FRENCH AID TO PAKISTAN

UNCLAS PARIS 001437 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 19528: N/A TAGS: EAID EFIN PREL FR PK SUBJECT: FRENCH AID TO PAKISTAN SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION. Ref: A) SECSTATE 108183 B) PARIS 1412 ¶1. (SBU) Econ Counselor and Poloff delivered the demarche in ref A to Annie Evrard, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) desk officer for Pakistan, and Guillaume Cruse, an official from the Agence France de Development. Both are members of the interagency Afghanistan-Pakistan "cell" and familiar with French assistance programs to Pakistan. Emboffs stressed the importance that the Secretary of State attaches personally to financial support for Pakistan and noted that the Ambassador had raised the same points with Diplomatic Counselor to President Sarkozy,, Jean-David Levitte, on October 21. ¶2. (SBU) Evrard said that France has offered no direct budgetary support to Pakistan, only concessionary loans. Cruse said France has increased its concessionary loan commitments to Pakistan since the April Tokyo conference to 382 million euros (573 million dollars). The loans cover nine projects in the areas of hydroelectricity and energy efficiency. Some of these projects are co-financed by Germany and the Asian Development Bank. Cruse said these were the projects covered by France's pledges at the Tokyo conference, adding that they now well exceed the 200 million euros ($299 million) promised, and offered to provide Embassy with additional details about these loans. (Note: Embassy will forward any further information we receive to SRAP. End note.) Cruse added that France is still also dispensing funds made under soft loans worth 11 million euros for post-earthquake reconstruction. Evrard said France is not yet ready to contribute to the World Bank-administered multi-donor trust fund for Pakistan as it was not clear who their partners on the Pakistani side would be and what safeguards there would be over the funds. RIVKIN