SARKOZY, NETANYAHU DISCUSS FREEZE, JEWISH STATE,

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 04 PARIS 000876 SIPDIS NOFORN NSC FOR SHAPIRO/KUMAR LONDON FOR TSOU E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/29/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL FR SUBJECT: SARKOZY, NETANYAHU DISCUSS FREEZE, JEWISH STATE, PALESTINE, IRAN, SYRIA ON JUNE 24 REF: PARIS 832 Classified By: Political Minister-Counselor Kathleen H. Allegrone, reas ons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (S/NF) SUMMARY: According to President Sarkozy's Middle East Advisor Boris Boillon, Sarkozy told Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu June 24 in Paris that the GOF supports the creation of a Palestinian state; seeks a "total freeze" on Israeli settlement activity; stands with Israel against the threat posed by Iran; publicly refers to Israel and Palestine as "two nations for two peoples" but privately recognizes Israel as a Jewish state; and envisions a future Palestinian state that is "calmed and pacified" and thus poses no threat to Israel. Boillon, who attended the meeting, told poloff June 26 that when Sarkozy asked Netanyahu directly if he would agree to participate in an international conference designed to press forward the peace process, Netanyahu replied that he himself would have "no problem" attending, but "the Americans are hesitant." Netanyahu also reportedly dismissed Sarkozy's request that he re-engage with Syria. For his part, Sarkozy agreed to help persuade Gulf states to open Israeli interest sections and expressed his firm support for efforts to free captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. While conveying his feelings of "personal friendship" to Netanyahu, Sarkozy nonetheless deliberately ignored two direct appeals by Netanyahu to break off for a one-on-one exchange, reportedly for fear that "after a tete-a-tete each side says what it wants" about what transpired in the meeting. While Israeli Embassy Political Counselor Daniel Halevy expressed satisfaction with the meeting because it contained "no surprises," Egyptian Political Counselor Nazih El Naggary interpreted Sarkozy's "two states for two peoples" formulation as favoring Israel and argued that Sarkozy came close to expressing French support for a de-militarized Palestine. "This can only indicate that Sarkozy wants to play a larger role in the peace process," El Naggary said. (NOTE: Netanyahu's June 25 meetings with Prime Minister Fillon and Foreign Minister Kouchner very closely resembled the content of his June 24 meeting with Sarkozy, according to Israeli and French officials in Paris. END NOTE.) END SUMMARY. Palestinian State: "Non-negotiable" -------------- 
¶3. (S/NF) "To ensure your own security," Sarkozy told Netanyahu, "you must make peace with your neighbors," according to Boris Boillon. "The Palestinians must have a state of their own. This is non-negotiable." In response, Netanyahu referred to his June 14 speech at Bar Ilan University, during which he declared his support for the creation of a demilitarized Palestinian state. He also told Sarkozy that Israel would guarantee minority rights and that Arabs would not be expelled. Sarkozy replied, Boillon said, that Netanyahu's speech was "good but insufficient." Sarkozy stressed that Israel has no time to lose: "Time is against us." He said that France is ready and willing to help move the peace process forward in any way it can. Sarkozy also argued, Boillon said, that progress toward peace depends on international coalitions and it requires victory in the "communications war;" the longer you wait, Sarkozy reportedly told Netanyahu, the more international support you lose. ¶4. (S/NF) MFA DAS Ludovic Pouille added that Sarkozy also encouraged the Israelis to help strengthen Palestinian security services. At the same time, Israeli Embassy Political Counselor Halevy told poloff June 26 that Sarkozy repeated his promise that France and the European Union would provide security guarantees for Israel, including the possibility of French troops on the ground in the West Bank to help safeguard a peace agreement. (NOTE: The GOF included this point in its official communiqu: "France is ready to contribute to an international force ... (and) to offer substantial security guarantees" to Israel. END NOTE.) Settlements: "Total freeze of all activities" -------------- ¶5. (S/NF) Pouille said that Sarkozy was extremely firm on the issue of settlements: "There is no justification for them;" "You have nothing to gain from them;" "They provide no security;" "And you must ease checkpoints in the West Bank." Sarkozy argued that the settlements represent a "problem of occupation," Boillon said. He argued that this issue can best be resolved by the formation of two states, which is PARIS 00000876 002 OF 004 another reason for rapid progress in peace negotiations. Sarkozy also averred that Arab countries can and will help with the peace process, and the French will press them to do so, "but you must move on settlements first." Pouille said that Netanyahu appeared "offended" by Sarkozy's statements about settlements and Gaza ("you must end the blockade and let them begin reconstruction,") but he reacted calmly. He said very