UNAMI DIBS TALKS TREAD WATER, NEW NEGOTIATORS

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 001683 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/24/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV PINS IZ SUBJECT: UNAMI DIBS TALKS TREAD WATER, NEW NEGOTIATORS APPOINTED REF: A. BAGHDAD 1595 ¶B. BAGHDAD 1531 ¶C. BAGHDAD 1222 Classified By: Political Counselor John Fox for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) . ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Iraqi and Kurdish delegations met again this week on June 23 as part of the UNAMI-led High Level Task Force (HLTF) to discuss Disputed Internal Boundaries (DIBs) in northern Iraq. No substantive progress was made this week. UNAMI proposed that the negotiations should include discussions of power sharing in Ninewa as well as on specific disputed territories in the DIBs areas. Expected shifts in negotiating personnel for both the Government of Iraq (GOI) and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) will now bring people closer to the centers power on each side to the table. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) UNAMI Acting Special Representative of the Secretary General (A/SRSG) Andrew Gilmour told emboffs that while both GOI and KRG negotiators met at the HLTF meeting this week, no substantive progress was made. Neither Mohammed Ihsan (representing KRG) nor Safa Al Din Al Safi (representing GOI) attended this week's HLTF meeting on Tuesday, June 23. Ihsan sent a text message to UNAMI at 1445 on Tuesday, sending his regrets that he could not attend due to "the death of his uncle." Al Safi was absent because of ministerial responsibilities (he is acting Trade Minister). Gilmour continued the discussion with Farouk Abdallah (representing GOI) and Khalid Schwani (KRG). ¶3. (C) While the proposed agenda for this week was not addressed (beginning negotiations on disputed territories Aqre and others, refs A and B),Gilmour stated he would like to add a discussion of Ninewa power sharing to the agenda in order to address the potential threat of instability due to reverberations of the events of May 8 (ref C). ¶4. (C) UNAMI (PROTECT) has achieved an agreement from the GOI and KRG to remove perceived hard liners from the respective HLTF teams and to replace them with individuals more closely tied to PM Maliki and President Barzani. Going forward, Safa Al Din Al Safi and Mohammed will likely withdraw from the GOI and KRG sides respectively, to be replace by Sadiq Rikabi (GOI) and Rowsch Schways (KRG). Both sides agreed to meet again next week, Tuesday, June 30, to continue the negotiations. COMMENT -------------- ¶5. (C) UNAMI noticeably played down expectations for the HLTF with us today. The approaching KRG and national GOI elections, along with the renewed effort by KRG to hold a referendum on a regional constitution (septel),will limit both sides' ability and inclination to negotiate seriously. But, the introduction of two senior representatives to the HLTF could improve its prospects for tackling DIBs issues and having a real exchange of views that reflects the perspectives of PM Maliki and President Barzani. FORD