Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09BERLIN708
2009-06-12 16:45:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Berlin
Cable title:  

GERMAN VIEWS ON JUNE 15-16 EU GAERC MEETING

Tags:  PREL EUN XF CU AF PK ZL BM GM 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0001
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHRL #0708/01 1631645
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 121645Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4339
INFO RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS PRIORITY 0210
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY 0513
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 0638
RUEHGO/AMEMBASSY RANGOON PRIORITY 0041
RUEHVJ/AMEMBASSY SARAJEVO PRIORITY 0055
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV PRIORITY 0588
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0753
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 1034
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L BERLIN 000708 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/12/2019
TAGS: PREL EUN XF CU AF PK ZL BM GM
SUBJECT: GERMAN VIEWS ON JUNE 15-16 EU GAERC MEETING

REF: A. JUNE 4 GIAUQUE E-MAIL

B. STATE 60334

Classified By: POLITICAL MINISTER COUNSELOR JEFF RATHKE. REASONS: 1.4 (
B) AND (D).

C O N F I D E N T I A L BERLIN 000708

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/12/2019
TAGS: PREL EUN XF CU AF PK ZL BM GM
SUBJECT: GERMAN VIEWS ON JUNE 15-16 EU GAERC MEETING

REF: A. JUNE 4 GIAUQUE E-MAIL

B. STATE 60334

Classified By: POLITICAL MINISTER COUNSELOR JEFF RATHKE. REASONS: 1.4 (
B) AND (D).


1. (C) SUMMARY. Germany believes that the recent successful
elections in Lebanon, which appear to have been conducted
without undue Syrian influence, open the door to the signing
of the updated EU-Syria Association Agreement (AA),perhaps
as early as September. According to the German MFA, only the
UK and the Netherlands are opposed to moving ahead with the
AA, assuming that Syria does not interfere in the formation
of the new Lebanese government. While sharing U.S. concerns
about Syrian conduct, especially as revealed in the latest
IAEA report, Germany believes that the AA can be wielded to
encourage better behavior from Damascus. Germany says it is
"very disappointed" with the lack of progress on human rights
and democratization during the first year of the EU's
dialogue with Cuba, and that this will be reflected in the
Council conclusions. On Afghanistan/Pakistan, the EU is
expected to task High Rep Solana and the EU Commission to
make recommendations on how the EU can do more to contribute
to the stability of those two countries. On Bosnia, the
Council conclusions note the necessity of "completing" the
5-plus-2 agenda before transitioning to a reinforced EU
Special Representative, but hold out the hope that this is
"within reach in the months ahead." Regarding the expected
guilty verdict against Burma pro-democracy leader Suu Kyi,
Germany is not convinced that additional sanctions -- which
the UK is strongly pushing -- would be the right approach.
END SUMMARY.

DEMARCHE


2. (C) Post delivered ref A points on the June 15-16 EU
General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) to MFA
Deputy EU Correspondent Thomas Schieb on June 5 and followed
up with him on June 12 to get his reaction. We also
delivered the points separately to MFA Near East Division
Director Boris Ruge to reinforce our concerns on Syria.

MIDDLE EAST PEACE


3. (C) Schieb noted that the Council conclusions on this
agenda item had just been finalized at the COREPER on June

11, but that the Political and Security Committee (PSC) would
be prepared to amend them on June 15, just before the start
of the GAERC meeting, to take into account the speech that
Israeli PM Netanyahu is planning to give on Sunday. Schieb
said the conclusions mention the importance of the two-state
solution four separate times and specifically call on Israel
to "immediately end settlement activities" in the West Bank,
"including natural growth." The conclusions also call on
Arab states to increase their financial and political
assistance to the Palestinian Authority.


4. (C) Ruge confirmed that Germany agrees fully with the U.S.
points on Israeli-Palestinian Peace, including that on the
Quartet principles. He noted that Germany supports a
regional approach to the peace process and wants to explore
what contributions the EU can make toward this approach and
toward building the Palestinian Authority's peace and justice
institutions.

