Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08CAIRO1991
2008-09-10 15:24:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Cairo
Cable title:  

SEPTEMBER 8-9 ARAB LEAGUE MINISTERIAL FOCUSES ON

Tags:  PREL KPAL LE IS IZ SY MR XF SU EG 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO9810
OO RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHKUK RUEHROV
DE RUEHEG #1991/01 2541524
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 101524Z SEP 08
FM AMEMBASSY CAIRO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0438
INFO RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHAN/AMEMBASSY ANTANANARIVO IMMEDIATE 0029
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI IMMEDIATE 0393
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV IMMEDIATE 1772
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 CAIRO 001991 

SIPDIS

FOR NEA FO, NEA/ELA, NEA/IPA, NEA/RA AND AF

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/10/2018
TAGS: PREL KPAL LE IS IZ SY MR XF SU EG
SUBJECT: SEPTEMBER 8-9 ARAB LEAGUE MINISTERIAL FOCUSES ON
DIMMING HOPES FOR AN ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN SETTLEMENT

REF: CAIRO 1965

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

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 CAIRO 001991

SIPDIS

FOR NEA FO, NEA/ELA, NEA/IPA, NEA/RA AND AF

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/10/2018
TAGS: PREL KPAL LE IS IZ SY MR XF SU EG
SUBJECT: SEPTEMBER 8-9 ARAB LEAGUE MINISTERIAL FOCUSES ON
DIMMING HOPES FOR AN ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN SETTLEMENT

REF: CAIRO 1965

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


1. (C) Summary: Arab League (AL) Chief of Staff Hisham
Youssef briefed the diplomatic corps September 10 on the
September 8-9 Arab League Ministerial, stressing that the
discussions focused on pessimistic assessments of progress on
the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. According to Youssef,
Palestinian Authority (PA) President Abbas briefed the AL
closed-door session on what he termed as the unlikely
prospects for a breakthrough in the direct negotiations.
Abbas said the PA would continue negotiating, but would not
accept a "partial" settlement in place of a final status
agreement, based on the pre-June 5 1967 borders. Abbas told
the meeting he is open to continued discussions with Hamas on
national reconciliation. Youssef told us privately September
9 that a Saudi proposal for a possible UNSC meeting on
settlements is "almost a threat," indicating Arab impatience
with continued settlements. Youssef also confided that AL
SYG Moussa is furious with the Palestinians for their lack of
unity. MFA Cabinet Advisor Mahmoud Affifi told us September
10 that Abbas expressed concern over FM Livni's position on
the right of return, in light of her possibly becoming the
next prime minister. Affifi said the Syrians and Lebanese
reached compromise language in the communique on border
security and the Harriri tribunal. AL states agreed on
improvements in Iraq. Affifi noted AL members believe an ICC
arrest warrant for Sudanese President Bashir would have
extremely negative consequences, and that the African Union
commissioner plans travel to Mauritania to broker a
compromise to release the former president from jail. End
summary.

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


2. (C) We attended Arab League (AL) Chief of Staff Hisham
Youssef's September 10 briefing to the diplomatic corps on
the September 8-9 AL Ministerial. According to Youssef,

Israeli-Palestinian issues dominated discussions, and Arab
states expressed doubt that a peace process breakthrough
could occur before the end of the year. Palestinian
Authority President Abbas attended the closed-door session,
and submitted a report on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
that painted a "gloomy" picture of the current situation, due
to lack of progress from the direct bilateral negotiations
and an absence of on the ground improvements in the West Bank
and Gaza. Youssef said that the discussion on
Israeli-Palestinian issues was characterized by consensus
among all AL members that the possibility of achieving a
breakthrough in the negotiations to achieve a final
settlement by the end of 2008 is becoming increasingly slim.
Abbas said that the PA is willing to continue negotiating
with the Israelis, but would not accept a "partial or
transitional" peace agreement. Abbas criticized Israeli
suggestions of a territorial swap where the GOI would retain
sections of the West Bank in exchange for land within
pre-1967 Israel as "unfair," and therefore unacceptable to
the PA. Abbas emphasized to the meeting that the PA is
committed to a final settlement on the basis of the pre-June
5, 1967 borders.


