DEMARCHE DELIVERED ON POLIO ERADICATION IN NIGERIA

UNCLAS MOSCOW 001823 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR OES/IHB E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: TBIO SOCI PGOV KOCI KISL NI RS SUBJECT: DEMARCHE DELIVERED ON POLIO ERADICATION IN NIGERIA REF: STATE 65054 SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY. ¶1. (SBU) On June 25, we passed reftel information on polio eradication and vaccination in Nigeria to Alexander Zakharov, Counselor and Director of the Bilateral Relations Section of the MFA's North America Department, and to Vasiliy Pospelov, Deputy Director of the MFA's Department for External Policy Planning. On June 26, we discussed with Zakharov U.S. efforts to encourage the Government of Nigeria (GON) to devote resources and high-level attention to polio eradication and vaccination efforts, and asked for Russia to reiterate this message with the GON. Zakharov said he would need to discuss the issue further with the MFA's Departments for Africa, International Organizations, and External Policy Planning, before the MFA would be in a position to react to the U.S. request that Russia weigh in with the GON on polio eradication and vaccination. RUSSELL