LEBANON: SINIORA FOCUSED ON SHEBAA FARMS AND NAHR

C O N F I D E N T I A L BEIRUT 000847 SIPDIS DEPT FOR NEA/FO, NEA/ELA, PM/FO, PRM/FO-WITTEN NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/YERGER/GAVITO DOD FOR OSD USDP EDELMAN, ASD LONG, DASD KIMMITT E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/30/2018 TAGS: MARR MCAP PTER PINR PREF IR UNSC LE SUBJECT: LEBANON: SINIORA FOCUSED ON SHEBAA FARMS AND NAHR AL-BARID RECONSTRUCTION WITH USDP EDELMAN REF: BEIRUT 00812 Classified By: CDA Michele J. Sison for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) In a May 31 meeting with Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Eric Edelman, Prime Minister-designate Fouad Siniora was frank, blunt,and used strident language about the need to focs on a solution for Shebaa Farms. Siniora said hat he has raised this issue with high-level USG officials for three years, but the time has come for action. "You can either help us or maintain the status quo, which means continued violence and instability for Lebanon. We have suffered enough already." ¶2. (C) Saying he preferred to leave details on future USG military support to Acting Defense Minister Elias Murr, Siniora kept circling back to Lebanon's macro-issues. He said he was in the process of querying the international community to determine who are "the true friends of Lebanon." He spoke at length about the need for concrete donor pledges at the upcoming conference for Nahr Al-Barid (NAB) reconstruction, to be held in Vienna June 23. "I need a success because I gave my word to the Palestinians. The refugee camps are ticking time bombs in Lebanon which keep 'hatching' new extremist groups." ¶3. (C) Finally, Siniora indicated his wish to focus on border security issues, which he said he cares deeply about but has neglected during the political turmoil of the last few months. He may have commented on this because German FM Steinmeier was due in Lebanon the following day and several international donors have complained about Germany's management of the current border control pilot project on Lebanon's northern border with Syria. End Summary. Moving Forward After Doha -------------- ¶4. (C) Prime Minister Siniora confirmed that he has been quite busy focusing on selection of the new cabinet. He has met with the various political groups and consultations will continue. "This is a new model for Lebanon," Siniora said. "Now the president has a specific role to play and will be held accountable for his actions and those of his 'inner circle.' This is good, though. This is democracy." ¶5. (C) He said that negotiating the Doha Agreement had been useful in "sorting out a number of issues." Siniora said Lebanon now has a president, strong language condemning the use of Hizballah weapons, and international agreement that the Lebanese state needs to have sole control over military and security matters. On the down side, March 14 had conceded on a point it had long opposed, giving the opposition a one-third blocking minority of the seats in the new cabinet. ¶6. (C) Siniora said the Lebanese people want to move forward towards a peaceful and democratic future. The parliamentary elections in 2009 will be a key way to ensure that political progress continues "at the ballot box and not at gun point." A key priority for the new government, according to Siniora, will be to reshape the public's perception of the state. "The state must be viewed as the protector of the people -- no organization should be allowed to compete with that image." Continued U.S. Support for Lebanese National Institutions -------------- ¶7. (C) USDP Edelman said his mission in Beirut was to explore concrete ways in which the USG could support Lebanese national institutions. He informed PM Siniora that Lebanon is the second largest recipient, per capita, of U.S. military assistance in the region. USDP Edelman reiterated the USG's respect and admiration for Siniora and his government, saying that the hardships they have faced in the last few years have been noted by many in Washington. ¶8. (C) USDP Edelman said the President Sleiman's inauguration speech had been well received in the U.S. With the election of President Sleiman, Assistant Secretary of Defense Mary Beth Long will now lead the effort to establish a formal U.S.