MOROCCAN MFA OFFICIAL CITES RISK OF UNDERMINING

C O N F I D E N T I A L RABAT 000272 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT PLEASE PASS TO NEA/MAG E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/28/2018 TAGS: PREL AL LE MO SUBJECT: MOROCCAN MFA OFFICIAL CITES RISK OF UNDERMINING THE ARAB SUMMIT. Classified By: Classified by Polcouns Craig Karp for reasons 1.4 (b) an d (d) ¶1. (C) A senior MFA official told Polcouns March 26 that Morocco was still uncertain about its attendance at the Arab Summit and that this would be discussed by Foreign Minister Fassi Fihri, at that time enroute to Damascus, with his peers. Reminded of USG concerns about attendance at the summit, and sympathetic with our point of view regarding Syrian behavior in general, and specifically in Lebanon, he shared his strictly personal view that a boycott could cause more problems than it solved. ¶2. (C) Our interlocutor recalled that Arab summits have only been an annual affair since 2002. Before that they were often many years in scheduling for both political and practical reasons. Now they have been in some way routinized and rotated on an alphabetically-determined annual schedule. He believed that a truly successful boycott now could have positive short term effects, specifically on pressuring the Syrians on Lebanon. However, he ventured that the longer-term consequences would be negative, in terms of destroying the tradition of the regular summit. Who could prevent then a major boycott of the next Summit for a strictly Arab political reason, or the next? This could have serious consequences, even for Lebanon, given the League's current and potential role there. Even more important, it could give naysayers the precedent to avoid a League meeting that could be the format for Arab endorsement of a potential Middle East peace settlement. ¶3. (C) Comment: This view of the broader regional issue is forwarded as providing an interesting perspective, different from what the Moroccans might say in a more formal response. Our contact, who insisted on anonymity, may nonetheless have been trying to justify a potentially higher-profile Moroccan presence in Damascus than what one would expect as a result of the more customary GOM logic of following the Saudis. Regardless, we will press them to say the right things on Lebanon in Damascus. End Comment. ***************************************** Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/rabat ***************************************** Riley