SOLANA SPEAKS ON MIDDLE EAST PEACE, GUANTANAMO,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BRUSSELS 000142 NOFORN SIPDIS NSC FOR KVIEN E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/29/2019 TAGS: PREL ENRG KPAL EUN SUBJECT: SOLANA SPEAKS ON MIDDLE EAST PEACE, GUANTANAMO, AFGHANISTAN REF: BRUSSELS 120 Classified By: USEU Political M-C Chris Davis for reasons 1.4 b & d. ¶1. (C//NF) Summary. EU Council Secretary General and CFSP High Representative Javier Solana addressed the final session of a "Study Day" on transatlantic relations organized by the EPP-ED political group at the European Parliament. During the January 29 event he discussed EU relations with the new U.S. administration on the conflict in Gaza, Guantanamo detention camp, energy and climate change, Afghanistan, Africa, and non-proliferation. On the margins, he told the Charge d'Affaires that Council lawyers were working on legal ways for EU Member States to accept Guantanamo detainees. End Summary. -------------- Israel/Gaza -------------- ¶2. (U) Javier Solana came to the European Parliament directly from the airport, having just arrived from the Middle East, where he had been since Monday, January 28. Noting that another rocket had been fired that very morning, he said the EU and U.S. must help find a way for the parties to agree to a cease fire which would allow the reconstruction of Gaza. Solana said that 150 trucks per day of aid relief were now entering Gaza; however, the number of crossing points needed to be increased to 15 and the number of trucks to 600 a day. He said the relevant Israeli minister told him this would happen soon. ¶3. (U) A key question, according to Solana, is who will take charge of coordinating humanitarian assistance and reconstruction in Gaza. He believes that with Egypt's help an answer will be found soon. He described a synergy of Egyptian-brokered dialogue among Palestinian factions, a cease-fire, open crossing points, and a second round of discussions. He suggested that a temporary cease-fire can be in place by February 4 or 5. By February 24, an intra-Palestinian agreement should be found on some kind of consensus government or a government of technocrats to direct reconstruction and prepare Palestinian elections this year. "We're talking about two states, not three," Solana declared. ¶4. (U) Solana said that the issue of the tunnels has not been resolved, but is moving, and that Israel was increasingly confident with steps taken by Egypt. He said the EU is ready to contribute monitors to re-open the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza. ¶5. (U) A member of the EP asked whether a consensus Palestinian arrangement might arise to form a "unity government" that would effectively legitimize Hamas. Solana said that the term "consensus" was Abbas' terminology, and that the emphasis should be on finding "consensual types of people," not necessarily including all the factions. ¶6. (U) Solana said that he was pleased to see that the Obama administration - which he said was "moving at the speed of light" - was already active on Middle East issues. He listed three positive things about President Obama: 1) his speech on the Middle East (probably referring to remarks made at the State Department),2) his interview on Arab (Al-Arabiya) television, which Solana said he saw while he was in the region, and 3) the appointment of George Mitchell, whom Solana said he knows well from their days of working on the report on the second Intifada, which provided elements defining the Roadmap. Solana said he had seen Mitchell twice in the region this week and called the U.S.-EU relationship fundamental to finding a durable solution in the Middle East. ¶7. (U) Solana noted that divisions within the Arab League are a major problem now. The Arab League peace initiatives remain on the table, although the "gap is big" between Arab states on this issue, and some wanted to pull it back at the Doha summit. -------------- Guantanamo -------------- BRUSSELS 00000142 002 OF 003 ¶8. (U) Solana said that President Obama's move to close detention facilities at Guantanamo was a "great decision." Solana said Guantanamo was "truly" the responsibility of the U.S., but that Europe should help where it can. He said member states all have differing legislation bearing on detainee resettlement, but that if asked, he hoped Member States would give a positive answer. Responding to a question, he said that the EU has been asking the U.S. to close Guantanamo facilities for a long time and that Obama's announcement is "good for Europe." He said that if it is possible to accommodate a U.S. request, the EU "should be open, and should help" to the extent that legislation allowed. Solana pointed to EU member states' acceptance of Palestinians from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem in 2002 as a model for this situation (REFTEL). He said that EU action in that case went to the limit of what was allowed by legislation, but that it was successful. He said the current discussion shows Europe's respect for the president's decision and a spirit of cooperation. ¶9. (C//NF) At the end of the conference, HR Solana told USEU Charge d'Affaires that although there are legal issues associated with accepting Guantanamo detainees in many member states, he felt the issues were likely surmountable. He confided that Council Secretariat attorneys have already started, or will soon start, researching national EU legislation for ways in which member states could legally accept detainees. -------------- Climate Change and Energy Security -------------- ¶10. (U) Solana remarked that he knew personally Energy Secretary Chu and was looking forward to working with him. Responding to questions, Solana said that the EU should cooperate with the U.S. on energy security issues, and that he thought the new U.S. National Security Advisor knew Europe, and European energy security issues, well. Solana opined that the EU should first cooperate internally on energy security, and said that specifics are not as important as political will at this stage. -------------- Afghanistan -------------- ¶11. (U) Solana stressed that Afghanistan is "a major part of the (transatlantic) agenda." Noting that Europe was already engaged in Afghanistan, Solana said "we have to be ready" to respond to anticipated requests from the new Administration. Solana noted that Afghan elections had been set for August, and that the EU would need to help "pull the elections together." -------------- NPT/Iran/Disarmament -------------- ¶12. (U) Solana said the scheduled revision of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 2010 must be done with the full participation and support of the U.S., Russia, and China. He said that Iran is a serious problem, that there had yet been no formal discussion with the U.S., and that the P5 1 would meet in a few days. "Objective guarantees are still our hope," he added. He drew attention to the importance of NPT Article 6 on disarmament. -------------- Africa and Horizontal Issues -------------- ¶13. (U) Solana made remarks on Africa, saying that non-state actors in Somalia were "causing drama for many people," and that it was important to try to solve problems in Somalia with U.S. help so that global terrorist organizations do not get a foothold there and, "take over all of Sahel." On the DR Congo, Solana said the capture of Laurent Nkunda might "bring light" to peace prospects there where the EU has invested many resources. ¶14. (U) Cross-cutting these more regional concerns were BRUSSELS 00000142 003 OF 003 horizontal issues on which the U.S. and EU needed to cooperate, said Solana. He said they were proliferation, climate change, and development. ¶15. (U) Solana finished by saying that there were challenges in the world, but also opportunities, and called on the U.S. and the EU to work together, and to be "intelligent and generous." He said he has had great informal contact with the new administration, and said that he had a "renewed sense of optimism." MURRAY .