LETTER TO SECRETARY CLINTON ON DARFUR FROM

UNCLAS DOHA 000305

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PHUM SU QA
SUBJECT: LETTER TO SECRETARY CLINTON ON DARFUR FROM
MINISTER OF STATE AL-MAHMOUD


1. (SBU) Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs alerted us late
the afternoon of May 7 by phone to a faxed letter addressed
to Secretary Clinton from Minister of State for Foreign
Affairs Ahmed Al-Mahmoud and requested immediate delivery of
the communication.


2. (SBU) Below is an unofficial Government of Qatar
translation of the original Arabic letter:

May 5, 2009

Her Excellency Mrs. Hillary Rodham Clinton,
Secretary of State of the United States of America

The State of Qatar, as you are aware, has been leading
efforts for several months, in complete coordination with Mr.
Djbrill Bassole the AU/UN Joint Chief Mediator for Darfur, in
order to reach a negotiated solution for the conflict in
Darfur.

Such efforts, though slow, have achieved tangible progress
and received necessary support from both the regional and
international communities. The Goodwill and
Confidence-building Agreement, concluded between the
Government of Sudan and the Justice and Equality Movement,
which was signed in Doha last February, is considered a
tangible result of the above-mentioned efforts.

The State of Qatar, in coordination with the AU/UN Joint
Chief Mediator, while appreciating your country's support,
calls for the organization of a meeting in Doha during the
current month of May, at the level of special representatives
for Sudan of the five permanent member states of the UN
Security Council and the European Union, for mutual
consultations and an exchange of views on the outcome that
has been yielded so far by the peace talks and to work out a
joint perspective regarding the quick move towards the
resumption of talks and the appropriate means to support
them.

The State of Qatar hopes that the anticipated meeting will
reiterate the unity of the international community and its
robust and sustainable support for the efforts exerted by the
State of Qatar and the AU/UN Joint Mediator as well as the
importance of continuing talks in Doha with a view to placing
the peace process on a solid foundation. The State of Qatar
hopes that the foregoing meeting will adopt a joint
communique which lays further emphasis on that support.

The State of Qatar also relies so much on the engagement of
the international community and the mobilization of
international efforts aimed at reaching a comprehensive and
just solution, which realizes peace, security, stability and
brings about welfare to the people of Darfur, the rest of
Sudan and the region at large.

Please accept, Your Excellency, the assurance of my highest
consideration.

Ahmed bin Abdulla Al-Mahmoud
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Member of the
Cabinet

Ratney