MALAYSIA POSITIVE ON ASEAN SUMMIT, VAGUE ON

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUALA LUMPUR 000188 SIPDIS FOR EAP/MTS AND EAP/RSP E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/10/2014 TAGS: PREL PREF ASEAN BM MY SUBJECT: MALAYSIA POSITIVE ON ASEAN SUMMIT, VAGUE ON ROHINGYA PROSPECTS Classified By: Political Counselor Mark D. Clark, reason 1.4 (b and d). ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Malaysia held a positive view of the 14th ASEAN Summit, according to a March 6 Foreign Ministry briefing attended by Polcouns, as the outcomes had reinforced ASEAN community building. Malaysia supported ASEAN's endorsement of a step-by-step regional approach to the Burmese Rohingya issue, starting with gathering of statistics, but only expected follow-up in the July ASEAN foreign ministers meeting, and further steps remained undefined. During the Summit, Malaysia had lobbied hard for ASEAN language on the Gaza conflict. A senior MFA official spoke highly of the Secretary's stop at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta and U.S. examination of possible accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation. ¶2. (C) Comment: The MFA briefing did not leave us with any confidence that Malaysia, at least, has a concrete vision forward on the Rohingya issue. Malaysia's efforts in ASEAN to highlight the welfare of Palestinians in faraway Gaza, while professing satisfaction with only the vaguest prospect of action regarding Muslim Rohingya refugees, illustrate the contradictions in Kuala Lumpur's foreign policy. End Summary and Comment. ¶3. (SBU) Polcouns attended the March 6 briefing by the Malaysian Foreign Ministry's ASEAN Director General Ambassador Zainuddin Yahya for diplomats from ASEAN dialogue partner countries, the EU Troika and ASEAN member states on the outcome of the 14th ASEAN Summit in Thailand, February 28 to March 1. Zainuddin said Malaysia viewed the summit outcome positively as it had reinforced ASEAN community building. The Summit also took on significance as the first held after the December 2008 entry into force of the ASEAN Charter. ¶4. (SBU) Beyond a generic overview of the summit results, Zainuddin commented on the Burmese Rohingya issue. In the end, Malaysia had not supported Thailand's concept of a side meeting of select countries to discuss the Rohingya situation, but instead pushed for broader regional engagement that the foreign ministers and the summit ultimately endorsed. Zainuddin appeared to play down the future role of a "contact group" referenced in ASEAN Chairman's statement. Instead, he highlighted ASEAN agreement on a step-by-step approach, but only identified the initial step, namely tasking the ASEAN Secretary General to work with Burma "to obtain relevant statistics on the ethnic group." In response to Polcouns' questions, Zainuddin said there was not a definitive timeframe for completion of the first step, but ASEAN members expected the Secretary General to report results in the July foreign minister's meeting. Follow-on steps, however, were not yet defined. Zainuddin did not foresee any concrete results related to the Rohingya emerging from the Bali Process meeting, which would take place "too soon." Malaysia had concluded that "Myanmar's agreement to cooperate on this issue will certainly facilitate a collective and coordinated regional approach to the problem." Zainuddin declined to elaborate on statements attributed by the press to Prime Minister Abdullah in support of the forcible turnaround of Rohingya boat people. ¶5. (SBU) Zainuddin explained that Malaysia had lobbied hard for a separate ASEAN statement on the Gaza conflict. In the end, Malaysia was satisfied with the inclusion in the Chairman's statement of two paragraphs on the Gaza situation, which emphasized the welfare of the Palestinian people and endorsed a two-state solution. Zainuddin noted that Malaysia raised the issue of combating piracy in the foreign ministers' informal dinner, but there had been no particular conclusion. Zainuddin announced that Malaysia would soon appoint a permanent representative to the ASEAN Secretariat. ¶6. (SBU) Following the briefing, Polcouns raised the issue of the Secretary's visit to Jakarta. Zainuddin said the Secretary's stop in Southeast Asia and her visit to the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta were very positive signs for U.S.-ASEAN relations. The Secretary's comments concerning the possibility of U.S. accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation were particularly well received by Malaysia, Zainuddin commented. RAPSON