(U) Secretary Clinton's November 12, 2009

C O N F I D E N T I A L STATE 117492


E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/12/2019
TAGS: OVIP CLINTON HILLARY PREL PGOV PTER PHUM
PARM, MOPS, ECON, EAID, KMCA, KNNP, MCC, RP
SUBJECT: (U) Secretary Clinton's November 12, 2009
conversation with Philippine Foreign Secretary Romulo


1. (U) Classified by: Virginia Bennett, Deputy
Executive Secretary, S/ES, Department of State. Reason
1.4 (d).


2. (U) November 12, 2009; 1:30 p.m.; Manila,
Philippines.


3. (U) Participants:

U.S.
The Secretary
Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney
Ambassador Scot Marciel, EAP DAS
Deputy Chief of Staff Jake Sullivan
Deputy Chief of Staff Huma Abedin
DAS Philippe Reines, PA
LTGEN Paul Selva, JCS
David Greenberg (Embassy Notetaker)

PHILIPPINES
Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo
Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, Office of the
President
Undersecretary Enrique Manalo, DFA
Undersecretary Rafael Seguis, DFA
Ambassador to the United States Willy Gaa
Ambassador Libran Cabactulan
Assistant Secretary Evan Garcia, DFA
Assistant Secretary Lourdes Yparraguirre, DFA
Deena Amatong (DFA Notetaker)



4. (C) SUMMARY. Foreign Secretary Romulo and Defense
Secretary Teodoro briefed Secretary Clinton on damage
from recent storms, described their work toward
concluding by June a comprehensive peace agreement with
the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF),
and urged Millennium Challenge Corporation flexibility
with respect to the Philippines' candidacy. The
Secretary outlined USG non-proliferation goals and U.S.
steps to address climate change, and encouraged the GRP
to take further steps to prevent extrajudicial killings.
The Secretary also urged the GRP to continue to press
the Burmese government to hold a credible dialogue with
the Burmese opposition. END SUMMARY.

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DISASTER RELIEF
--------------


5. (C) Foreign Secretary Romulo invited Secretary
Teodoro, who headed Philippine disaster relief efforts,
to brief on damage from storms in September and October.
Teodoro explained that the storms had affected over 1.1
million families and caused damage amounting to 38
billion Pesos (approximately 808 million USD),26
billion of which was in the form of damage to crops.
The GRP continued to operate 400 evacuation centers and
provide air relief services to isolated areas. Portions
of the country remained flooded, and further rains could
still have a severe impact.


6. (C) Teodoro explained the GRP was working with the UN
to expand the scope of its earlier international flash
appeal for assistance. Both Teodoro and Romulo thanked
the Secretary for relief assistance provided by the USG.



7. (C) The Secretary commended the GRP's response to the
flooding and said the USG would continue to consult with
the GRP on challenges it would face in reconstruction.


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SOUTHERN PEACE PROCESS
--------------


8. (C) DFA Undersecretary Seguis explained progress in
the GRP's peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation
Front (MILF). Seguis, who chairs the GRP's peace panel,
cited the GRP's July agreement to a cease-fire with the
MILF, the September agreement on a framework agreement
for the formation of an International Contact Group
(ICG),and the October agreement on mechanisms to
protect civilian populations. Seguis expected to travel
to Kuala Lumpur for further informal talks with the MILF
on November 16. He hoped those talks would allow the
two sides to finalize their list of state participants
in the ICG, and that subsequent discussions in December
would include an exchange of drafts of a comprehensive
peace agreement. The GRP and MILF were expediting their
efforts with the goal of concluding a peace agreement
before the June 2010 end of President Arroyo's term.


9. (C) The Secretary asked whether the MILF would agree
to provisions for sufficient monitoring and
verification. Seguis replied that he would need to see
the MILF's draft before he could feel confident about
such issues. While having rejected prior MILF demands
for secession, the GRP was willing to provide expanded
autonomy to areas currently under MILF control, but the
MILF was pushing for more concessions, such as the
designation of territorial waters and allocation of a
greater share of natural resources. The GRP was willing
to make concessions, but only within constitutional
parameters.

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MILENIUM CHALLENGE
--------------


10. (C) Executive Secretary Ermita reviewed the status
of the GRP's efforts to become a Millennium Challenge
Corporation (MCC) Compact partner. He emphasized the
Philippines had become eligible in 2008, but then,
having risen in classification from a Low Income Country
(LIC) to a Lower Medium Income Country (LMIC),it had
failed by an extremely narrow margin to meet the higher
standards applied to LMICs. Ermita urged that the
Philippines be judged according to LIC standards. The
GRP was currently working with an MCC team to assess
projects for road development, information systems for
government revenue collection, and the delivery of
social services to poor areas.


