ARGENTINA: MORE SWIPES AT U.S., BUT LITTLE

C O N F I D E N T I A L BUENOS AIRES 001300

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/15/2018
TAGS: PREL SNAR KCRM VZ AR
SUBJECT: ARGENTINA: MORE SWIPES AT U.S., BUT LITTLE
TRACTION FOR GOVERNMENT

REF: BUENOS AIRES 1287

Classified By: Ambassador E. Anthony Wayne for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (SBU) Summary: Argentine Justice Minister Fernandez
stepped up his critique of the U.S. prosecution of Venezuelan
Franklin Duran amidst signs that pro-Kirchner activists are
also raising the volume against the USG. Even on increased
volume, however, the GOA is adding little to its already weak
defense as opposition politicians formally press for greater
transparency and investigation into what transpired in the
financing of Cristina Kirchner's presidential campaign. We
continue to work with our counterparts throughout the GOA
despite the distractions. Ambassador and Press Section have
continued to stress independence of U.S. judicial process and
the U.S. desire for good bilateral relations and our
investment in those relations. End Summary.


2. (C) Minister of Justice Anibal Fernandez maintained the
point for the Government of Argentina (GOA) September 15 in
questioning the integrity of the ongoing U.S. federal
prosecution of Venezuelan Franklin Duran in Miami. In a
radio interview, Fernandez said "everything about the trial
is irregular," belittling the professionalism of prosecutors
Thomas Mulvihill and Alexander Acosta and asserting their
prosecution of Duran was politically motivated, and again
complaining that the United States had not agreed to
extradite Antonini-Wilson (A-W) to Argentina. Along the same
lines, red, white, and blue posters appeared September 16
around Buenos Aires with the legend "Bush: Hand over the
fugitive Antonini Wilson." The posters bear the insignia of
the Kirchnerist "Movimiento Evita" led by prominent piquetero
Emilio Persico, who claimed on television talk shows
September 15 that the Miami trial was part and parcel of the
same alleged U.S. interventionism that sought to destabilize
regimes in Bolivia and Venezuela. (Note: Poster campaigns
like this one are widely assumed to be the handiwork of Casa
Rosada operatives.)


3. (C) There are other indications of support from official
quarters for a jeremiad against the United States. In the
September 15 edition of "El Argentino," a newspaper that
started production at Nestor Kirchner's behest in reaction to
what he considered the private media's anti-government bias,
a full-page article blames Bolivian unrest exclusively on the
United States. The author attributed the current situation
in Argentina's northern neighbor to what it called massive
CIA investments, a U.S. Ambassador who "specializes" in the
partition of countries, and U.S. cultivation of local
"fascists." Linkage of the Miami trial with Bolivian unrest
(i.e., in a coordinated USG "conspiracy" against "popular"
South American regimes) was also a central motif of the
anti-U.S. protesters who serenaded the Embassy for two hours
on September 12.

Argentine Judicial Inquiry Hears Ledesma
--------------


4. (U) Lawyer and former Argentine judge Guillermo Ledesma
testified on September 15 before investigating judge Daniel
Petrone that he was not sent to meet with A-W in Miami as a
representative of the Kirchners or to promise A-W immunity in
Argentina. He did confirm that A-W had told him the
valijagate suitcase belonged to former Highway Tolls
Commissioner Claudio Uberti, and that A-W had said he was at
the Casa Rosada presidential palace in Argentina two days
after his August 4, 2007, airport interception (a claim the
government continues to deny). Moreover, he said, A-W
claimed that Uberti and Planning Minister Julio de Vido had
assured him at Casa Rosada that they would take care of him.


5. (U) Judge Petrone told the press he had sent several
requests to both Venezuelan and U.S. counterparts. From
Venezuela, he said, he was awaiting information about the
roles of Venezuelan oil company PDVSA Vice President Diego
Uzcategui and his son Daniel Uzcategui. He had declared them
both in violation of a court order for not appearing before
his court and had requested an international arrest warrant
for their capture. He also was seeking information about
PDVSA finances that might be related to the USD 800,000.
From the United States, Petrone said he had requested
information on the actual U.S. currency involved in the
transaction, certified copies of the tape recordings and
transcripts being presented at the Miami trial, and A-W's
extradition to testify in Argentina.


6. (U) Also making news in Argentina are reports in newspaper
"Clarin" that A-W's lawyer Theresa Van Vleit has said her

client wishes to testify before Argentine authorities
investigating the case after the U.S. trial, either in
Argentina or the United States.

Opposition Requests Campaign Finance Investigations
-------------- --------------


7. (U) At least two formal requests for judicial inquiries
into the Kirchners' Victory Front campaign were put before
judges in Argentina on September 15. Attorney Ricardo Sans
asked electoral judge Maria Servini de Cubria to investigate
the possible receipt of illegal foreign financing for the
Cristina Kirchner campaign. Separately, Patricia Bullrich
and two other leaders of the opposition Civic Coalition
called for an investigation into A-W's meetings with Ledesma
and Franklin Duran in Miami as evidence of an effort by the
Kirchner government to cover up the source and destination of
the money.

Comment: Business, Not Quite as Usual
--------------


8. (C) Septel will report a constructive meeting September 15
(planned two weeks in advance) between Ambassador and
Minister of Defense Nilda Garre, suggesting that, at least to
this point, the GOA is not seeking to downgrade the bilateral
relationship even as some of its Cabinet members continue to
question the integrity of the Miami trial, allege political
motivations behind it, and criticize perceived delays in
extraditing A-W. The Ambassador also had a cordial meeting
September 17 with the pro-Kirchner Vice Governor of Buenos
Aires Province. The Americas Desk Officer at the MFA told
Pol Off on September 12 that their approach in the Office of
North American Affairs was to push forward with preparations
for the next round of bilateral consultations, November 12 in
Washington. Still, pro-Kirchner activists are giving
increasingly heated attention to alleged U.S. interference in
Bolivia and to the "politicized" trial in Miami, perhaps
using the government's current difficulties as an opportunity
to push it farther to the left. President Kirchner's
balancing act will become increasingly difficult, and the
accusations being leveled at her by the opposition and media
are again taking a political toll. Ambassador and Press
Section have continued to emphasize the independence of the
U.S. judicial system and the enormous investment the U.S. has
made since January to work productively with the government
of President Fernandez de Kirchner. End Comment.

WAYNE