-Lebanon Bilateral Defense Committee (BDC) to examine Lebanon's strategic military planning process. (Note: This initiative had been placed on hold while there was a presidential vacuum. End Note.) ¶9. (C) USDP Edelman also informed Siniora that he would explore the possibility of 1207 funding to expand support for the Internal Security Forces (ISF) so that the ISF could become a more effective partner for the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and shoulder difficult domestic security issues. Siniora expressed appreciation for this last item, saying the LAF could not be expected to do everything on its own. "It is not possible and if they fail, the country will lose respect for the LAF. We need to keep them in reserve as our 'big stick' against our enemies." U.S. Must Act on Shebaa Farms -------------- ¶10. (C) Siniora argued that recent political downturns can be linked directly to the Shebaa Farms issue. "There are five entities which combine to do harm to Lebanon: Israel, Syria, Iran, Hizballah, and the United States. This is 45 square kilometers of barren land which is not benefiting Israel, but continues to do great harm to my country. It is used as an excuse by extremists who want to destroy Lebanon's moderate character. It is the cause of years of instability." ¶11. (C) Despite attempts to steer the conversation back to defense-related topics, Siniora persisted. "This is the real problem -- there is nothing more important to discuss. Please convey this message to President Bush, although I have raised this issue in every conversation I have ever had with him and Secretary Rice. The time has come for action -- not friendly statements or checks. I want frankness and clarity rather than diplomatic assurances. We are being left as hostages to Iran and Syria. You can either decide to be part of the solution or not. If a solution cannot be found, Syria will return to Lebanon, Iran will become the dominant power in the region, and we will be overrun by fundamentalists and extremists as bad as Osama bin Laden." "The Camps are Ticking Time Bombs" -------------- ¶12. (C) Turning to the issue of Palestinians in Lebanon, Siniora said he had spent three years trying to find solutions to enable the refugees to lead dignified lives. "But I cannot make up for the wrongs done to them decades ago." ¶13. (C) Siniora said that he had worked hard to gain the trust of the Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon. He personally met with a variety of Palestinian leaders within 24 hours of the beginning of summer 2007 fighting in Nahr al-Barid (NAB). Sternly, he told them they could trust the government and maintain calm in the other camps in Lebanon or the LAF would take control. "It took less than 15 minutes to convince them that I was serious." ¶14. (C) Siniora spoke of the need for generous international donor support at the June 23 conference for Nahr al-Barid reconstruction to be held in Vienna. "The rubble and ruins of this camp, a year after the hostilities broke out, is a real weakness for us. Various political opponents, both Palestinian and Lebanese, are using this against the government." ¶15. (C) The time has come to rebuild NAB, according to Siniora. "I need help to complete this task and I need the U.S. to play a direct and indirect role in marshaling international support and contributions for this cause." Siniora believes that successful reconstruction of the camp will defeat extremist propaganda and show the refugees that they will be dealt with fairly. "They are watching very carefully. Right now, the camps are ticking time bombs. I cannot afford a failure. We either do something proactively now, or they will continue to 'hatch' terrorist franchises. On the other hand, a rebuilt camp under the sovereign control of the Lebanese government could serve as a model for a new level of security and social cooperation." Back to Border Security -------------- ¶16. (C) Siniora ended the meeting by saying that he wanted to spend some time to carefully consider border security programs again, as it is an issue he cares deeply about. He said that he had had high hopes for the German-led Northern Border Pilot Project (NBPP),hoping it would truly serve as a pilot for expanded programs throughout the country. ¶17. (C) German Foreign Minister Steinmeier was due to meet with Siniora the following day (June 1) and the future of the NBPP was likely on the agenda. Perhaps referring to the longstanding concerns of the U.S. and other donors to the NBPP about the German-led effort (reftel),Siniora said, "You can decide what you want to do and I won't be angry. But if you promise to help me, I expect you to keep your word." The Charge informed Siniora that the USG was continuing to explore a variety of options for border security cooperation. Comment -------------- ¶18. (C) Siniora is often blunt in his manner, and he displayed this trait on May 31, noting, "you say you will help, but when Lebanese troops were dying in NAB, you had us filling out forms to figure out who would pay for the bullets. We have done more to confront extremism than any other Lebanese government and you should remember that!" Under Secretary Edelman responded that although the U.S. was sometimes frustratng to deal with as a supplier, the U.S. provided ammunition and equipment (especially .50 caliber sniper rifles) which had been critical to the LAF's success at NAB. Siniora grumpily conceded the point. ¶19. USDP Edelman, ASD Long, CENTCOM J-5 Allardice, CDA Sison, DATT, and Emboff joined the meeting in Siniora's office. The PM's senior advisor, Mohammed Chatah, and niece/advisor, Roula Nouruddine, also joined. ¶20. (U) USDP Edelman has cleared this cable. SISON