AMBASSADOR KHALILZAD'S FEB. 27 MEETING WITH UNGA

C O N F I D E N T I A L USUN NEW YORK 000231 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/13/2013 TAGS: UNGA PREL ECON CVIS AJ KV AIDS SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR KHALILZAD'S FEB. 27 MEETING WITH UNGA PRESIDENT KERIM REF: A. USUN 151 ¶B. KERIM'S JAN. 29 LETTER TO PRESIDENT BUSH Classified By: AMBASSADOR ZALMAY KHALILZAD FOR REASONS 1.4(b) AND (d). ¶1. (C) Summary: Kerim told Ambassador Khalilzad he hoped the First Lady could attend the General Assembly's June 10-11 high-level meeting on HIV/AIDS and said he hoped U.S. immigration restrictions on HIV-positive visitors would not prevent several invited speakers from attending. On UN management reform, he disagreed with critics who say mandate review is dead, but said he is angry at resistance from the UN Secretariat and the remedy for overcoming it is "constant political pressure." He predicted the first round of eliminations of outdated mandates would be announced by the end of March. The Ambassador said a projected 20-25 percent increase in the 2008-09 UN budget is unacceptable and urged Kerim and Secretary-General Ban to be attentive to the numbers. Apropos a proposed UNGA resolution on Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, Kerim said Serbian Foreign Minister Jeremic had spoken publicly about raising Kosovo in the General Assembly and he (Kerim) feared Azerbaijan's resolution might pave the way for this, which would be "a mess." The Ambassador agreed. The two also discussed UNGA debates on climate change and the Millennium Development Goals, and financing for the Durban Review Conference. End summary. CLIMATE CHANGE ¶2. (C) Kerim requested the meeting. He was accompanied by Chief of Staff Igor Dzundev and Dzundev's deputy, Nikolaus Lutterotti. Ambassador Khalilzad was accompanied by USUN Econ Minister-Counselor Hagen. The Ambassador asked if Kerim was pleased with the Feb. 11-13 high-level UNGA debate on climate change (ref A). Kerim said he was very happy with the large turnout (120 countries spoke),the quality of the panel discussions, and the respective contributions of New York Mayor Bloomberg (among other things, it helped improve the relationship between the UN and the city, said Kerim) and former New York Governor Pataki. The next step, he said, will be parallel UNGA debates on private investment in combating climate change, and the impact of climate change on the most vulnerable states. The Ambassador said he hoped the debates would not turn into a finger-pointing exercise or another version of the North-South debate. Kerim said he agreed and would not allow this to happen. The debate needs to look forward, not backward, he said. HIV/AIDS AND MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS ¶3. (U) The Ambassador conveyed regrets that due to a scheduling conflict the First Lady could not accept Kerim's invitation to attend the April 1-2 UNGA thematic debate on the MDGs (ref B). Kerim said he hoped instead she might be able to attend a high-level UNGA meeting on HIV/AIDS taking place June 10-11. ¶4. (U) Deputy Chief of Staff Lutterotti said Kerim had received letters from NGOs concerned about U.S. visas for HIV-positive speakers. Hagen said USUN had discussed this issue with visiting UNAIDS Director Piot and that UNAIDS and S/GAC were working together to resolve the problem. ¶4. (U) On the MDG debate in April, Kerim said the President of Mali, the Chancellor of Austria, and Ted Turner would be keynote speakers. He welcomed the participation of U.S. Director of Foreign Assistance Fore. Following the April event, Kerim and the Secretary-General would co-sign an invitation to heads of state and government to attend a follow-up MDG event during the opening of the next UNGA session in September. UN MANAGEMENT: MANDATE REVIEW, THE BUDGET, DURBAN ¶5. (C) Mentioning an April 8-9 UNGA debate on management reform, Kerim said he disagrees with critics who say UN mandate review is dead. "We are moving," he said, "and the United States is one of the driving forces." The Ambassador said the issue is the speed and efficiency with which the review is moving. There are too many meetings on the process and not enough action, he said, and he wondered about the wisdom of relying entirely on the Secretariat. Kerim said he agrees fully that there are those in the Secretariat adept at finding ways of avoiding taking any action on political decisions. For example, he said, he had posed a question on mandate review to the Secretariat and been told there was "no methodology" to answer it, which had made him very angry. The remedy for this is "constant political pressure," said Kerim. The Ambassador asked if there is a timeline for eliminating outdated mandates. Kerim said the first eliminations would be announced by the end of March. Mandate review moves slowly, said Kerim, calling it "a tanker, not a speedboat," but "it's doable, and it's a must." ¶6. (C) The Ambassador said there are indications that an increase of as much as 20-25 percent in the 2008-09 UN budget could be in the offing. "You and the Secretary-General need to be aware of these numbers as they become available," he said. The United States could live with an increase even as high as 10 percent, but 20-25 percent was unacceptable. He would convey the same message to the Secretary-General. Kerim urged the United States to raise the budget issue during the April 8-9 debate. The Ambassador also raised the issue of budget add-ons, saying they must not allowed to get out of control and a strong message from Kerim would be helpful in preventing this from happening. ¶7. (C) Kerim said he and the Secretary-General had discussed the budget, including the question of funding for the Durban Review Conference. The Ambassador asked if a further UNGA resolution is needed to authorize expenditures for the conference and its preparatory meetings. Kerim said the UN's Office of Legal Affairs has an official position on this question and he advised USUN to ask the UN Controller for it. (Comment: Referring to his letter of Feb. 6 to the PGA on this matter, the Ambassador is reiterating his request for confirmation that another resolution is necessary. End comment.) AZERBAIJAN AND KOSOVO ¶8. (C) Chief of Staff Dzundev mentioned the UNGA resolution on territorial integrity proposed by Azerbaijan. The Ambassador said USUN had told the Azeris the United States could not accept it in the form in which it was drafted. However, he told Kerim, the Armenians had said they could support it if it contained language saying the independence of Kosovo was no precedent. The Permanent Representative of Azerbaijan had urged the United States to raise the issue in Baku and the Ambassador told Kerim this would soon be done. Kerim said he feared other delegations might abuse such a resolution to raise the issue of Kosovo's independence in the General Assembly. This would be "a mess." The Ambassador agreed. Kerim said Serbian Foreign Minister Jeremic had told the press he would raise the issue of Kosovo in the General Assembly, "hence my fear." The Ambassador assured Kerim he understood. KHALILZAD