DEMARCHE REQUEST: UNSCR ON ANNAPOLIS PROCESS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 STATE 130963 SENSITIVE SIPDIS ACTION ADDRESSEES PLEASE PASS TO FRONT OFFICE AT OOB SUNDAY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KWBG PGOV PREL UNSC SUBJECT: DEMARCHE REQUEST: UNSCR ON ANNAPOLIS PROCESS ¶1. (U) NIACT precedence required for Sunday action at addressee posts. -------------- Summary -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The Secretary requests that Ambassadors or charges demarche Foreign Ministers at the earliest opportunity to press for support for a UN Security Council Resolution on the Annapolis process and ask that the current draft language not be amended. Posts should emphasize that the current text is an affirmative resolution that will sustain momentum in the negotiations and establish a strategic context within which they can continue toward the establishment of a Palestinian state and the end of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Posts should impress upon host governments that any amendments to the current language will likely prevent a resolution from being passed. Please see para. 9 for the text of the resolution as of December ¶13. End summary. -------------- Background -------------- ¶3. (SBU) The current text has been agreed between the USG and Russia and was shared with the other members of the P5 on December 12. It was distributed to the remaining members of the Security Council on December ¶13. USUN has requested a ministerial-level meeting of the Council on December 16, which the Secretary will attend, in order to vote on the resolution. A meeting of the Quartet is scheduled for December 15. ¶4. (SBU) The current draft is written to enshrine the principles of the Annapolis process and reflect the understandings that the Israeli-Palestinian negotiators outlined to the Middle East Quartet on November 9 in Sharm El Sheikh: the need for continuous, uninterrupted, direct, bilateral negotiations; the principle that nothing would be agreed until everything is agreed; and the need to reach a comprehensive agreement addressing all the issues. ¶5. (SBU) In consultations in New York, the Indonesian and Libyan representatives have been supportive of the U.S.-Russian draft. It is imperative that the current draft language remain positive, affirmative, and forward-looking and that new elements critical of either party not be added. Posts in non-Security Council member countries are asked to urge broad Arab support for the current resolution, which takes note, among other things, of the Arab Peace Initiative. -------------- STATE 00130963 002 OF 004 Points -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Department suggests that the demarche be based on the following points: -- The Annapolis Conference established a framework for negotiating a final resolution to the conflict: Determined, professional negotiations between the parties; consistent yet constructive international engagement; and a vigorous effort to improve conditions on the ground. -- In their unprecedented November 9 briefing for the Quartet, Israeli and Palestinian negotiators re-affirmed their commitment to ongoing, bilateral negotiations that address all the core issues and their goal of reaching a comprehensive agreement. -- The United States is committed to the irreversibility of the bilateral negotiations and to the substantial progress made to date toward lasting peace in the region. -- An affirmative UN Security Council Resolution at this juncture will solidify these commitments and understandings, re-enforce the irreversibility of the process, and set the strategic context for the negotiations to continue toward the establishment of a Palestinian state and an end to the conflict. -- The current language is consistent with previous landmark resolutions-242, 338, 1397, and 1515-in that it outlines the principles for successful negotiations and a lasting peace. -- The resolution is not written as a detailed evaluation of the parties' actions or their adherence to the Roadmap. The December 15 Quartet meeting, not the Security Council, is the appropriate venue for this discussion, and a statement will be issued from this meeting. -- Instead, the resolution establishes the basis for continued negotiations going forward and for comprehensive peace, taking note of the importance of the Arab Peace Initiative. -- It is imperative that no attempts be made to insert language into the current text, which will likely prevent the passage of this historic resolution. -- Failure to pass a resolution at this critical juncture would be a tremendous setback to the negotiations. For Tripoli: -- Following a request from Ambassador Aujali, please convey these points as a direct message from Secretary Rice. STATE 00130963 003 OF 004 -------------- Reporting Deadline -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Post should report the results of the demarche as soon as possible. ¶8. (SBU) Please contact NEA/IPA's Payton Knopf or IO/UNP's Andy Morrison for any additional background or assistance. -------------- Text -------------- ¶9. (SBU) The following is the text of the resolution as of December 13: (Begin text) The Security Council, Recalling all its previous relevant resolutions, in particular resolutions 242, 338, 1397, and 1515 and the Madrid principles, Reiterating its vision of a region where two democratic States, Israel and Palestine, live side by side in peace within secure and recognized borders, Welcoming the November 9, 2008 statement from the Quartet and the Israeli-Palestinian Joint Understanding announced at the November 2007 Annapolis Conference, including in relation to implementation of the Performance-Based Roadmap to a Permanent Two-State Solution to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Noting also that lasting peace can only be based on an enduring commitment to mutual recognition, freedom from violence, incitement, and terror, and the two-state solution, building upon previous agreements and obligations, Noting the importance of the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, Encouraging the Quartet's ongoing work to support the parties' in their efforts to achieve a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in the Middle East, ¶1. Declares its support for the negotiations initiated at Annapolis, Maryland on November 27, 2007 and its commitment to the irreversibility of the bilateral negotiations; ¶2. Supports the parties' agreed principles for the bilateral negotiating process and their determined efforts to reach their goal of concluding a peace treaty resolving all outstanding issues, including all core issues, without exception, which confirm the seriousness of the Annapolis process; STATE 00130963 004 OF 004 ¶3. Calls on both parties to fulfill their obligations under the Performance-Based Roadmap, as stated in their Annapolis Joint Understanding, and refrain from any steps that could undermine confidence or prejudice the outcome of negotiations; ¶4. Calls on all States and international organizations to contribute to an atmosphere conducive to negotiations and to support the Palestinian government that is committed to the Quartet principles and the Arab Peace Initiative and respects the commitments of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, to assist in the development of the Palestinian economy, to maximize the resources available to the Palestinian Authority, and to contribute to the Palestinian institution-building program in preparation for statehood; ¶5. Urges an intensification of diplomatic efforts to foster in parallel with progress in the bilateral process mutual recognition and peaceful coexistence between all states in the region in the context of achieving a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in the Middle East; ¶6. Welcomes the Quartet's consideration, in consultation with the parties, of an international meeting in Moscow in 2009; and, ¶7. Decides to remain seized of the matter. (End text) ¶10. (U) Tripoli minimize considered. RICE