PM ASKS AMBASSADOR FOR HELP, BUT NO CLEAR PLAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CONAKRY 000306

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/20/2018
TAGS: PREL PGOV ELAB ASEC GV
SUBJECT: PM ASKS AMBASSADOR FOR HELP, BUT NO CLEAR PLAN

Classified By: A/DCM SHANNON CAZEAU FOR REASON 1.4 B AND D


1. (C) SUMMARY. During his second meeting with the
Ambassador, Guinea's new prime minister discussed the
country's current security situation and ongoing political
issues. He commented on the need to restore peace and
security, and was optimistic that the GoG would soon be able
to resolve the current problems with the military, the
police, the teachers, and Customs. He repeatedly asked for
financial assistance, but did not seem to have a clear plan
for what he wants to accomplish. Although he mentioned
elections several times, he did not seem to be all that
interested in them. END COMMENT.


2. (U) Ambassador Carter met with Prime Minister Ahmed
Tidiane Souare on June 19 to discuss Guinea's current
political situation. The A/DCM and a senior LES from USAID
accompanied the Ambassador. The Chief of Cabinet at the
Ministry of Energy, who is a close friend of Souare's, also
attended the meeting. This is the second time the Ambassador
has met with Souare since the PM was officially sworn in on
May 23.


3. (U) Referring to a June 18 public announcement made by
the Joint Chief of Staff, General Camara, apologizing for the
military's role in recent events, Ambassador Carter stressed
that such communication is critical, and commended the PM for
reaching out to the population. Souare thanked the
Ambassador and said he had directed the General to make the
announcement following a discussion with members of the
government.


4. (U) The Ambassador commented on the current political
situation, noting that the entire Guinean Government is
essentially blocked because everyone is waiting for the
appointment of the new cabinet. The PM said that the
political situation is complex with many things happening at
once. Noting the recent military mutiny, the teachers'
strike, problems with the police and Customs, and his own
appointment as destabilizing elements, Souare said that the
most important thing is to guarantee peace and security. He
assured the Ambassador that he is working to resolve these
issues as soon as possible.


5. (C) According to Souare, issues with the military are
almost completely resolved. He expressed deep concern over
the mutiny and Claude Pivi "Coplan," but said that the GoG
has a plan for dealing with him. On the police, the PM said
that all of the police officers who had been arrested had
already been released. He added that he expects the police
to return to work as early as Friday. With respect to
Customs, Souare said that everything has been resolved. He
also said that his cabinet would be announced before the
weekend.


6. (SBU) Souare said that the negotiations with teachers
were advancing positively, and that he expected resolution of
the remaining issues within the next few days. He said the
key problem is related to the 12,000 contractors who are
demanding permanent employment. Souare said the GoG plans to
offer a mechanism for testing and permanently employing
contractors, which should help bring the negotiations to a
close. (COMMENT. There may be as many as 30,000
contractors, according to union sources. END COMMENT).


7. (SBU) The Ambassador asked Souare how he plans to address
the budgetary issues related to the various promises being
made to different groups such as the military and the
teachers. Souare joked "I thought you were coming with a
check." The Ambassador laughed, but pointed out that the USG
is a major contributor to the IMF, the World Bank, and the
UN, which are effective mechanisms for assisting the Guinean
Government. He added that US bilateral assistance to Guinea
will always be managed through NGOs and that direct budget
support is not and will not be programmed. Souare repeated
this theme of needing a check several times throughout the
rest of the conversation. He did not offer any plan as to
how to address the budgetary issues.


8. (C) Although Souare mentioned elections several times
during the course of the conversation, he never talked about
them directly as a priority for his administration. Instead,
he appeared to characterize elections as something the
international community wants, and then linked them to his
own objectives. For example, he asked for assistance in
restoring security to the country, saying "if you want to
have elections, we must preserve government institutions; we
must have peace and security." Later, he brought up the
GoG's demand for assistance in meeting Guinea's food crisis,

CONAKRY 00000306 002 OF 002


saying "if you really want to have elections...you need to
help us resolve the food issues, which are catastrophic (in
the current political environment)."


9. (SBU) Regarding Guinea's food crisis, Souare said the
international community needs to look closely at Guinea's
plan and consider national needs. He emphasized that every
Guinean needs food assistance, not just those in select rural
groups. "Rice must also be distributed to Guinea's urban
populations", he said. The Ambassador said that Guinea's
food crisis is not a question of supply, but a problem of
price. He emphasized that there is plenty of food in Guinea,
but that people are having difficulty affording the price of
rice. The Ambassador stated that the WFP plan to support
600,000 vulnerable people in the rural areas was an excellent
one that had USG support. Souare pressed that the urban
centers (read Conakry only) needed assistance in order to
ensure social peace. On urban distribution, the Ambassador
said that the international community would still want the
GoG to identify vulnerable populations. He cautioned that it
would be very difficult, and potentially destabilizing
security wise, to try and distribute rice in Conakry. He did
not or could not define which population groups would need
assistance urban centers nor could he outline what type of
distribution system the GoG would use.


10. (SBU) Responding to a question about his pending
cabinet, Souare said that he realizes that his cabinet is the
GoG's largest ever, but that a large government is needed to
deal with what he characterized as the most complex situation
in Guinea's history. According to Souare, Guinea's current
problems started in 2007 when the government of consensus
decided to have only 18 ministries. He said that a true
government of consensus must include opportunities for all
sectors of society (i.e. unions, political parties, civil
society, youth, technocrats, etc.). Souare claimed that by
expanding government, he is in fact creating a broader
government of consensus. He stated that the new cabinet
would be annouced very soon, probably before the weekend.

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COMMENT
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11. (C) The meeting was cordial and open. The PM said all
the right things, but he came off as insincere. He appeared
to have been primed by his friend from the Ministry of Energy
(who had met with the Ambassador and A/DCM the previous day)
in that he said exactly what he thought the Embassy wanted to
hear. He seemed to have no interest in elections, but
because he knew that the USG is keenly interested in seeing
elections take place, he mentioned them frequently, but only
as a linkage to his own priorities. At the same time, Souare
did not seem to have any clear idea of what he wants to do.
He returned several times to budgetary issues, essentially
asking for a handout. The LES who attended the meeting, who
is a long-time friend of Souare's, was disappointed. He
commented "he was only looking for money; he had no big
picture plan." END COMMENT.
CARTER