HOLY SEE ON VENEZUELAN ASYLUM CASE OF NIXON MORENO

C O N F I D E N T I A L VATICAN 000063 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 3/23/2017 TAGS: PREL KDEM VE VT SUBJECT: HOLY SEE ON VENEZUELAN ASYLUM CASE OF NIXON MORENO REF: CARACAS 591 CLASSIFIED BY: Christopher Sandrolini, Charge d'affaires, EXEC, State. REASON: 1.4 (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. Charge raised case of Nixon Moreno with the Holy See deputy foreign minister Parolin, who confirmed March 23 that Moreno is in the Papal Nunciature in Caracas. Parolin said Moreno would probably eventually go to a third country such as Canada; the GOV is presently opposed but might come around. End summary. ¶2. (C) Monsignor Pietro Parolin, the Holy See's Undersecretary for Relations with States, confirmed to Charge and Pol chief March 23 that Nixon Moreno (reftel) had sought refuge at the Papal Nunciature in Caracas. Parolin said he had not received any news of the matter since March 17. (Comment: this may be due to a recent portfolio shuffle among his staff. End comment.) He observed that Moreno was not personally known to the Nunciature nor to the Holy See prior to this incident. Parolin said it is normal for nunciatures to grant such protection on humanitarian grounds, though cases are not very frequent. Charge noted, per reftel, that charges by pro-GOV groups about USG involvement were not accurate. ¶3. (C) Parolin's understanding is that a third country, possibly Canada, may accept Moreno, and that the government of Venezuela might well accept this in the end. For the moment, the GOV position on third-country asylum is "not at this time". The Holy See has advised the nunciature in Caracas to take things one step at a time, "without haste", and to consult with the Venezuelan bishops conference and other diplomats. Parolin made clear that in this case, as in any similar situation, the Vatican's priority would be to find the most humane solution possible. ¶4. (SBU) Parolin, noting that Archbishop Mamberti (the Holy See foreign minister) would be receiving the Venezuelan ambassador to the Holy See later the same day (March 23),said he would keep us informed of any developments. SANDROLINI