Officer Michele Tommasi September 17 and urged Italy to contribute to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. Poloffs emphasized that given Italy's significant presence on the ground in UNIFIL, Italy had an important role to play in ensuring the Tribunal's success. ¶2. (C) Biondi said that while FM D'Alema had agreed in principle to contribute to the Special Tribunal, the MFA had not yet been able to identify available funds. The GOI is currently in the midst of budget negotiations, and Biondi hoped that a final decision could be made in October. Tommasi noted that Italy had decided not to contribute judges to the Tribunal, so he said a financial contribution was likely. ¶3. (C) Post consulted with our colleagues at the Dutch Embassy in Rome prior to delivering this demarche. They had instructions from The Hague not to join us, because the Netherlands, as host country of the Tribunal, wishes to remain a neutral party. SPOGLI