MADAGASCAR: SWISS AGREE WITH USG POINTS ON URGING

C O N F I D E N T I A L BERN 000175

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/E (M.BEYZEROV) AND EUR/CE (Y.SAINT-ANDRE)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/15/2019
TAGS: PREL PGOV EAID MA SZ
SUBJECT: MADAGASCAR: SWISS AGREE WITH USG POINTS ON URGING
EARLY RETURN TO CONSTITUTIONAL RULE

REF: STATE 35809

Classified By: POLE Counselor Richard A. Rorvig; reasons 1.4(b) and (d)
.


1. (C) Poloff delivered the message in reftel on April 15 to
Anja Zobrist Rentenaar, Regional Coordinator for Southern
Africa in the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA).
Rentenaar mentioned that the FDFA (at least not in Bern) thus
far had not been approached by the EU to discuss Madagascar,
though a colleague at the local Norwegian embassy had
requested an appointment to do so. (Note: The meeting with
the Norwegian apparently had not yet occurred at the time of
poloff's April 15 meeting with Rentenaar. End Note)
Rentenaar concurred with all points in reftel. She
underlined that the GOS agrees that October 2010 is too long
to wait for elections and that the international community
needs to work together to avoid legitimizing the Rajoelina
regime. At the same time, Rentenaar commented that the April
2-3 national forum ("Assises Nationales") seemed quite well
organized and drew sizeable participation, indicating perhaps
a channel that could be utilized to press for earlier
elections.


2. (C) Rentenaar noted that the Swiss government itself has
not made a public statement on the recent events in
Madagascar, reflecting Switzerland's general practice of
recognizing states, not particular governments. That said,
she remarked that it should be quite clear to all that the
GOS is "against coups." In this context, Rentenaar mentioned
that Switzerland, as a member of the International
Organization of the Francophonie (IOF),had supported the
April 2 decision of the Permanent Council of the IOF to
suspend Madagascar's membership and to halt multilateral
cooperation with Madagascar, "except for programs that
directly benefit the civil population or that could help to
re-establish democracy" (per the subsequent communique issued
by the IOF Secretary General).


3. (C) Rentenaar informed poloff that Switzerland's
development assistance program for Madagascar is quite
limited (CHF 7 / USD 6.25 million in 2008) and does not
directly involve the GOM. She explained that, even prior to
the coup, Madagascar last year had been removed from the
GOS's list of "priority countries" for development
assistance, as part of an effort by Switzerland to streamline
its development assistance programs worldwide. Overall,
according to Rentenaar, Switzerland's relations and interests
in Madagascar are relatively limited, with the GOS having
dispatched a resident ambassador to Antananarivo only last
September.
CARTER