NETHERLANDS: PRIORITIES FOR DOHA FINANCING FOR

UNCLAS THE HAGUE 000975 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID ECON UNGA NL SUBJECT: NETHERLANDS: PRIORITIES FOR DOHA FINANCING FOR DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE REF: STATE 122053 SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED; PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY. ¶1. (SBU) EconOff shared reftel points November 19 with officials at the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Finance, and Economic Affairs involved with the Monterrey Consensus on Financing for Development (FfD). Gerben Planting, the Foreign Ministry's Deputy Head of the UN and International Financial Institutions Department, described the Dutch government's priorities heading into the Doha conference: -- Reaffirm concrete international commitments to development spending. -- Support additional financing for international climate policy. -- Promote sufficient "policy space" for lower income countries, meaning giving them a greater say in the international financial system. -- On a systemic level, support "fair representation" for developing countries at the World Bank institutions and World Trade Organization. -- Support the fight against tax evasion and illicit financial flows. ¶2. (U) Minister for Development Cooperation Bert Koenders will represent the Netherlands at the Doha conference. Planting said that Koenders will also attend the G-20 meeting on November 28 and that he will probably accept the invitation to the USAID-organized side event "Financing Agriculture in a Global Financial Crisis" on November 29. ¶3. (U) Embassy action officer for FfD issues is Benjamin Canavan, Economic Officer (e-mail: canavanbc@state.gov; phone: 31 (0)70 310 2270). FOSTER