11. (C) The Secretary welcomed the progress that had led
to the Philippines' rise to the LMIC category. She
hoped the MCC's board would decide that the Philippines
could remain Compact-eligible, especially given that the
devastation of recent storms would have a serious
negative effect on national income.

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NON-PROLIFERATION
--------------


12. (C) Secretary Romulo praised the Obama
administration's leadership on non-proliferation and
said he looked forward to the Philippines chairing the
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference
in May. Romulo asked the Secretary's advice on GRP
preparations, both for the NPT Review Conference and for
the April nuclear security summit in Washington.


13. (C) The Secretary welcomed Philippine efforts to
date. It would be important to strengthen the NPT and
broaden the international non-proliferation regime. She
especially hoped the GRP would use its leadership to
keep the NPT Review Conference focused on global issues.
Some governments would likely try to direct the
Conference's attention toward the Middle East, and
specifically on Israel. The USG was also concerned
about the Middle East, and on the significant threats
posed by Iran and, to a lesser extent, Syria; North
Korea has been a major proliferator of nuclear
technology. But the Conference should consider broad
issues not specific to particular countries, including
the need for greater safeguards of nuclear materials,
the need to prevent covert nuclear programs, and ways to
enable countries to become peaceful generators of
nuclear power.


14. (C) Secretary Clinton noted that the USG stood ready
to provide the GRP with technical assistance in the run-
up to the Review Conference, and the USG's top non-
proliferation officials stood ready to assist in any way
necessary.



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CLIMATE CHANGE
--------------


15. (C) Taking note of the upcoming United Nations
Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December,
Romulo invited the Secretary to share her thoughts on
climate change, an important issue for President Arroyo.
The Secretary explained that the U.S. Congress continued
to work on a climate change bill, and, while this would
not become law by the time of the Conference, its
progress would demonstrate the United States'
seriousness. The USG had already taken action in the
regulatory arena, limiting car and utility emissions,
and economic stimulus legislation included 89 billion
USD for clean energy technology and environmentally-
helpful retrofitting projects.


16. (C) The Secretary said the Copenhagen Conference
appeared likely to move not toward a legally-binding
treaty, but rather toward a framework agreement, which
could include countries voluntarily establishing
obligations under their domestic laws. Developed
countries had an interest in establishing financial
mechanisms to assist developing countries with projects
that would benefit the environment. The USG could
provide other governments with ideas and technical
assistance to help inform their efforts; many
environmental initiatives would provide an economic
boost, rather than interfering with economic growth.

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COUNTERTERRORISM AND HUMAN RIGHTS
--------------


17. (C) Turning to counterterrorism (CT),Executive
Secretary Ermita noted the Abu Sayyaf Group's (ASG)
connections to Al Qaeda and interest in undertaking
terrorist acts throughout the country. The GRP had
responded successfully to terrorist threats and had
killed or captured many ASG leaders. The GRP was
working to upgrade the capabilities of its lead CT unit.


18. (C) The Secretary acknowledged the threat posed by
the ASG and other transnational terrorist groups. The
USG wanted to continue and deepen intelligence-sharing
and military-to-military cooperation with the GRP. It
was important, though, that CT efforts not take on a
repressive character. The USG has been concerned with
extrajudicial killings in the Philippines, although the
GRP has made progress in this area. She urged that the
GRP give special attention to strengthening prosecution
efforts against those accused of extrajudicial killings.
She also commended the GRP on the successful visit to
the Philippines of an International Labour Organization
delegation in September; previous killings of Philippine
labor activists had raised concerns.

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BURMA
--------------


19. (C) The Secretary thanked Secretary Romulo for the
GRP's leadership within ASEAN, and for the GRP's support
for Aung San Suu Kyi (ASSK). The USG was adjusting its
approach toward Burma in order that democracy might be
able to take hold there, and would appreciate ASEAN
taking on a greater role in Burma, perhaps observing the
2010 elections. Secretary Romulo said the USG could
count on Philippine support on Burma; President Arroyo
had been very firm on this issue. Romulo also welcomed
the USG decision not to lift existing sanctions on
Burma.

CHILD ABDUCTION
--------------


20. (C) The Secretary raised the Hague Convention on the
Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.
Explaining the USG was a party to the Convention and had
championed it for years, the Secretary stressed the
importance of resolving custody issues in the best
interest of the children. She urged that the GRP
consider the merits of the Convention; Romulo said the
GRP would do so.
CLINTON