Uruguay: Low-Level Representation at Next UNASUR Defense

C O N F I D E N T I A L MONTEVIDEO 000627 SIPDIS FOR WHA/BSC MARY DASCHBACH E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/11/23 TAGS: PREL MARR UY SUBJECT: Uruguay: Low-Level Representation at Next UNASUR Defense Council Meeting CLASSIFIED BY: Robin H. Matthewman, CDA, State, Exec; REASON: 1.4(B), (D) ¶1. (C) During a wide-ranging discussion on defense issues November 23, Uruguayan Defense Minister Gonzalo Fernandez told Charge Matthewman that ALBA countries are pushing for another UNASUR Defense Council ministerial, which is to be held in Quito. The principal agenda item would again be the U.S.-Colombia Defense Cooperation Agreement, although other topical items, such as the Peru-Chile espionage dust-up, would also be covered. ¶2. (C) Fernandez said Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez has decided that Uruguay will not participate at the ministerial level if the proposed meeting takes place, and will instead send the Uruguayan ambassador to Ecuador as the country's representative. Uruguay's position on the DCA - that it is not Uruguay's business to opine on a matter decided bilaterally by the U.S. and Colombia -- is clear and unchanging, Fernandez explained, and remains consistent with the three pillars of Uruguay's foreign policy: non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries; support for the peaceful resolution of conflicts; and respect for territorial sovereignty. Fernandez also noted that, if pressed on the issue, he would further specify that Uruguay never has and never will accept the presence of foreign troops based on its own soil. ¶3. (C) Fernandez added that another reason he won't be attending the proposed Quito meeting is Uruguay's unwillingness to further tolerate what he characterized as "Chavez's theatrics," of the sort on display during the Bariloche summit of UNASUR heads of state in August. MATTHEWMAN