GREAT LAKES ENVOY MUTABOBA TAKES POSITION WITH UN

C O N F I D E N T I A L KIGALI 000057 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/21/201 TAGS: PREL PGOV RW SUBJECT: GREAT LAKES ENVOY MUTABOBA TAKES POSITION WITH UN Classified By: DCM Cheryl Sim, reasons 1.4 (b) (d) ¶1. (SBU) Ministry of Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary Amandin Rugira informed emboffs on January 29 that Great Lakes Special Envoy Joseph Mutaboba has been selected to be the UN Secretary General's Special Representative for Guinea-Bissau. According to Rugira, Mutaboba had initially applied for a separate position with the UN some two years ago, had not been immediately selected, but had been told he would be considered for another post. Mutaboba will stay on as Special Envoy through the upcoming AU and Conference on the Great Lakes meetings. ¶3. (C) Comment. We found Mutaboba to be a competent and approachable Great Lakes envoy in his relatively short stint in the position (just over three months). As the first Rwandan Ambassador to the U.S. following the genocide, the former Rwandan PermRep in New York, and Permanent Secretary at the Ministries of Internal Security and Foreign Affairs, he is a trusted civil servant and seasoned diplomat with broad experience. His departure comes at an interesting time in DRC - Rwandan relations. At a time of fast-moving events in the eastern Congo, we expect the naming of a successor will be treated with particular attention. SYMINGTON