little. In response to Sarkozy's long disquisition on the subject, Netanyahu only replied, "We will freeze land but we will not freeze life" in the settlements, according to Boillon. He was very "moderate and vague." ¶6. (S/NF) Indeed, Halevy claimed that the two leaders had "no real discussion" about the issue of settlements. Sarkozy's wording has changed slightly, Halevy conceded, from calling for a settlements "freeze" to calling for a "total freeze." (NOTE: The actual wording of the GOF communiqu was more specific, calling for a "total freeze of settlement activities." END NOTE.) Halevy argued that this new wording did not reflect any significant change in the French position. "We couldn't expect them to be more moderate than Washington on this issue," he said. Iran: "Israel is not alone" -------------- ¶7. (S/NF) Sarkozy insisted that France will stand with Israel against the threat posed by Iran. "Israel is not alone and Israel will not be forgotten," he declared, according to Boillon. Sarkozy deliberately spoke at length about Iran, according to Pouille, in order to prevent Netanyahu from opening a discussion about current developments there. Sarkozy sought to prevent Netanyahu from offering the threat posed by Iran as an excuse to slow or delay progress in the peace process, Pouille said, and thus he did not respond to Netanyahu's invitation to exchange ideas about Iran, opting to lecture on the subject instead. In Halevy's interpretation, Sarkozy was "very strong" about Iran. This was not a surprise, he observed, "but it was good to mention it again." Sarkozy told Netanyahu that France cannot tolerate a nuclear Iran, Halevy reported. ¶8. (S/NF) Sarkozy also informed Netanyahu about his "very bad" meeting June 3 in Paris with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, Boillon said. Sarkozy told Netanyahu that he delivered a firm and unequivocal message to Mottaki that Iran must return to talks about its nuclear program, and he made it clear that Iran will fail in any effort to separate France from its allies. Mottaki had come with absolutely nothing new to offer, Pouille explained, and seemed to be using the meeting as an opportunity to strengthen President Ahmadinejad's international credentials during the election campaign. Jewish state: "Two nations for two peoples" -------------- ¶9. (S/NF) During the meeting, Sarkozy agreed privately, in principle, to support the notion of Israel as a Jewish state, Boillon explained, but in public Sarkozy would go no further than to mention "two nations for two peoples." He worried that any mention of the Jewish nature of the state of Israel would "insult" the Palestinians, Boillon said, who could interpret such a statement "as a sign that we don't support the right of return." Sarkozy "believes in a Jewish nation for the Jewish people -- he believes that's why Israel was created," Boillon explained. De-militarization: A "calmed and pacified" Palestine -------------- -------------- ¶10. (S/NF) Rather than support Netanyahu's insistence on a "de-militarized" Palestinian state, Boillon said, "we inverted the issue and focused instead on the desired outcome for Israel -- security." Without saying the word "de-militarization," Sarkozy chose to describe a future Palestinian state that is "calmed and pacified." "The Israelis were very happy with this formulation," Boillon reported. International Peace Conference: "Ask the Americans" -------------- -------------- ¶11. (S/NF) When Sarkozy asked Netanyahu directly if he would agree to attend an international conference to press forward the peace process, Netanyahu replied, according to Boillon, PARIS 00000876 003 OF 004 "I am in total agreement that there should be a conference. I have no problem with that, but I understand the Americans are hesitant." Israeli Minister Counselor Halevy, however, refused to confirm or deny Netanyahu's response to Sarkozy's question. Halevy claimed that Sarkozy raised the issue of an international conference only "vaguely," in that he did not provide a concrete proposal containing a specific date or location for a conference. When poloff asked Halevy directly on two occasions for his views on local press reports that Netanyahu had told Sarkozy that it is President Obama, not Netanyahu, who opposes the idea of a peace conference, Halevy did not answer. He merely mentioned that the Russians also would like to host a conference, noting that President Medvedev broached the subject with Egyptian President Mubarak on June 23 in Cairo. ¶12. (S/NF) Pouille said that Sarkozy will likely raise the idea of an international peace conference with President Obama during their bilateral meeting at the G8 summit in July. He will want President Obama's true reaction to this idea, even if confidentially, Pouille said. "Does Obama agree in principle at least?" If so, he said, the French are willing to mobilize all the resources at their disposal to make the conference a success. "Sarkozy will push the Arab states hard. We have the trust of all the actors." In the meantime, though, Pouille explained, the French are "a bit paralyzed" and unsure as to how they can help. Atmospherics: "Personal friendship" but no tete-a-tete -------------- -------------- ¶13. (S/NF) Boris