NEXT STEPS IN THE EU-CUBA POLITICAL DIALOGUE

C O N F I D E N T I A L HAVANA 000756 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 15/09/2013 TAGS: PHUM EAID PREL EU CU SUBJECT: NEXT STEPS IN THE EU-CUBA POLITICAL DIALOGUE Classified By: Chief of Mission Jonathan Farrar for Reasons 1.4 d, and b ¶1. (C) EC representative Javier Nino Perez told COM on September 15 that the GOC had accepted the EU request for a political dialogue following the EU's removal of sanctions on Cuba in June. The GOC response reportedly was contained in a diplomatic note filled with verbiage regarding intrusion into Cuba's internal affairs, but the bottom line was what the EU had sought. According to Perez, the EC will work hard to get the mechanics of the political dialogue in place before France passes the EU presidency to the Czech Republic in January 2009 (Cuba-Czech relations, especially on human rights, are frosty to say the least). ¶2. (C) Perez described the dialogue along the lines of what we have heard before from the Spanish ambassador and other EU representatives keenly interested in closer relations with the GOC. Human rights are only one element of the dialogue, which also will cover other issues more palatable to the GOC. At the same time, the EC is moving ahead to gain GOC agreement to resume assistance projects to Cuba. Perez said preliminary discussions are underway but that progress would be slow. He did not expect agreement before the end of the year, noting that Spain had decided to provide assistance in 2007 yet still was working out the details. COM asked if assistance programs could include areas in which the EU had said it would focus in June 2009 in evaluating Cuba's progress on human rights. Perez said no, that such areas were too sensitive, and he expected the EC to begin with cooperation in cultural, environmental, and other less-sensitive fields. The EC also has no funds budgeted for Cuba programs, so initial projects would be small. ¶3. (C) COM asked Perez how he anticipated the EU would be able in June 2009 to evaluate whether the GOC had made substantial progress on human rights if the dialogue were just getting underway, and the EU had a nascent assistance program de-linked from human rights. Perez said that a decision on what constitutes the "substantial progress" cited by the EU last June would be a subjective one, and that, "we will know it when we see it." ¶4. (C) COM Comment: If a dialogue gets underway, we anticipate great pressure within the EU to declare the dialogue a success in June 2009. The bar for judging success may be as low as the existence of the dialogue alone. We will need to work here and in EU capitals to encourage some rigor in the EU's evaluation process and coordination with what others in the international community seek in regard to advancements in human rights in Cuba. End Comment. FARRAR