HARARE: CONGRATULATORY MESSAGE TO THE PRESIDENT-ELECT

UNCLAS HARARE 001011 DEPT FOR S/ES-CR AND S/ES-O DEPT FOR AF/S - BWALCH E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPDC PREL OVIP ZI SUBJECT: HARARE: CONGRATULATORY MESSAGE TO THE PRESIDENT-ELECT ¶1. Following is the text of a congratulatory message from Robert Mugabe to the President-elect of the United States of America, Mr. Barack Obama. Under the terms of a yet-to-be-implemented power sharing agreement, Mugabe would continue to serve as the President of Zimbabwe. ¶2. BEGIN TEXT. Your Excellency On behalf of the Government and people of the Republic of Zimbabwe and indeed on my own behalf, I wish to extend our hearty congratulations on your election as the 44th President of the United States of America. Your election to the high office of the President of that great country is testimony to the confidence that the American people have in you. As the Government and people of Zimbabwe join you in celebrating this event in the history of the USA, I take this opportunity to assure you Mr President-elect that the Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe remains ready to engage your Government in any desirable endeavour to improve our bilateral relations. Mr President-elect, the challenges that now lie ahead of you are enormous and those of us in the small and developing countries cherish the hope of working with your new Administration as we pursue our programmes and policies to develop our societies in the global context of socio-economic interaction. I wish you personal good health, peace and prosperity to the people of the United States of America. Yours sincerely, R.G. Mugabe, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe. END TEXT. ¶3. The letter and accompanying Diplomatic Note from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Zimbabwe were received electronically at the U.S. Embassy Harare on Friday, November 7, ¶2008. If we receive a hard copy, we will forward it to S/ES-CR via the next outgoing diplomatic pouch. DHANANI