Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07VIENTIANE767
2007-10-12 09:48:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Vientiane
Cable title:  

MFA ASEAN OFFICIAL DESCRIBES ACTIVE LAO ROLE ON

Tags:  PREL PHUM PGOV LA BM ASEAN 
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VZCZCXRO7826
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHVN #0767/01 2850948
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 120948Z OCT 07
FM AMEMBASSY VIENTIANE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1568
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 2201
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 1036
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0045
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 VIENTIANE 000767 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

PACOM PLEASE PASS TO AMBASSADOR HUSO

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/12/2017
TAGS: PREL PHUM PGOV LA BM ASEAN
SUBJECT: MFA ASEAN OFFICIAL DESCRIBES ACTIVE LAO ROLE ON
BURMA

REF: A. STATE 137664

B. VIENTIANE 744

Classified By: Mary Grace McGeehan, Charge d'Affaires a.i. Reason: 1.4
b and d.

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 VIENTIANE 000767

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

PACOM PLEASE PASS TO AMBASSADOR HUSO

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/12/2017
TAGS: PREL PHUM PGOV LA BM ASEAN
SUBJECT: MFA ASEAN OFFICIAL DESCRIBES ACTIVE LAO ROLE ON
BURMA

REF: A. STATE 137664

B. VIENTIANE 744

Classified By: Mary Grace McGeehan, Charge d'Affaires a.i. Reason: 1.4
b and d.


1. (C) Summary: In a meeting with the Charge on Burma,
Deputy Director General for ASEAN Songkane Luangmuninthone
said that Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Thongloun
Sisoulith had intervened with the Burmese Foreign Minister at
UN Special Envoy Gambari's request to urge the Burmese to
accept a visit by Gambari. This, he said, is why the Burmese
allowed the visit to take place. He said that Laos will
remain engaged on Burma bilaterally and within ASEAN. Mr.
Songkane said that the Burmese Foreign Minister is scheduled
to visit Laos as part of a regular bilateral dialogue. He is
not sure of the date, but we have heard elsewhere that this
meeting will take place before the November 20-21
Francophonie summit. Like others, he dismissed reports that
Burmese dictator Than Shwe's family went to Laos during the
demonstrations. End summary.


2. (C) The Charge met with Songkane Luangmuninthone, Deputy
Director General of MFA's ASEAN Department, on October 12 to
discuss Burma. Drawing from Ref A, she expressed continuing
U.S. concern about the situation and noted the importance of
continued bilateral and multilateral engagement. She
expressed appreciation for ASEAN's forceful and helpful
statement on September 27. (Note: The Charge made these
points to the Director General of the Asia Pacific and Africa
Department, which handles bilateral relations with Burma and
other ASEAN countries, on October 1 (Ref B),but this was the
Embassy's first conversation about the situation in Burma
with the ASEAN department. End note.) She gave Mr. Songkane
a number of documents, including the President's and First
Lady's statements, the Department statement on the visa ban,
the Treasury Department statement on sanctions, the statement
by the UN Security Council President (of which Mr. Songkane
had only seen excerpts),and the UNODC press release

expressing concern about increased opium cultivation in
Burma. She said that the UNODC report highlights the danger
that the situation in Burma poses to the international
community and in particular to Laos, which, as the statement
notes, has made tremendous progress in eradicating opium.


3. (C) Mr. Songkane replied that ASEAN remains "really
engaged" on Burma. The GOL, he said, has taken note of the
October 11 Security Council statement and will do whatever
possible, including engaging with UN Special Advisor Gambari,
to facilitate a solution. He told the Charge that Deputy
Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Thongloun had met with
Gambari on the afternoon of September 25 to discuss Burma.
At this meeting, Gambari asked Thongloun to intervene with
the Burmese government to allow him to visit. DPM Thongloun
subsequently met with the Burmese Foreign Minister, and "as a
result, Gambari was able to visit."


4. (C) Mr. Songkane said that, after the Singaporean
Foreign Minister issued the ASEAN ministerial statement, the
Prime Minister of Singapore called Lao Prime Minister
Bouasone Bouphavanh to discuss the issue. The two, he said,
will discuss the issue again at the ASEAN summit. Regarding
the current situation in Burma, Mr. Songkane said that "we
have seen some positive improvement," with no more violence.
He noted that the Burmese government had designated a
minister to talk with Aung San Suu Kyi. The GOL, he said,
hopes that all parties will resolve their differences.


5. (C) The Charge asked there are any bilateral meetings
with Burma scheduled. Mr. Songkane said that the two
countries have an annual joint commission meeting, which it
is Laos's turn to host. Burma's Foreign Minister will lead
the delegation. Mr. Songkane is not sure when this meeting
will take place. (Note: The Bangkok-based British
Ambassador, who presented his credentials in Vientiane on
October 11, told the Charge on October 10 that he believes,
based on discussions with MFA, that the meeting will take
place before the November 20-21 Francophonie summit. End
note.) Mr. Songkane said that Laos will have a number of
other opportunities to discuss Burma bilaterally with other
ASEAN countries, including during an upcoming visit by the
Indonesian Foreign Minister.


6. (C) Like other Lao officials (ref A),Mr. Songkane
dismissed reports that relatives of Burmese dictator Than
Shwe had come to Vientiane following the demonstrations as

VIENTIANE 00000767 002 OF 002


baseless rumors.


7. (SBU) With regard to the new ASEAN charter, Mr. Songkane
said that it will change the way ASEAN makes decisions, will
give legal weight to ASEAN decisions, and will make ASEAN a
more effective body. He noted that Laos will host a task
force meeting on the ASEAN charter on October 17-21. Some
countries, he said, will send Deputy Foreign Ministers, and
others will send Permanent Secretaries.


8. (C) Comment: There was a striking difference between
Mr. Songkane's attitude toward ASEAN engagement on Burma and
that of Mr. Seng, the Director General for the Asia Pacific
department (Ref A). Mr. Songkane, who said that he was right
outside the meeting room during the inter-ministerial meeting
that led to the ASEAN statement, displayed obvious enthusiasm
about Laos's engagement with ASEAN on Burma. He gave no
indication that the GOL felt that it had been strong-armed
into agreeing to the ministerial statement. Mr. Seng, by
contrast, emphasized ASEAN's non-interference policy and did
not bother to conceal his unhappiness about the statement.
Laos is highly unlikely to be a leader in ASEAN engagement on
Burma. However, if Mr. Songkane's characterization of the
GOL's attitude is accurate, the Lao do not appear inclined to
block further positive action and could even play a
constructive, if quiet, role. End comment.
MCGEEHAN