ESTONIA: PLEDGING FOR AFGHANISTAN AT THE

UNCLAS TALLINN 000163 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR LAUREN FRESE SCA/A E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID ECON EFIN KDEM PGOV PREL EN SUBJECT: ESTONIA: PLEDGING FOR AFGHANISTAN AT THE PARIS CONFERENCE REF A: 08 STATE 44359 B: 06 TALLINN 51 C: 07 TALLINN 432 ¶1. (U) On April 29, we delivered points in ref A to Marje Luup, Estonian MFA Division Director for Development Cooperation. Luup told us the Government of Estonia (GOE) agrees with the USG suggestion to differentiate between old and new pledges at the Paris Conference. The GOE is planning to allocate a significantly larger sum of development assistance to Afghanistan this year. However, it is not prepared to release the exact amount at this time. (Note: GOE assistance to Afghanistan was USD 100,000 in 2006 and USD 120,000 in 2007. See reftels B and C.) ¶2. (U) The GOE also considers the election process to be an important step in the democratic development of Afghanistan and in 2007 donated funds through the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in the amount of USD 50,000 to aid in the census. Currently, the GOE is considering various options to continue its support of the elections process. ¶3. (U) The GOE is also calling upon its international partners to maintain their generosity when making financial pledges in Paris and to engage in a forward- looking analysis of the policies in Afghanistan. In particular, the GOE will stress the following points at the Paris Conference: --In order to strengthen the Afghan State, both the international community and the Afghans need to address the factors that undermine its legitimacy: corruption and insecurity, with narcotics being linked to both. The instrument to do this is the Afghanistan Compact; but it is urgent to focus on institutional reform and good governance, and to get results. In this context, the implementation of the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS) is important. --There is a need to strengthen the role of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in coordinating donors' civilian efforts. By working closely with the UNAMA, NATO and other key actors will improve the coordination within the international community and with the Government of Afghanistan. PHILLIPS