A/S SHANNON'S MEETINGS WITH ECUADORIAN OFFICIALS

S E C R E T STATE 035745 E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/10/2019 TAGS: PREL PINR SNAR EC SUBJECT: A/S SHANNON'S MEETINGS WITH ECUADORIAN OFFICIALS TO DISCUSS ECUADORIAN ACCUSATIONS OF U.S. INTERFERENCE REF: A. QUITO 217 ¶B. QUITO 160 C... id: 201915 date: 4/10/2009 19:05 refid: 09STATE35745 origin: Secretary of State classification: SECRET destination: 09QUITO145|09QUITO153|09QUITO160|09QUITO217 header: O R 101905Z APR 09 FM SECSTATE WASHDC TO AMEMBASSY QUITO IMMEDIATE INFO AMEMBASSY ASUNCION AMEMBASSY BOGOTA AMEMBASSY BRASILIA AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES AMEMBASSY CARACAS AMEMBASSY LA PAZ AMEMBASSY LIMA AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO AMCONSUL GUAYAQUIL NSC WASHINGTON DC 0000 -------------- header ends -------------- S E C R E T STATE 035745 E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/10/2019 TAGS: PREL PINR SNAR EC SUBJECT: A/S SHANNON'S MEETINGS WITH ECUADORIAN OFFICIALS TO DISCUSS ECUADORIAN ACCUSATIONS OF U.S. INTERFERENCE REF: A. QUITO 217 ¶B. QUITO 160 ¶C. QUITO 153 ¶D. QUITO 145 Classified By: A/S SHANNON, REASONS 1.4 (B) and (D). ¶1. Summary. (S/NF) On April 1, A/S Shannon met Ecuadorian Justice Minister Jalkh, Vice Foreign Minister Pozo, and other GOE officials to discuss GOE accusations that an embassy official had taken actions to destabilize the government of Ecuador. Making clear the GOE's desire to work with the USG on security matters, Jalkh alleged inappropriate contacts between the Embassy officers and Ecuadorian "bad actors" known to have a criminal history. A/S Shannon responded that we would investigate the allegations, reaffirmed the U.S. desire to work constructively with Ecuador, and stressed the importance of working with Ambassador Hodges on this matter going forward. At the conclusion of the meeting, Pozo handed A/S Shannon a printed presentation that summarized the GOE's allegations. ¶2. (S/NF) Summary (Continued). On April 3, A/S Shannon and DAS McMullen had a follow up meeting with Minister Jalkh and Ambassador Gallegos. A/S Shannon informed Minister Jalkh that Embassy Quito had conducted a preliminary investigation of the allegations made by the GOE. He said that the USG had not found inappropriate behavior on the part of the embassy offer. He added that the USG was concerned that a third party might have been involved in this approach to the embassy, and he requested a cooperative investigation between the embassy and the GOE to get to the bottom of the matter. He noted that the United States has no desire to destabilize Ecuador and seeks cooperation. However, he cautioned that any further expulsions of embassy staff would be very problematic. Both Jalkh and A/S Shannon closed by stressing the need to get beyond current difficulties and reestablish broad cooperation. End Summary. April 1 Meeting -------------- ¶3. (S/NF) A/S Shannon met with Ecuador's Minister of Justice, Gustavo Jalkh; MFA Vice Minister, Lautaro Pozo; Permanent Representative to the UN, Maria Espinosa; Permanent Representative to the OAS, Efren Cocios; Chief of Staff of for VM Pozo, Efrain Baus; and Ambassador to the United States, Luis Gallegos, on April 1 to discuss GOE allegations of an effort by an Embassy Quito officer to destabilize the government of Ecuador. WHA/DAS, WHA/AND Officer Director, INL/LP Office Director, and the Ecuador Desk Officer also participated. Jalkh opened by noting that he had only been in his current position for six weeks. He reviewed the tough work involved in reforming Ecuador's national police, and noted that security on the northern border of Ecuador is a key priority. He stressed that social development in Ecuador is crucial to the task of protecting both human rights and security. ¶4. (S/NF) Jalkh next stated that the GOE had found some issues that needed to be addressed to strengthen the bilateral relationship with the United States: "Cooperation is our goal; we wish to work together on all fronts through time, government to government." Referring to the recent expulsions of two U.S. officials (reftels),Jalkh asserted that the GOE could not have responded any other way. He added that the GOE hoped that such difficulties would not happen again and that the GOE needs improved communication with the United States. ¶5. (S/NF) Jalkh moved on to the specific point of the meeting. According to Jalkh, the GOE had evidence of an inappropriate meeting at Embassy Quito between an Embassy officer and "bad actors" in Ecuador. Jalkh further