Boillon used the term "personal friendship" in describing the relationship between President Sarkozy and Prime Minister Netanyahu. He said that Sarkozy began their meeting by thanking Netanyahu for coming to Paris on his first visit to Europe, and he agreed to help upgrade the level and intensity of Israel's bilateral relationship with the European Union. Nonetheless, Sarkozy "drove the meeting, from start to finish," according to Pouille. Sarkozy did most of the talking throughout the meeting. He did not permit Netanyahu "to set traps," Pouille said. ¶14. (S/NF) After conveying to Netanyahu the importance of their personal friendship, Sarkozy then explained that it was this very friendship "which permits frankness," Boillon said. Indeed, Sarkozy expressed his "frank" remarks in the company of the full delegation after refusing to accede to Netanyahu's pre-meeting request for a tete-a-tete. During the meeting, which was attended by advisors to Sarkozy and Israeli Ambassador Daniel Shek, Sarkozy deliberately ignored two direct appeals by Netanyahu to break off for a one-on-one exchange, according to Boillon. Sarkozy knew that "after a tete-a-tete each side says what it wants" about what transpired in the meeting, Boillon explained, and Sarkozy sought to prevent this from happening. ¶15. (S/NF) According to Halevy, Netanyahu's meeting with Sarkozy contained "no surprises" overall. Halevy did not think the French expected Netanyahu to come to Paris with something new, or with a "real message." "They know we're discussing things with you (the USG)," he said. Halevy confirmed French reports about the positive chemistry between Sarkozy and Netanyahu. He asserted that Franco-Israeli relations have improved significantly since Ariel Sharon visited Jacques Chirac in Paris during 2005, shortly after Israel dismantled its settlements in the Gaza strip. "It's now easier to disagree," Halevy said. "It's between friends. No drama." Halevy noted that Sarkozy and Netanyahy have known each other since 2003, when both served as Finance Minister in their respective governments. "Even when Netanyahu was leader of the opposition and Sarkozy had recently been elected President," Halevy explained, "they met whenever Netanyahu came to Paris." These meetings, Halevy argued, demonstrate the enduring personal ties between the two men. (NOTE: Halevy reported that the content of Netanyahu's June 25 meetings with Prime Minister Fillon and Foreign Minister Kouchner very closely resembled the content of his June 24 meeting with Sarkozy. French officials confirmed this claim, with the exception of discussions about Syria (see below). END NOTE.) Syria: "Bashir has nothing to offer" -------------- ¶16. (S/NF) Boillon said that Sarkozy asked Netanyahu to make an effort to re-engage with Syria. Netanyahu communicated PARIS 00000876 004 OF 004 that engagement with Syria does not interest him, Pouille said. He maintained that Syria is not a "reliable partner," and "Bashir has nothing to offer." Pouille noted that Netanyahu was "categorical" on this issue during his meeting with Sarkozy, but he seemed more flexible during his June 25 meeting with Prime Minister Fillon. Arab States: Israel wants economic ties in the Gulf -------------- -------------- ¶17. (S/NF) Boillon reported that Netanyahu asked Sarkozy to help Israel re-establish contact with Arab states, particularly in the Gulf. Netanyahu would like European countries to press Gulf states to allow Israel to open interest sections in order to expand Israel's commercial ties with the region. Sarkozy replied that France is eager to help in this regard, Boillon said, and he explained that the Gulf is a new strategic focus for France (reftel). Gilad Shalit: "Our (French) compatriot" -------------- ¶18. (S/NF) Sarkozy also conveyed his firm support for efforts to free Gilad Shalit, whom Halevy said Sarkozy always refers to as "our (French) compatriot." (NOTE: Gilad Shalit has dual French-Israeli citizenship. END NOTE.) Halevy said the two leaders noted that June 25, 2009 marks the three-year anniversary of Galit's capture outside Gaza. Sarkozy then probed to see whether the plight of Shalit holds as much personal importance for Netanyahu as it did for former Israeli Prime Minister Olmert, and he gained the impression that it does, according to Pouille. Egyptian Embassy: Sarkozy Seeking Larger Role in Peace Process -------------- -------------- ¶19. (S/NF) Although both Boillon and Pouille said that Sarkozy acknowledged the leadership role played by the US in the peace process, Egyptian Political Counselor Nazih El Naggary interpreted Sarkozy's "concessions" to Netanyahu as an attempt to increase France's influence in future peace negotiations. He views Sarkozy's "two states for two peoples" formulation as a move favoring Israel. He also argued that Sarkozy's declaration that a future Palestine cannot "in any way" pose a threat to Israel came close to indicating France supports the idea of a de-militarized Palestine. "This can only indicate that Sarkozy wants to play a larger role in the peace process," El Naggary said. He posited that the French may be seeking to take advantage of recent tensions reportedly brewing between the Government of Israel and the USG. BERRY