EU/GERMANY/BLAIR MISSION/U.S. INFORMAL MEETING ON

C O N F I D E N T I A L LONDON 000949 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/26/2018 TAGS: PREL MEPP KPAL UK SUBJECT: EU/GERMANY/BLAIR MISSION/U.S. INFORMAL MEETING ON SUPPORT FOR PALESTINE, MARCH 26, 2008 Classified By: PolMinCouns Maura Connelly, reasons 1.4 b, d ¶1. (C) Summary. The international community's efforts to support the Palestinian Authority through security sector reform, justice sector capacity building, and targeted project assistance need to be better integrated to achieve demonstrable results, representatives of the EU, Germany, the U.S. and the Office of Quartet Representative Tony Blair agreed March 26 at an informal meeting in London. EU, German and U.S. representatives updated participants on the status of projects they are sponsoring in these sectors. Tony Blair, who attended part of the meeting, proposed that he, along with Palestinian PM Salam Fayyad and Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, announce a broad package of confidence building measures (CBMs) at the time of the May 2 Ad Hoc Liaison Committee meeting in London. This package would provide concrete benchmarks on which to judge Palestinian and Israeli progress, as well as specific CBMs for Jenin, where the international community would focus the bulk of its development efforts. It would also build toward a conference on Palestinian Security Sector Reform scheduled for June 24 in Berlin. On Gaza, Blair said the situation threatens to wreck current efforts at peace and development, and proposed reopening the border under PA control to restore the flow of goods. End summary. ¶2. (SBU) Representatives of the EU, Germany, the U.S., and the Office of Quartet Representative (OQR) Tony Blair, met at the OQR office in London March 26 to discuss the current state of international efforts to support the Palestinian authority. NEA A/S David Welch led the delegation, accompanied by Deputy Legal Adviser Jonathan Schwartz, Assistant Legal Adviser Linda Jacobson, NSC Legal Adviser David Sullivan, and an Embassy London poloff. EU Middle East Special Envoy Marc Otte and Rosemary Davis attended for the EU. MFA Director General for Near and Middle Eastern Affairs and the Magreb Andreas Michaelis represented Germany. OQR Chief of Staff Nick Banner and staff member Rebecca Guthrie represented Blair's office; Blair himself attended part of the meeting. Need for an Integrated Plan -------------- ¶3. (C) The international community now has an opportunity to fit security sector reform into the larger package of three �0A;tracks, A/S Welch said. The first track is the political negotiations in which the U.S. has the leading oversight role; second are Israeli and Palestinian actions on the ground, where, despite good intentions, there is not a lot of progress and where a concerted strategy with respect to Israel is needed; and third is the international community's role in support, A/S Welch said. The lack of demonstrable results on the ground is contributing to downward momentum and hindering further donations, especially from Arab governments. The U.S. will revise its integrated plan, looking at the situation on the ground. Once the decision is made to focus on a particular site, likely to be Jenin, project support, security efforts, and Israeli cooperation will be needed. ¶4. (C) Marc Otte and Andreas Michaelis agreed with the need for better integration of efforts. Otte noted the idea of an integrated plan, "State-building for Peace in the MidEast," had been adopted in November 2007. He updated meeting participants on the EU-POLCOPPS program, noting that its mission has expanded to include training for judges and prison governors. EU-POLCOPPS is working well on the ground, including with the U.S. Security Coordinator (USSC) mission, Otte said. On the other hand, the efforts of EU member states need closer coordination within the EU. Based on a recently-completed inventory of both the Palestinian security and prison systems, the EU is looking for 100 million euros over three years in donations from EU member states for security-related projects, and 50 million euros in prison reform projects. ¶5. (C) Michaelis described German planning on a security sector reform conference scheduled for June 24 in Berlin. At the conference, Germany's aim is to roll out a well-balanced package of measures for prison and judicial reform targeted at the second half of 2008, Michaelis said. Experts are holding a pre-meeting in the region on April 4 with Palestinian and Israeli experts, and will hold a second pre-meeting in Berlin about two weeks before the conference itself. Germany will be asking the U.S., OQR, UK and EU to press possible donors for contributions in the month leading up to the conference, Michaelis said. ¶6. (C) Banner said the key was integration on the ground of all elements. Jenin presents an opportunity to show we can rapidly move pieces into place, after which we can move onto the wider institution plan. Fund raising needs should be factored into any integrated plan that emerges, he said. Packaging Development Assistance -------------- ¶7. (C) A/S Welch updated participants on the desire to help sustain security improvements by providing economic assistance in areas where security forces are being deployed. The first NSF battalion will graduate from its training program at the Joint International Police Training Center (JIPTIC) in Jordan in May and will subsequently be deployed to Jenin. The USG will therefore concentrate its economic assistance efforts on Jenin, Welch said. Michaelis described a German industrial park project near Jenin that would complement these efforts. Assistant Legal Adviser Jacobson briefed participants on USSC activities. ¶8. (C) Tony Blair proposed that he, along with Palestinian PM Salam Fayyad and Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak, announce a broad package of confidence building measures (CBMs) at the time of the May 2 Ad Hoc Liaison Committee meeting in London. The package has to make an impact, and should signal a significant shift in Israeli attitudes toward Palestinian state-building, Blair said. He argued that monitoring Phase I of the Road Map was impossible at this point; this package, on the other hand, would provide concrete benchmarks on which to judge Palestinian and Israeli progress. It would also build toward the June 24 conference in Berlin. Blair agreed that achieving demonstrable results in Palestine would make it easier to get more funding, especially from Arab governments, who are not currently convinced that their donations are worthwhile. He agreed with Israel that Jenin is preferable to Hebron because of the settler issues in Hebron and the security capability of the Palestinians. Gaza -------------- ¶9. (C) The situation in Gaza cannot remain as it is, Blair said. The Israeli government doesn't want to go back in, but fears domestic pressure and events on the ground will make this inevitable. The Israelis therefore are in the market for a new idea, Blair said. Blair suggested the opening of crossings under PA control to resume the flow of goods. Otherwise Gaza could capsize all other efforts. How we resolve Gaza will be very important for Arab donors, he said. Also, the Israelis and Palestinians have to agree on a communications strategy. Blair said that Barak is looking for ways change his position on the issue. Otte said Olmert had also confided in him that the situation cannot remain as it is. Otte suggested that projects in Gaza could be identified that would directly affect the lives of ordinary people in Gaza, such as the sanitation plant. Blair noted that a constituency for progress in Gaza would need to be developed. Next Steps -------------- ¶10. (C) Participants agreed on the following next steps: -- the U.S. will update a current draft paper on Palestinian security, clearly listing what is needed from both the Israelis and Palestinians for the success of development projects in Jenin, with the aim of providing clear guidance to potential donors on financial support requirements. -- OQR will produce a draft list of CBMs to be announced o/a the AHLC. -- OQR will produce a paper with proposals on presentation of these steps, including how best to ensure and demonstrate buy-in from both the Israelis and Palestinians, within the broader context of the political track. ¶11. (U) A/S Welch has cleared this cable. Visit London's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/london/index. cfm Tuttle