GOM REMARKS ABOUT LATEST UNSCR DRAFT

C O N F I D E N T I A L RABAT 000363 SIPDIS STATE FOR IO/UNP AND NEA/MAG E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/28/2014 TAGS: PREL PBTS UNSC WI MO SUBJECT: GOM REMARKS ABOUT LATEST UNSCR DRAFT REF: A. RABAT 356 ¶B. USUN 0434 Classified By: PolCouns Craig Karp. Reason 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) MFA Chief of Staff and Director General for Multilateral Affairs Nasser Bourita convoked P5 plus Spain Heads of Mission April 29 on instructions of his Minister, for an urgent demarche on the text of the Western Sahara Resolution. Polcouns represented CDA, who was traveling. ¶2. (C) Bourita stressed that Morocco,s approach to the UN negotiations has been positive, based on international consensus, and it supported special Envoy Ross, and his approach, as reflected in the SYG,s report. For this reason, Morocco supported a simple restating of last year,s UNSCR 1813, which has not yet had a chance to be implemented, and supported the initial Friends, draft. The UNSC debate last week showed that all 15 members support Ross, all want to renew the process and all are concerned about human rights, as was Morocco. Yet, three non-permanent members: Mexico, Costa Rica and Uganda, which, he observed, recognized the Polisario,s rump Democratic Arab Sahrawi Republic, were trying to change the text, including by insertion of a paragraph referring to human rights. Bourita feared that Uganda would want to do additional last minute violence to the operative text, which he hoped the P-5 would oppose. ¶3. (C) Bourita said Morocco had seen and reviewed the text approved by the Friends and distributed by the U.S. the evening of April 28, which contained a newly inserted PP 8 regarding humanitarian issues, but did not offer a copy. While the GOM was not happy about inserting this new and irrelevant paragraph, if this was the price of a consensus adoption, Morocco could live with the text as circulated last night by USDEL, and viewed the language as sufficiently ambiguous. It could not accept, however, a further softening of this position to include specific reference to human rights monitoring. In response to a question, Bourita noted this was important for the GOM, not demurring when the UK rep refered to it as a red line. ¶4. (C) Both France and UK, which had copies of the April 28 draft referred to by Bourita from their missions in New York, expressed their governments' support for the new text; others murmured supportively. Polcouns appreciated Morocco,s support for the formulation, which reflected its constructive approach to humanitarian issues in the territory. ***************************************** Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Moro cco ***************************************** Jackson