AMBASSADOR'S DEMARCHE TO FM ABOUL GHEIT ON SUDAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L CAIRO 000520

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ELA, NEA/ARP, AF/SPG

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/25/2019
TAGS: KPAL KPKO PGOV PHUM PREL SU EG
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S DEMARCHE TO FM ABOUL GHEIT ON SUDAN

REF: STATE 28323

Classified By: Ambassador Margaret Scobey for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) The Ambassador spoke with Foreign Minister Ahmed
Aboul Ghayt at opening of business Wednesday, March 25,
conveying reftel points regarding the visit of Sudanese
President Bashir to Egypt. She stressed that the U.S. could
not accept any justification for denying humanitarian
assistance to the victims in Darfur and that the U.S. was
prepared to pursue a more robust international response if
necessary.


2. (C) Aboul Ghayt said he had already been made aware of
U.S. concerns by the Egyptian Ambassador in Washington. He
said he fully understood the U.S. position and that President
Mubarak had already been briefed. Aboul Ghayt made clear
that the humanitarian situation in Sudan was "paramount" in
Egypt's own view of the situation and that addressing this
issue would be at the top of the agenda. He said that Egypt
shared the world's concerns about the plight of Darfuris, but
that for Egypt the situation was more than a humanitarian
issue, or an issue of internal Sudanese security. For Egypt,
the humanitarian situation in Sudan represents a national
security issue for Egypt dealing with how to prevent the
potential flow of millions of new Sudanese refugees to Egypt.


3. (C) Aboul Ghayt defended Egypt,s approach to Bashir
along the lines used by Ambassador Shoukry. Egypt calculated
its engagement with Bashir in a manner designed to counter
growing Iranian influence in Sudan and to develop more
constructive cooperation with the GOS on preventing the
smuggling of arms across the Sudanese border into Egypt.
SCOBEY