GREENTREE AGREEMENT FOLLOW-UP MEETING: PROGRESS IN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 GENEVA 001092 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PBTS PREF SMIG KDEM PINR CM NI SUBJECT: GREENTREE AGREEMENT FOLLOW-UP MEETING: PROGRESS IN IMPLEMENTING AUGUST 14 BAKASSI PENINSULA TRANSFER REF: GENEVA 537 ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: In a December 15 meeting in Geneva of the Follow-up Committee on Implementation of the Greentree Agreement, Cameroon and Nigeria agreed that things were going smoothly with the transfer of authority on the Bakassi Peninsula. Cameroon noted its effort systematically to catalogue the citizenship of the peninsula's residents. Both sides saw the need to strengthen security on the peninsula, not only bilaterally but perhaps through the Gulf of Guinea Commission; Follow-up Committee Chair Prendergast also floated other ideas for cooperation, including possibly through the U.S. military's African Command. Though the session ended on a generally positive note, it left unresolved whether UN observer missions could be deployed anywhere in the Bakassi Peninsula, as Nigeria proposed, or only in the transfer zone, as Cameroon favored. This caused the only bit of tension in the session's otherwise positive atmosphere, although the Nigerian delegation head's comments at various points elicited doubts about his level of preparedness for the meeting. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (U) The Follow-up Committee, which had last met in Geneva in July (reftel),began on a positive note, with its Chair, Kieran Prendergast, praising all involved, including the witness states. (Representatives of the four witness states -- the U.S., UK, France and Germany -- attended.) He reiterated the UN SyG's continued commitment to remain engaged until successful completion of the Greentree Agreement's implementation, adding at the session's conclusion that he hoped a future session of the Committee could take place in New York so that the SyG could personally express his appreciation to all involved. The Cameroon delegation head, Minister Delegate in the Justice Ministry Maurice Kamto, praised all the parties, singling out Nigeria's cooperation. Kamto said the GoC would meet all its obligations in the transitory period. The Nigeria delegation head, Attorney General Michael Aondoakaa, also praised all the involved parties and said his government had heard no complaints from the Nigerian population on the peninsula. IDENTIFYING THE PENINSULA'S POPULATION -------------- ¶3. (SBU) The generally smooth implementation of the Agreement had resulted in an influx of Nigerians to the Bakassi 
Peninsula, Kamto noted. Cameroon was committed to allowing ethnic Nigerians living there to choose Cameroonian or Nigerian citizenship, he continud. His government was conducting a survey of thse residing on and returning to the peninsula, bth to determine which citizenship they had chosen and to facilitate resolution of controversies that might arise over land ownership, particularly involving those who had previously fled the area but were now returning. Aondoakaa briefly created some confusion when he said that the peninsula was now Cameroonian territory so that all those residing on it would become Cameroonian citizens; he then shifted his position, saying that ethnic Nigerians on the peninsula could retain their Nigerian citizenship but would have to respect Cameroonian laws. SECURITY ISSUES -------------- ¶4. (U) Both sides agreed the post-August 14 transfer had raised new security challenges, requiring renewed efforts to GENEVA 00001092 002 OF 002 step up security arrangements. Aondoakaa focused on bilateral cooperation. Kamto pointed to three levels of possible cooperation: bilaterally between heads of state, where things were proceeding well; bilaterally between security forces, including on information exchanges, where more might be done; and multilaterally, perhaps through the Gulf of Guinea Commission. Prendergast welcomed the commitment to expanded bilateral security cooperation, argued that using the Gulf of Guinea Commission might prove useful, and noted that other avenues for cooperation and assistance should be explored, including the U.S. military's African Command. OBSERVER MISSIONS -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Kamto argued that because work on the peninsula's future had entered into a new phase following the August 14 transfer of authority, it was important to discuss the future role of UN observer missions. He posited that such missions could only occur in the zone that had been transferred to Cameroonian authority, not to the peninsula as a whole. After initially agreeing with this, Aondoakaa reversed course, saying that the missions could be deployed throughout the peninsula. Kamto countered that Nigeria could request access to the entire peninsula, but would need to do so by a request made through diplomatic channels; UN observer missions were not the vehicle for this. With Prendergast and the Cameroonian delegation obviously perplexed, Aondoakaa backed off somewhat, saying that his view resulted from a loose interpretation of the Greentree Agreement, and said that the differences between the two sides on the issue were fairly minor, with little practical significance. The session ended in some confusion, with Prendergast saying he would try to resolve the issue with the two delegations privately. COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Because of the disagreement over the observer missions' area of responsibility, the session ended on a less positive note than had prevailed until then. Nonetheless, the session appears to have advanced the process of implementing the Greentree Agreement. Our impression, shared by the representatives of some of the other witness states, was that the Nigerian delegation -- and particularly their delegation head, Aondoakaa -- did not come as well prepared as the Cameroonian delegation, which resulted in some hitches. TICHENOR