GRV RECALLS AMBASSADOR FROM PERU AND WELCOMES

C O N F I D E N T I A L CARACAS 000540

SIPDIS

SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/28/2029
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM PE VE
SUBJECT: GRV RECALLS AMBASSADOR FROM PERU AND WELCOMES
PALSTINIAN MISSION

REF: LIMA 00602

Classified B: A/Political Counselor Daniel Lawton,
Reasons 14 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary. The Government of the Bolivarian Republic
of Venezuela (GBRV) ordered its ambassador home from Peru on
April 27 to protest the Peruvian government's decision to
grant opposition leader Manuel Rosales asylum. On the same
day, Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro welcomed a senior
Palestinian Authority official to Caracas to open a new
Palestinian Authority mission. Venezuela severed diplomatic
ties with Israel earlier this year, and President Chavez
continues to position himself as a champion of the
Palestinians. End Summary.

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GBRV Ire Toward Peru
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2. (SBU) The Government of the Bolivarian Republic of
Venezuela (GBRV) issued a terse April 27 communique calling
Peru's granting of asylum to Venezuelan opposition leader
Manuel Rosales earlier that day "a mockery of international
law." The Foreign Ministry press announcement complained
that Peru had made the decision before the Interpol office in
Lima had received all the necessary documentation and thus
undermined the fight against corruption. The GBRV also
announced the recall its ambassador to Peru in protest and to
conduct a full review of relations with Peru. The GBRV is
also postponing the transfer of a new ambassador to Peru.
Peru previously granted asylum to opposition union leader
Carlos Ortega and former opposition governor of Yaracuy State
Eduardo Lapi in 2006 and 2007, respectively.


3. (C) In Caracas, Peruvian Embassy First Secretary
Altamirano (protect throughout) told Poloff that Peru
intends to maintain cordial relations while awaiting
instructions from Lima, noting that both President Garcia and
Foreign Minister Garcia Belaunde were attending a business
forum in Brazil. Altamirano also shared that the current
Peruvian Chief of Mission in Caracas, a non-career
ambassador, is scheduled to transfer out of Venezuela in June.

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New Palestinian Embassy in Caracas
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4. (SBU) Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro
presided over the opening of the Palestinian embassy in
Venezuela on April 27. Maduro called the embassy a
"ratification of President Hugo Chavez's solidarity" with the
Palestinian people's struggle for "life, territory and
liberty." The Palestinian Authority's foreign policy chief
Riad Al-Malki, on hand for the opening, called the GBRV's
decision "a giant step filled with courage," and thanked the
GBRV's support for "opening and maintaining" the new embassy.
Al-Malki added that the mission would have a mandate to
reach out to Palestinians from Mexico to Argentina.

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Comment
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5. (C) President Chavez "froze" relations with Spain and
Colombia over perceived slights in 2007, therefore the GBRV
decision to recall its ambassador from Lima is a relatively
mild response from the generally volatile Chavez government.
This may be due to the fact that Rosales' departure
effectively diminishes his political importance in Venezuela
and saves the GBRV from having to conduct a potentially
embarrassing show trial. Venezuela's relations with the
economically vibrant Peru, quickly becoming a repository of
Venezuelan dissidents, is unlikely to suffer sustained
damage.


6. (C) Allowing the Palestinian Authority to open a foreign
mission, and quite possibly financing it, solidifies Chavez's
efforts to cast himself as a champion of the Palestinians.
He severed ties with Israel in the wake of Israel's
intervention in Gaza earlier this year, and he vocally
opposed Israel's military incursion into Lebanon in 2006.

CAULFIELD