UN/SUDAN SANCTIONS: FRENCH REACTION TO US NAMES

S E C R E T USUN NEW YORK 000194 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/12/2017 TAGS: PREL UNSC ETTC SU SUBJECT: UN/SUDAN SANCTIONS: FRENCH REACTION TO US NAMES FOR SANCTIONS REF: STATE 24349 Classified By: MINISTER COUNSELOR WILLIAM BRENCICK, FOR REASONS: 1.4(B) AND (D). ¶1. (C) Summary: French support for targeted sanctions in Sudan will be predicated on an expected positive effect on the ground in Darfur. Paris feels that USG proposed sanctions targets are of too senior a rank to have a productive effect, and expressed concern that targeting individuals under indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC) would invite accusations of the politicization of the Court. The French would also prefer a list of targets that includes all parties to the conflict. End summary. US PROPOSED NAMES ¶2. (S) USUN met with the French at the working level on March 7 to discuss Paris's initial reactions to the three names the USG will propose for targeted sanctions in the Sudan Sanctions Committee (reftel). Paris shares London's reticence to sanction individuals as senior in rank as Awad Ibn Auf, and is skittish about targeting Khalil Ibrahim as "the leader of a movement." "Intermediate-level" targeting, in Paris's view, would be more productive. Paris was also concerned that sanctioning Ahmad Haroun will make the ICC vulnerable to charges of politicization. PREFERRED FRENCH WAY FORWARD ¶3. (C) According to French PolOff Clement LeClerc, Paris's support for sanctions will be predicated on a expected positive effect on the ground in Darfur. Potential sanctions should target a) those violating human rights, and b) members of the different parties to the conflict (LeClerc mentioned the G19, SLM non-signatories, and SLM Minnawi). UK PolOff David Whineray, also present at the meeting, indicated that London supported targeting a similarly broad list of actors. Paris will consider the UK proposal to expand the arms embargo to all of Sudan, but felt that a no-fly zone would be expensive, difficult to enforce, and perhaps an inappropriate use of resources given that most attacks on civilians are ground-based. ¶4. (C) The French would like to secure Chinese and Russian support for sanctions at an early stage, and felt that we would not get broad Committee support if we proposed names before receiving the Sudanese reply to the January 24 letter from the Secretary General on the Heavy Support Package. However, LeClerc did not know how long Paris was willing to wait for this response. ¶5. (C) USUN reiterated the need identifying information and evidence of violations of resolution 1591 (2005) in order to support additional names for sanctions. The UK expressed a willingness to propose names for designation (some combination of ours and theirs) by March 23, in line with the timeline proposed in reftel for domestic designations of the three US proposed targets. WOLFF