3. (C) Abbas told the meeting he was "open" to continuing
discussions with Hamas on national reconciliation. Youssef
briefed that some AL members called for the Hamas-Fatah
conflict to be resolved under an "Arab umbrella," rather than
through mediation by individual states. Some AL members
suggested that Abbas convene an interim Palestinian
government comprised of technocrats that would administer
daily affairs until general elections could be held as soon
as possible. AL members agreed on the necessity of
reunifying the West Bank and Gaza under the rule of a single,
unified Palestinian government. The session discussed taking
unspecified measures against those Palestinian factions that
oppose national reconciliation, but no agreement was reached
on steps forward. AL members also discussed deploying an
Arab peacekeeping force to Gaza, but acknowledged the
complexity and difficulty inherrent in such a policy. In
general, Youssef said, members believe "time is running out"
on Palestine, but agreed to discuss the issue again in
November. AL members also worried that a new American
administration would be "pre-occupied" with domestic and
other international problems and would not focus sufficiently
on the peace process.


CAIRO 00001991 002 OF 003



4. (C) Youssef told us privately September 9 that AL
Secretary-General Amr Moussa is furious with the Palestinians
for their lack of unity, which he believes is contributing to
undermining the possibility of any progress. Regarding a
Saudi proposal to hold a UN Security Council meeting at the
foreign minister level on Israeli settlements, possibly at
UNGA, Youssef said this should be seen as "almost a threat,
indicating that "our (the AL's) patience has run out." MFA
Cabinet Advisor Mahmoud Affifi told us September 10 that the
suggestion of a UNSC ministerial on settlements originated
from AL SYG Moussa, reflecting his frustration with the
international community's inability to take action to prevent
continued settlement building.


5. (C) Affifi also said that during the during the
closed-door session, Abbas criticized the Israelis for
failing to make pragmatic decisions on how to achieve
progress. According to Affifi, Abbas noted his perception
that Israeli Prime Minister Olmert's debilitating political
problems had played a major role in undermining the direct
negotiations. Affifi told us Abbas speculated that if FM
Tzipi Livni becomes Prime Minister, she could pose particular
problems for the Palestinians because of what Abbas termed as
her inflexible position on the right of Palestinian return to
pre-1967 Israel. Affifi said that during the session the
Jordanians urged an AL approach to UNESCO in response to
increased Israeli digging "around the Al-Aqsa mosque," which
the GOJ believes is having a detrimental effect on the
Jordanian Waqf in Jerusalem.

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


6. (C) Youssef briefed the diplomatic corps that AL members
agreed the situation in Iraq was improving. Youssef
privately re-confirmed to us his September 4 commitment
(reftel) that the Arab League plans to send an ambassador to
Iraq October 3 after Ramadan. Affifi commented to us that
discussion of Iraq was "not extensive" due to the increased
stability there.

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


7. (C) Affifi told us that Syria raised concerns regarding
Lebanese-suggested language for the communique that the Arab
League would support action on the Harriri Tribunal "at an
early stage." According to Affifi, Syria and Lebanon reached
compromise language that deleted any reference to a
timetable. Affifi said that Syria also expressed its
concerns over language in the communique referring to
security on the Lebanese-Syrian border. In the end, Affifi
said, the two sides agreed on compromise language.

--------------
Sudan
--------------


8. (C) Youssef briefed the diplomatic corps that AL members
noted that an arrest warrant issued for Sudanese President
Omar al-Bashir would have "extremely negative" consequences.
Affifi said that the Sudanese government proposed a
resolution to the AL Foreign Minister's committee to
establish a dialogue between the government and
representatives from Darfur under the auspices of the
Government of Qatar. The Sudanese government appealed for
the Arab League to work with the African Union to defuse the
tensions created by the International Criminal Court's
indictment of Bashir. Privately, Youssef said that the goal
of the Doha meeting would be to gather all Sudanese
opposition groups together with GOS representatives to hammer
out a comprehensive peace deal, "along the lines of what we
tried to do in Sirte, Libya (in 2007),but failed." Youssef
added that Egypt and Saudi Arabia, along with the AL and
African Union, would play key roles under the aegis of the
Qataris, and that he hoped arrangements for the conference
would be finalized within one week.

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


9. (C) Affifi said that the African Union Peace and Security
Commissioner, Ramadan Al-Amamra, committed to travelling to
Mauritania in the next 3-4 days to begin a dialogue with coup

CAIRO 00001991 003 OF 003


leaders aimed at a compromise on releasing the former
president from jail. We will report more septel on the AL
discussions on Sudan and Mauritania following conversations
with another AL official next week.

--------------
Somalia
--------------


10. (C) Youssef confided to us September 9 his personal view
that the tribal fragmentation in Somalia makes a resolution
to the current conflict almost impossible.
SCOBEY