LEBANON: JUMBLATT, WITH FELTMAN AND SHAPIRO,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIRUT 000283 SIPDIS DEPT FOR NEA/FO, NEA/ELA ALSO FOR IO ACTING A/S WARLICK P FOR DRUSSELL AND RRANGASWAMY USUN FOR WOLFF/GERMAIN/SCHEDLBAUER NSC FOR MCDERMOTT, SHAPIRO DOD/OSD FOR FOURNOY, KAHO, AND DALTON E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/09/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV PINR UNSC LE SY IR RS SUBJECT: LEBANON: JUMBLATT, WITH FELTMAN AND SHAPIRO, PUSHES MODERATION REF: BEIRUT 263 Classified By: Ambassador Michele J. Sison for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Druze leader Walid Jumblatt thanked visiting NEA Acting Assistant Secretary Jeffrey Feltman, NSC Senior Director for Middle East and North Africa Daniel Shapiro, and the Ambassador for continued U.S. support for Lebanon. Acting A/S Feltman reaffirmed the U.S. position that Lebanon's sovereignty and independence were non-negotiable and the U.S. was fully committed to the Special Tribunal for Lebanon. ¶2. (C) Jumblatt told his guests that "moderation" was most important to dissipate increased Sunni-Shia tensions. He was critical of his March 14 allies and members of the opposition for playing on sectarian worries, saying he was "not ready to go to war again." On Lebanese-Syrian relations, Jumblatt was optimistic that Syria would name its Ambassador to Lebanon in due time and suggested a full review of all bilateral treaties signed under the auspices of the Higher Syrian-Lebanese Council. MP Marwan Hamadeh, a close advisor to Jumblatt, affirmed that the March 14 coalition was not concerned by U.S.-Syria engagement. Jumblatt defended the role of President Sleiman and detailed his frustration with his allies for creating problems for the President in the cabinet and parliament. Following his recent trip to Moscow, Jumblatt reported that Russia expected also a new dialogue with the U.S. vis-a-vis Iran. End summary. ¶3. (SBU) Druze leader and prominent March 14 coalition member Walid Jumblatt hosted a dinner on March 6 in honor of visiting Acting A/S Feltman at his Beirut residence in Clemenceau. Minister of State Wael Abu Faour, MPs Marwan Hamadeh and Faisal Sayegh, and Duraid Yaghi, Vice President of Jumblatt,s Progressive Socialist Party, attended also. Acting A/S Feltman, NSC Senior Director Shapiro, and the Ambassador were accompanied by visiting NEA Staff Assistant, DCM, Pol/Econ Chief, and senior Political LES. JUMBLATT PREACHES MODERATION AND AVOIDING SUNNI-SHIA TENSION -------------- ¶4. (C) Jumblatt stressed to Acting A/S Feltman the need for Lebanon's religious confessions to avoid friction, especially between Sunni and Shia. He said majority leader Saad Hariri and the March 14 coalition should engage positively with Hizballah's March 8 alliance, rather than exacerbate disagreements. Raising his tone, Jumblatt said, "I am fed up with mosques," referring to Saad Hariri's visit to the Bekaa valley to attend Friday prayers earlier in the day, a rare trip outside of Beirut for Hariri that attracted attention. Jumblatt was adamant that Hariri did not need to prove his leadership of the Sunni community in Lebanon. Jumblatt criticized also Hizballah SYG Hassan Nasrallah,s recent remarks in which he hinted that he had acquired anti-aircraft missiles. Jumblatt called the declaration tantamount to inviting Israel to carry out military attacks against Lebanon. ¶5. (C) Reiterating his call for calm, Jumblatt strongly opposed steps that, he was concerned, might drag the country into another civil war and said he would stress calm and moderation. He said, nervously, "I am not ready to go to war again. We were there in the past and we achieved nothing." JUMBLATT ON LEBANESE- SYRIAN RELATIONS; U.S.- SYRIA ENGAGEMENT -------------- ¶6. (C) Jumblatt praised the U.S. for its support to Lebanon over the past four years, especially with the establishment BEIRUT 00000283 002 OF 002 of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) and support of Lebanon to establish diplomatic relations with Syria. Jumblatt was not concerned by Syria's delay in appointing a Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon, saying, "One day or another they will appoint one." He believed, however, that if the current majority won the June 7 parliamentary elections, it should press for a review of all bilateral agreements signed between Lebanon and Syria under the Higher Syrian-Lebanese Council. MP Marwan Hamadeh went a step further and called for the Council to be abolished because believed the Council's SYG, Nasri Khoury, was acting as the ambassador for both countries and "this should not continue indefinitely," Hamadeh said. (Note: The new Lebanese Ambassador to Syria, Michel Khoury, is expected to take up his position in Damascus in the next few weeks. To date, Syria has not named an Ambassador to Lebanon. End note.) ¶7. (C) MP Marwan Hamadeh said March 14 was not concerned by U.S.-Syria engagement. He called the March 1 launch of the STL the "tangible message" of non-negotiable U.S. support for Lebanon. Furthermore, he expressed confidence that the Council of Ministers (the cabinet) would reach an agreement over a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Special Tribunal and the GOL for the duration of the STL, as proposed by Justice Minister Ibrahim Najjar on February 26 (reftel). However, Hamadeh cautioned that U.S.-Syrian engagement could be exploited by opposition Christian leader Michel Aoun who would attempt show the Christian community that he was "right" about Syria all along. JUMBLATT DEFENDS THE ROLE OF THE PRESIDENT -------------- ¶8. (C) Jumblatt praised a proposal by March 14 representatives to delegate authority to President Sleiman to make necessary administrative nominations without cabinet approval during the March 2 session of the National Dialogue. (Note: To date, the cabinet has failed to name appointments to key positions such as the remaining judges to the Constitutional Court, the Director General of the Interior Ministry, Vice Governor of the Central Bank and others. The decision to grant authority to Sleiman could pave the way for compromise nominees to fill these positions without opposition. End note.) Jumblatt criticized Prime Minister Fouad Siniora as well as his March 14 allies for not passing a budget and for other legislative delays, which e said created problems for Sleiman with Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri. RUSSIA PREPARING MIDDLE EAST PEACE CONFERENCE -------------- ¶9. (C) In brief comments about his late February visit to Moscow, Jumblatt said he learned that Russia expected a new dialogue with the U.S. vis-a-vis Iran and was preparing to host a peace conference for the Middle East. ¶10. (U) NEA Acting A/S Jeffrey Feltman and NSC Senior Director Daniel Shapiro have cleared this message. SISON