VIETNAM EXPRESSES SUPPORT FOR SOMALIA PKO, BUT MUST

UNCLAS HANOI 001409 SENSITIVE SIPDIS FOR IO/PSC(KHAMBATTA),AF/E (GAREY),EAP/MLS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL UNSC KPKO PHSA SO VM SUBJECT: VIETNAM EXPRESSES SUPPORT FOR SOMALIA PKO, BUT MUST CONSIDER SPECIFICS REF: STATE 134229 ¶1. (SBU) On December 30, Deputy PolCouns met with Ngo Thi Xuan Ha of the MFA's International Organizations Division to urge Vietnam to support the U.S.-sponsored resolution authorizing a peacekeeping operation for Somalia. Building on an earlier conversation between the Ambassador and VFM Pham Binh Minh, DPolCouns stressed, per reftel, that failure to authorize the PKO would leave a dangerous security vacuum, undo much of the political progress achieved in recent months, and have serious negative consequences for the humanitarian situation. He emphasized that the current draft accommodates the concerns of the Secretary General and P5 members France, England, and Russia, which had earlier voiced reservations. ¶2. (SBU) Ms. Ha promised to pass along the substance of the demarche, along with the resolution's text, to her superiors. She affirmed that Vietnam strongly supports the peace process in Somalia, including proposals by the Secretary General to strengthen AMISOM and "re-hat" it under the UN. At the same time, Ha said that the situation in Somalia is "delicate," particularly with the December 29 resignation of the President of Somalia's Transitional Federal Government. In determining whether to support the U.S.-sponsored UNISOM resolution in its current form, Vietnam must consider whether the specific terms of the resolution best support the Secretary General's aims. MICHALAK