DEMARCHE DELIVERED IN PREPARATION FOR THE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 001965

SIPDIS

FOR NEA FO, NEA/ELA AND NEA/RA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/07/2028
TAGS: PREL LE IS KPAL IAEA IZ SY MR XF
SUBJECT: DEMARCHE DELIVERED IN PREPARATION FOR THE
SEPTEMBER 8-9 ARAB LEAGUE MINISTERIAL MEETING

REF: A. STATE 93939

B. CAIRO 1940

Classified By: ECPO Mincouns William Stewart per 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: On September 4, we delivered ref A points to
Arab League (AL) Chief of Staff Hisham Youssef and separately
to GOE MFA Cabinet Advisor Mahmoud Affifi. On
Israeli-Palestinian issues, Youssef called for more progress
on the ground and criticized the lack of an Israeli
settlement freeze. He asked if the U.S. did not want to
invite the Arab League to the upcoming Quartet Ad-Hoc Liaison
Committee (AHLC) meeting in New York. Affifi urged increased
U.S. pressure on the two sides to move them toward a final
status agreement. On Iraq, Youssef said that the new AL
ambassador would take up residence in Baghdad October 3.
Affifi said the GOE is still studying whether to re-open an
embassy in Baghdad. Youssef anticipated that the Lebanese
internal dialogue would address the issue of Hizballah's
weapons, and that the AL ministerial would discuss the
Lebanese-Syrian border. Affifi expected that the AL
ministerial would not discuss the specifics of the Lebanese
dialogue, and said the GOE is encouraging reconciliation
among Lebanese parties. Youssef asserted that condemning the
coup in Mauritania would not be the most effective way to
prevent further deterioration. Affifi believed that
condemnation would not be on the table. Both Youssef and
Affifi rejected reconsidering Arab League support for Syria's
IAEA Board of Governors candidacy. End summary.

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Israeli-Palestinian Issues
--------------


2. (C) In response to ref A points, Youssef said that the
Arab League (AL) does not see the negotiations between
Israeli Prime Minister Olmert and Palestinian Authority (PA)
President Abbas on core issues as a "positive development"
because there is not enough evidence of progress on the
ground since Annapolis. He stressed that the AL views
Israeli settlements as a key obstacle to successful final
status negotiations, and wants to see a settlement freeze.
He also criticized what the AL perceives as Israel's
insufficient prisoner releases and Israel's continued
roadblocks and checkpoints in the West Bank. He said that
the AL is looking for the two sides to achieve some of kind
of momentum before the end of the current U.S. administration
so that the next administration will be able to engage
immediately. Youssef confirmed that aid to the Palestinian
Authority (PA) will be on the AL ministerial agenda, and that
the AL is waiting for a specific request from the PA.


3. (C) Youssef noted that the Arab League has not yet
received an invitation to the next Quartet Ad-Hoc Liaison
Committee (AHLC) meeting in New York. He told us that the
Arab League has checked with the UN, EU and Russia, and that
none of them have a problem with the Arab League attending.
Youssef wondered if perhaps the U.S. does not want the Arab
League to attend. If this is the case, he said, the AL would
be not be pleased and would say publicly that the U.S.
prevented the AL from attending. He asked for clarification,
which we agreed to provide.


4. (C) MFA Cabinet Advisor Affifi said that Egypt is
committed to principled support for Israeli-Palestinian peace
negotiations, but the GOE has not seen tangible progress
resulting from the talks. He noted that the GOE wants the
U.S. to exert increased pressure on the parties, especially
the Israelis, to move the discussions forward toward a final
status agreement. Affifi cited lack of improvement on the
ground for several months, a politically weakened Prime
Minister Olmert and a deeply divided Palestinian body politic
as factors that the GOE fears could cause an "explosion" in
the future. He called for a specific timetable for achieving
a final settlement and a Palestinian state.

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Iraq
--------------


5. (C) Youssef confirmed that an Arab League ambassador would
take up residence in Baghdad October 3. He noted that the AL
ministerial would discuss the issue of opening Arab embassies
in Baghdad, but asserted that Arab engagement should go
beyond this to advance cooperation in a variety of fields.
Youssef said that the Arab League is working to provide

CAIRO 00001965 002 OF 002


agricultural and industrial technical assistance to the
Government of Iraq. MFA Cabinet Advisor Affifi said that the
GOE needs more time before making a decision on re-opening an
embassy in Iraq following an MFA security assessment team's
August visit to Baghdad in August (ref B). He stressed that
the GOE is closely following political and security
developments in Iraq, including which Arab countries are
opening new embassies in Baghdad.

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Lebanon
--------------


6. (C) Youssef said that the dialogue led by Lebanon's
President would address Hizballah's weapons, but cautioned
that progress would be slow due to unresolved issues such as
Shebaa Farms. We reiterated DAS Hale's comment (ref B) that
many expect Hizballah would find another pretext to remain
armed if Israel withdrew from Shebaa Farms. According to
Youssef, AL priorities are ensuring that the Lebanese
election process takes place in a secure environment, and
that political discussion continues in the face of a fragile
security environment. He believed that the AL ministerial
would address the issue of the Lebanese-Syrian border, and
said that the two countries began to discuss border security
during Lebanese President Soliman's recent visit to Syria.
Affifi said the GOE does not expect the AL ministers to
address specific issues regarding Lebanon's national
dialogue, but instead would make a general mention of Lebanon
in the concluding ministerial statement. He noted that the
GOE sees the recent formation of a Lebanese government and
appointment of a president as positive developments, and that
Egypt is encouraging all Lebanese parties to participate in
the national dialogue. According to Affifi, the GOE is
closely following the security situation in Tripoli, and is
working with all parties to defuse tensions before the
upcoming elections.

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Mauritania
--------------


7. (C) Youssef responded to ref A point, saying that
condemnation will not help the situation and that the Arab
League will apply pressure to prevent further deterioration.
He described Mauritania as divided and said that the Arab
League faces a delicate task in trying to achieve the
Mauritanian President's release. Affifi characterized an
Arab League condemnation of the coup as "unrealistic," and
not currently "on the table" for discussion, alhough he said
the AL "clearly does not welcome th coup." He said that
Mauritania, as an Arab coutry, would be highly sensitive to
a condemnation and that the AL would instead work toward a
staement urging the parties to establish security and
stability.

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IAEA
--------------


8. (C) Youssef rejected ref A point on reconsidering Arab
Leage support for Syria's candidacy for the IAEA Boardof
Governors (BOG). We pressed the issue, sayin that Syria's
behavior would make it an unqualifed candidate for the IAEA
BOG. Affifi also said that the AL would not reconsider
supporting Syrias candidacy because an Arab consensus had
been rached on Syria as the Arab candidate for the IAEA OG.
He noted there would be "no way to move awa from" the AL
position on this issue.
SCOBEY