SYRIA


5. (C) Schieb said there would also be separate Council
conclusions congratulating Lebanon for its recent successful
elections. In light of the positive outcome and the apparent
lack of Syrian interference, Schieb said the updated EU-Syria
Association Agreement (AA) was likely to be signed in
September. He confirmed that Germany supported going forward
with the AA. Drawing on ref A points, we noted the remaining
serious issues with Syria and highlighted the conclusions of
the recent IAEA report, which indicates that Syria was
engaged in a clandestine effort to construct and operate a
nuclear reactor at Al Kibar (ref B). We expressed our hope
that Germany and the rest of the EU would condition their
engagement with Syria on concrete action by Damascus. Schieb
conceded that the revelations in the IAEA report were very
worrying, but said Germany did not favor adding new specific
pre-conditions for proceeding with the AA. Schieb said that
Germany viewed the AA as a "political tool" to help encourage
constructive change in Damascus.


6. (C) Ruge confirmed that 25 out of the 27 EU member states
(i.e., all except the UK and The Netherlands) are in favor of
moving forward with signing the AA if Syria does not create
problems in Lebanon,s formation of a government. He thought
the agreement would be signed sometime during the second half
of the year. He said that for Germany, it was important that
Syria has delivered on full-fledged recognition of Lebanon
and diplomatic relations. Withholding the agreement, Ruge
asserted, would not help the human rights situation in Syria.
He said that in the AA, Syria agrees to engage with the EU
on human rights and that human rights NGOs in Syria favor the
agreement for this reason. Ruge also assessed that Syria
would walk away from the AA if the political demands placed
on it were too high. Ruge confirmed that Germany shares U.S.
concerns and stressed that Germany has articulated these
concerns to Syria "time and again." He said that Germany
"expects Syria will be more constructive and will move in the
right direction."

CUBA


7. (C) Schieb said that Germany and most EU members are "very
disappointed" with the progress Cuba has made on human rights
and democratization since the EU reestablished its dialogue a
year ago. Schieb said that while the ministers will decide
in their annual review to continue the dialogue, the Council
conclusions will be fairly critical and will specifically
call on Cuba to release all political prisoners, to ensure
access of international human rights organizations to
prisons, and to ratify and implement human rights convenants
it has signed. Schieb offered that it had not been "easy" to
finalize these conclusions, with Germany and northern Europe
generally advocating a harder line than the southern member
states.

AF/PAK


8. (C) Schieb explained that while the GAERC will issue
Council conclusions on Afghanistan/Pakistan, no discussion is
foreseen since this issue will be addressed at the EU foreign
ministers' June 18 dinner on the margins of the EU Summit.
The chief element in the conclusions will be a tasking to
High Rep Solana and the Commission to come up with
recommendations by October on how the EU can become more
active in contributing to the political and economic
stability of both countries. He indicated that a separate EU
Summit declaration will confirm the EU's intent to send an
observer mission to monitor the August 20 Afghan elections
and welcome the deployment of European Gendarmerie Force to
Afghanistan under the NATO Training Mission (NTM-A).

WESTERN BALKANS


9. (C) Schieb said the Council conclusions will set in train
a process of visa liberalization for those countries that
meet prescribed requirements. The conclusions will also
highlight the EU's support for the transition from the Office
of the High Representative (OHR) to a reinforced EU Special
Representative (EUSR) as soon as the 5-plus-2 agenda is
"complete." Without setting a deadline, the conclusions say
that the "transition could be within reach in the months
ahead."

BURMA


10. (C) According to Schieb, no Council conclusions are
expected on Burma, but the UK is pressing for the ministers
to be ready to react if a guilty verdict is rendered against
pro-democracy leader Suu Kyi before or during the GAERC
meeting. Noting that the UK is advocating additional EU
sanctions should that happen, Schieb said Germany is not
convinced that is the right approach, noting that existing
sanctions have not been effective.
Koenig