GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER? PART II: QADHAFI

C O N F I D E N T I A L FREETOWN 000604

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR AF/FO, AF/W, AF/RSA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/29/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL LY SL
SUBJECT: GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER? PART II: QADHAFI

REF: FREETOWN 602

Classified By: Ambassador June Carter Perry for reasons 1/4 (b/d)


1. (C) Summary: Per reftel, on December 29 the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs confirmed that Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi
will visit Sierra Leone from December 30 through January 2.
Though his intentions have yet to be shared with the
Government of Sierra Leone (GoSL),officials believe the
purpose of his visit is to meet with Captain Moussa Camara,
leader of the Guinean junta. Qadhafi and his team are not
President Koroma's invited guests - the GoSL was apparently
informed in writing of the visit after Qadhafi's advance team
had already left Libya, though the two countries have a
cordial bilateral relationship. Given that GoSL
representatives have recently bemoaned the challenges of
being a tiny country, forced into supporting the interests of
those that are larger and more powerful, Qadhafi's arrival
with no warning and no statement of purpose is yet another
example of Sierra Leone's vulnerability to external pressure.
Acknowledging that they cannot deny Qadhafi, the GoSL is now
trying to assert its sovereignty by insisting that Qadhafi
meet Koroma in-person, and Camara's entourage leave their
weapons at the border. Beyond these measures, which can not
be enforced, Sierra Leone must sit back and play the role of
gracious, if somewhat unwilling, host. End Summary.

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UNINVITED BUT NOT WHOLLY UNWELCOME
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2. (C) At a December 29 meeting with the international
community, Foreign Minister Zainab Bangura confirmed BBC
reports that Libya is sending a delegation, including
Qadhafi, to Sierra Leone. According to Bangura, she received
a call on the morning of December 28, informing her of the
visit; a diplomatic note arrived four hours later announcing
it. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was also told that an
advance team of approximately 84 people was already enroute.
The GoSL held an emergency, internal meeting, and later met
with the Libyan advance team, but received no further
information about the purpose of the Qadhafi visit. The
unspoken understanding is that Sierra Leone is providing a
safe haven for a meeting between Qadhafi and Camara, which
will likely take place near the Guinean border in Kambia.


3. (C) Bangura inferred that Qadhafi's original intent was to
travel directly to Kambia, bypassing the capitol altogether.
He will now make a stopover in Freetown, at the GoSL's
insistence, to meet with Koroma. Besides getting a stronger
handle on Qadhafi's purpose for meeting Camara, Koroma will
likely also use the opportunity to press for further support
from the Libyan government.


4. (C) The GoSL is in regular contact with ECOWAS Executive
Secretary Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, and is expressing concerns
about Qadhafi engaging in parallel-track negotiations with
Camara. Even in the face of these concerns, the GoSL is
resignedly pragmatic about the situation, with Bangura saying
"if you say no to Qadhafi, you create an enemy." That same
resignation applies to putting control measures on the
arrangements; while every Libyan gun brought into the country
to protect Qadhafi will be registered, and Camara told that
his delegation must leave their arms at the border, Sierra
Leone is virtually powerless to enforce this for fear of
alienating current and potential allies. The Sierra Leoneans
are well-aware that they have no control over the
proceedings, and are focusing on battles they can win, such
as pushing for the bilateral meeting between the Libyan
leader and their own.

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COMMENT
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5. (C) Sierra Leone is in an unenviable geographic position
relative to Guinea, making it the ideal place for those
interested in bilateral discussions with Camara to visit.
Despite the security risk this poses to Sierra Leone,
allowing a coup leader to enter their territory knowing that
violence could very well follow him, the GoSL had no
opportunity to say no to hosting a Guinean-Libyan summit and
has no power to insist on a change of venue, inclusion in the
discussions, or even having the content of those discussions
shared with them after the fact. This is likely frustrating
for a country trying to evolve into a regional leader - had
Libya requested that Sierra Leone broker a discussion with
Camara, the summit would represent an opportunity for Sierra
Leone to push its own agenda while promoting itself as a
political and diplomatic leader. End Comment.
PERRY