SYG BAN ON AFGHANISTAN, LEBANON, SUDAN, BURMA AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L USUN NEW YORK 001128 SIPDIS SIPDIS IO FOR FRONT OFFICE E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/05/2017 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL SU MOPS SUBJECT: SYG BAN ON AFGHANISTAN, LEBANON, SUDAN, BURMA AND UN BUDGET Classified By: Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad for Reasons 1.4 B/D. ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: In a one-on-one meeting with AMB Khalilzad on December 5, SYG Ban said he is ready to accommodate the U.S. on Paddy Ashdown's candidacy as SRSG for Afghanistan, but could not accept a dual UN-NATO appointment. Ban agreed to issue a statement urging the Lebanese to move forward with electing a president. DPKO A/SYG Mullet and SYG Special Advisor Kim Won Soo will meet with Sudanese officials at the margins of the AU/EU Summit in Lisbon to try to resolve the remaining UNAMID deployment issues. Ban is pressing the Chinese to send a more helpful message on the importance of the non-African components of UNAMID. Ban promised to raise Burma during his upcoming regional visit to Asia. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) AFGHANISTAN: SYG Ban said he is flexible and ready to accommodate the US on Paddy Ashdown's candidacy as SRSG for Afghanistan, but that he needs President Karzai's support to move forward. Ban said he could not support a dual-hatting arrangement, i.e. a joint UN and NATO appointment. Nonetheless, the UN wants to enhance coordination with ISAF. ¶3. (C) LEBANON: SYG Ban said he had spoken with Lebanese Parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri to encourage the Lebanese to move forward with electing a president. Ban said he thought a "package deal" that would tie the election of Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) Commander Michael Sleiman to other issues such as cabinet formation and the selection of a Prime Minister was "wrong headed." Berri plans to introduce a constitutional amendment that would allow Sleiman to serve as president, despite his service in the armed forces, and discounted rumors of a package deal as unfounded. Ban agreed (at Amb. Khalilzad's request) to issue a statement urging the Lebanese to move forward with electing a president. ¶4. (C) SUDAN: In regard to the AU/EU Summit in Lisbon, Ban said he planned to send DPKO A/SYG Edmond Mullet and SYG Deputy Chief of Staff Kim Won Soo to meet with Sudanese officials on the margins of the summit to resolve the remaining issues with UNAMID deployment. President Bashir has not yet indicated whether he will meet with the UN officials in Lisbon, but has promised to send a "high-level" team. ¶5. (C) Ban said he is pressing the Chinese to send a more helpful message on the importance of the non-African components of UNAMID. Ban said he had warned the Chinese that the rebels perceive the Chinese components of UNAMID as "tainted" by their government's association with Sudanese policies. The best way to counteract this perception would be for the Chinese to send a strong message on the need to deploy the non-African components of UNAMID expeditiously. ¶6. (C) BURMA: Ban promised to raise Burma during his upcoming regional visit to Asia. Ban does not plan to visit Burma, but will speak out on the issue during his trip. ¶7. (C) UN BUDGET: Amb. Khalilzad raised strong concerns about the scope of the UN's proposed budget increase. He urged Ban to present a consolidated budget with clear priorities. Ban took note of Amb. Khalilzad's suggestion of a continuing resolution to cover the UN budget until the Secretary General revised it. Ban said all of the "add on" items, except DPA expansion, originated as mandates from the General Assembly. Khalilzad