USAU: AU PSC TO CONSIDER SANCTIONS AGAINST

C O N F I D E N T I A L ADDIS ABABA 003398 SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/FO, AF/W, AND AF/RSA E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/19/2018 TAGS: PREL PGOV MR AU SUBJECT: USAU: AU PSC TO CONSIDER SANCTIONS AGAINST MAURITANIA REF: STATE 132307 Classified By: AMBASSADOR JOHN A. SIMON, REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D). ¶1. (C) On December 19, USAU Ambassador met with AU Commissioner for Peace and Security (PSC) Ramtane Lamamra and delivered reftel points on Mauritania. The Mauritanian situation will be on the Peace and Security Council Ministerial Meeting agenda on December 22. In the meeting with Lamamra, Ambassador urged the Commissioner to seek concrete measures against the junta, particularly sanctions that target coup leaders. He said this would not only send a message to the leaders of the coup, but also to France and the EU, both of which have wavered in recent weeks. Lamamra was generally receptive to the points. ¶2. (C) After agreeing with Ambassador substantively, Lamamra said, &I hope you are talking to our members,8 referring to AU member-states that sit on the PSC. He apparently thinks a vote for concrete measures could be close. In the PSC, most decisions are reached by consensus, and in the rare cases when there is a vote, a two-thirds majority is necessary to take a substantive action. ¶3. (C) In terms of what measures Lamamra will propose at the Ministerial Meeting, he first mentioned the seizing of the UNSC with the matter. He said giving the Mauritanian seat at February's AU Summit to the legitimate President may ultimately need to be decided by the AU heads of state, but the PSC might recommend doing so. Ambassador pressed Lamamra on the need for measures that targeted individuals, and Lamamra agreed that they are important, but he remained non-committal on whether the PSC would impose such measures. Clearly, having PSC members, particularly ministers, ready to push on these items will be key. YAMAMOTO