INDIAN FOREIGN SECRETARY TO CALL BURMESE

C O N F I D E N T I A L NEW DELHI 001279 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/11/2012 TAGS: EAID PREL BM IN SUBJECT: INDIAN FOREIGN SECRETARY TO CALL BURMESE GOVERNMENT TO ENCOURAGE ACCESS FOR AID REF: A. STATE 48651 ¶B. FEIGENBAUM-GHILDYAL E-MAIL 5/9/08 Classified By: Ambassador David C. Mulford for Reasons 1.4 (B, D) ¶1. (C) Ambassador called Foreign Secretary Menon on May 10 to follow up on the Secretary's call to Foreign Minister Mukherjee, and to urge India to use its influence with the Burmese government to allow"international aid to reach Cyclone Nargis disaster areas. Menon noted FM Mukherjee had promised the Secretary he would call FM Nyan Win, however the call had yet to take place due to difficulty reaching Nyan Win prior to Mukherjee's departure for South Africa. Mukherjee will try again to call Nyan Win from South Africa later on May 10. ¶2. (C) Menon said he has made arrangements for a call over the weekend to his counterpart and would relay U.S. concerns over the junta's unwillingness to allow aid workers and supplies into the affected areas. Menon posited that the Burmese government was initially intransigent due to pride, but now suffered from "regime fatigue" or stress stemming from coming to grips with the magnitude of the disaster. The Burmese government is difficult to reason with at this time, Menon said, defensive over how inadequate its response has been. ¶3. (C) Indian aid delivered to this point has gone either directly to the Burmese government or to local Red Cross workers, Menon stated. The Ambassador asked Menon for his thoughts on how the international effort could best be coordinated given that so few flights are being allowed in and that the Burmese government was demanding to control the distribution. He asked whether in principle India would be open to receiving U.S. aid materiel and delivering it on behalf of the U.S. to save time in dealing with Burma's rapidly worsening situation. Speaking hypothetically, Menon said that India would consider whether it could use the access it has to funnel U.S. aid, but, if it were to happen, before doing so would need to discuss the possibility with the Burmese government. MULFORD