(SBU) Canada Concerned about Serbian ITU Proposal

UNCLAS OTTAWA 000902 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/SCE AND EEB/CIP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL ECON ECPS ITU KV CA SUBJECT: (SBU) Canada Concerned about Serbian ITU Proposal ¶1. (SBU) On November 20, Econoff delivered reftel points to Christine Phillips, Senior Desk Officer for Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia, and Kosovo, Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. Phillips was unaware of Serbia's proposed Annex, but is concerned about Serbia's activities within the ITU, as described in reftel. She will urge Canada's ITU delegation to oppose the Serbian proposal and expects that they will do so. ¶2. (SBU) Phillips explained that while she was unaware of Serbia's activity within the ITU, it comes as no surprise. She noted that Serbia has on several recent occasions attempted to marginalize Kosovo through "obscure and technical UN bodies, such as UNESCO." Phillips commented that because Serbia buries these activities in seemingly minor technical proposals, they are often hard to detect. JACOBSON