TAHA ASSESSES CPA, APPEALS FOR LIFTING OF

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ADDIS ABABA ALSO FOR USAU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/05/2019
TAGS: PREL PHUM EAID EFIN PREF PGOV KPKO SU
SUBJECT: TAHA ASSESSES CPA, APPEALS FOR LIFTING OF
SANCTIONS TO REPRESENATIVE ELLISON

Classified By: CDA Robert E. Whitehead, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary: In an August 5 meeting, Government of
National Unity (GNU) Second Vice President Ali Osman Taha
offered Representative Keith Ellison a mixed assessment on
implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA).
Provisions like Wealth Sharing, he said, have been successful
because they require only high-level buy-in from the two
parties, whereas issues like Security Arrangements are
problematic because they involve a broader group of
stakeholders. On Darfur, Taha emphasized the need to bridge
the gap between media portrayals of the crisis and the
current reality on the ground. He noted that not just Darfur,
but all areas of Sudan were suffering from a lack of
investment and development. He then appealed for the lifting
of U.S. sanctions, arguing that they were impeding both
humanitarian relief efforts and economic development by
restricting access to development funds and international
credit markets. End Summary.


2. (C) Taha welcomed the visit of Rep. Ellison and expressed
high hopes for a new era of bilateral relations under the
leadership of President Obama. He said an honest and frank
dialogue was necessary to "break out of the stereotypes" that
he claimed had been perpetuated. "We are not without our
problems," he added, "but we must work to bridge what is
being reflected in the media with the reality on the ground."


3. (C) While acknowledging the deep human suffering in
Darfur, Taha emphasized that a lack of development and
services existed throughout Sudan, including in Khartoum.
"It's not a question of that part of the country being
deliberately deprived," he said. He also sought to dispel the
notion that the Government of Sudan was harassing and
intimidating internally displaced persons (IDPs) by noting
that the vast majority of them were living in camps in
government- controlled areas, not in the rebel-held
"liberated zones" or across the border in Chad.


4. (C) On the subject of the CPA, Taha told Rep. Ellison it
was important to understand why the two parties had succeeded
in a number of areas while failing in others. Provisions such
as Wealth Sharing Arrangements that require buy-in from only
the highest levels of government in Khartoum and Juba are
easy to implement because they are straightforward, he said.
In contrast, issues that involve a larger group of
stakeholders and a "human element", such as Security
Arrangements, are more challenging. While the North has
withdrawn nearly one hundred percent of its troops from the
border area, he said, the South lags far behind in disbanding
or disarming as its indigenous forces from from the Nuba
Mountains and Blue Nile State.


5. (C) Overall, Taha stated that most provisions of the CPA
were being implemented, and that reports from the donor-led
Assessment and Evaluation Commission (AEC) were indicative of
this. He expressed disappointment with the international
community, however, for what he claimed was the latter's
failure to meet financial commitments pledged at Naivasha. He
joked that if all the money spent flying in delegations to
assess CPA implementation was spent on actual development,
the country as a whole would be better off. (Note: CDA
Whitehead interjected that the USG had spent over $900
million in Sudan in FY'08, not to mention many millions more
in support of UN peacekeeping forces. Taha expressed his
appreciation for humanitarian assistance, but emphasized the
need for development funds. End Note.)


6. (C) Taha also spoke at length about how U.S. sanctions
were impeding both humanitarian relief efforts and economic
development. "The sanctions have crippled our ability to draw
development loans and access international credit markets,"
he said, noting that even close allies in the Middle East
were hesitant to provide funds for fear of angering the USG.
"The GOS has embarked on a relatively ambitious drive to
develop infrastructure, including a road link from Khartoum
to El Fasher, but obtaining financing has proven difficult,"
he said.


7. (C) Asked by Congressman Ellison whether elections would
take place in April 2010 as scheduled, Taha noted that
preparations were underway, but that "it is clear our
brothers in the South are having difficulty." He emphasized

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that while it was important to have elections, if there is
not careful monitoring or reasonable guarantees that they be
conducted freely and fairly, elections could actually be a
destabilizing event. The NCP's nontheless wanted elections to
be held on schedule, he said.


8. (C) Taha mused about the impact of the March 4
International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued against
President Bashir. "The arrest warrant threatens agreements
like the CPA and the DPA (Darfur Peace Agreement)," he said,
"because it undermines the President's moral authority to
deliver on such agreements." The President's status also
further impedes access to international credit needed to fund
commitments in both agreements, he noted. He claimed that the
ICC had had a particularly "devastating" effect on the DPA
and the Darfur peace process by empowering the rebels and
giving them little incentive to sit down for negotiations.
The greatest effect was the "moral and psychological impact"
on the Sudanese nation, he said. "It is viewed by the people
as an insult to our very being."


9. (C) Comment: Normally brief and to the point, Taha spoke
at unusual length in his meeting with Rep. Ellison. Taha's
passionate appeal for the lifting of sanctions shows that he
and other regime leaders are eager to capitalize on what they
perceive as the new spirit of goodwill emanating from
Washington. It remains to be seen, however, whether Taha and
other NCP insiders will take the mecessary steps to address
the root causes of Darfur's problems and support full
implementation of the CPA.


WHITEHEAD