NORWEGIANS HESITANT TO COMMIT ON PAKISTAN DONORS'

C O N F I D E N T I A L OSLO 000666


FOR SCA/PB

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/12/2018
TAGS: EAID ECON EFIN NO
SUBJECT: NORWEGIANS HESITANT TO COMMIT ON PAKISTAN DONORS'
CONFERENCE

REF: STATE 129615

Classified By: Political Counselor Kristen Bauer for reasons 1.4(b) and (d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: The head of the Pakistan/Afghanistan section
of the Norwegian MFA, a former ambassador to Pakistan, was
unwilling to commit at this stage to high-level Norwegian
participation or any promise of money for the Pakistan
donors' conference we are proposing for January. Post
believes that the Norwegians might be willing to participate
and pledge, but that would require a higher political
decision on their part. This cable catalogues, therefore,
the Norwegian government's initial concerns about a
conference, but these issues may not ultimately be
dispositive. End Summary.


2. (C) Poloff spoke to Amb. Janis Kanavin, head of the
Pakistan/Afghanistan section of the MFA to discuss the
donors' conference. Kanavin had heard about the possibility
of the conference, and was initially cautious. He believed
the conference was tied to the Friends of Pakistan (FOP)
group, and said that many members were unsure of the
expectations and role of the FOP and how this conference fit
into the picture. After poloff explained that in effect the
IMF requirements were the impetus and that this was not an
FOP initiative, Kanavin remained cautious about Norway's
possible contribution and explained the reasons for his
caution.


3. (C) Kanavin said that he did not know what resources
Norway would have available to pledge to Pakistan over and
above money already committed to the Afghanistan effort. "We
tend to read the US engagement in Pakistan as springing from
its interest in resolving Afghanistan, and part of our
preoccupation at the moment will be what the US
administration will ask of us on that front," he said.


4. (C) The thinking in Oslo, Kanavin said, is that Norway
might want to coordinate its aid and FOP role in the
Pakistan/Afghanistan region with other Nordic countries.
Kanavin was especially interested in the role of
international organizations, including the World Bank, in
formulating the plan of action for what to do with the $4
billion of donor money.


5. (C) Kanavin said that the timing is extremely difficult,
and it would be hard to be arranging anything with Norwegian
authorities between now and the new year due to the Christmas
season. Therefore, pulling together a concrete proposal
before an early-to-mid January decision would be difficult.


6. (C) Comment: While Kanavin is the highest official in the
MFA dealing specifically with countries in the region, our
sense is that a significant pledge for Pakistan, and even
high-level attendance at the conference, will be a sensitive
political decision from the Norwegian administration. We
have made the MFA aware of the reasoning behind the
conference, and would welcome any further information from
Washington on the substance, in order to help the Norwegians
come to a decision. End comment.


WHITNEY