asserted that the emboff offered benefits to these individuals in exchange for speaking ill of the GOE regarding narcotics matters. Jalkh underlined that his goal was to address this matter so broader cooperation could take place. He said, "We need to talk of this. We want to work with you on this. We believe in human rights and democratic controls. This is a new type of government." He added that the GOE had massive problems on its northern border and would like to cooperate with the United States on the refugee problem. He also said that Ecuador does not get the recognition it deserves for its efforts on its northern border. Summing up, Jalkh said, "We want to turn the page to our mutual concerns, but we have to get over this issue (of alleged Embassy meddling)." ¶6. (S/NF) VM Pozo next spoke. According to Pozo, "We know this is not the policy of the United States. This is a clear conspiracy to destabilize the government of Ecuador. There were phone calls to set up the meeting. This involves a well known criminal. It is very upsetting." Pozo said the GOE did not meet with the embassy regarding this matter, ostensibly in an effort to reduce tensions. Commenting on the GOE's recent expulsions of Embassy officials from Ecuador, Pozo said: "We know this (the allegedly nefarious actions of the expelled emboffs) is not the policy of the Department of State. These were personal actions by these individuals." He said the GOE wants this matter investigated. Pozo said that President Correa told Pozo and Jalkh to travel to the United States to raise these issues and claimed that the GOE had a real desire to cooperate with the United States. ¶7. (S/NF) A/S Shannon responded by thanking the GOE officials for the information they had provided. He said the USG would investigate the situation, and told the officials that the United States had no interest in interfering in domestic matters, and was particularly sensitive to such concerns during an election campaign. Shannon noted the efforts of the Correa administration to reconfigure the government and create the possibility of stability. He added that a stable Ecuador with political and economic development is important--especially in an integrating and globalizing world: "We share an interest in improving dialogue, identifying common interests, and working together." He noted that problems in bilateral relations between Ecuador and the United States would cause damage in the region. Pointing out that both countries are in a political transition, A/S Shannon said that the Obama administration is seeking to "reimagine relations in the hemisphere." ¶8. (S/NF) Jalkh agreed, emphasizing the need to work on common interests. He said the GOE was serious about democratic controls; about the fight against illicit narcotics; and about creating a new ethos and legal framework for the police. Jalkh highlighted GOE plans to increase its police presence on the northern border. He said the GOE would measure its effectiveness along the northern border, "not by resources added, but if we take down gangs." Pozo echoed Jalkh's comments. He said that Ecuador had a significant state presence on the northern border, with 11,000 troops (or one quarter of all Ecuadorian troops). He added that the GOE is worried about demobilized Colombians creating additional problems and said, "We are victims." Ambassador Espinosa briefly mentioned that Ecuador had an exemplary record with respect to refugees. ¶9. (S/NF) A/S Shannon replied that the United States understands the problems Ecuador faces along its northern border, including the situation regarding refugees and the need for investment. He pointed out that there are more Colombian refugees in the region than there are refugees in Darfur and that the lack of awareness in the hemisphere regarding the problem was the fault of the inter-American system, which has failed to capture and articulate the needs of refugees in the region. ¶10. (S/NF) Moving back to the bilateral relationship, A/S Shannon asserted the need to reconfigure our diplomatic relations, and emphasized the confidence and respect the State Department and the White House had for Ambassador Hodges. He also emphasized that occasional points of disagreement between the United States and Ecuador did not represent the totality of relations between the two countries. Ambassador Gallegos responded to this final point by stating that "we need to denarcoticize relations" and focus on other items, such as economic, social, security, and development matters. He commented that the bilateral dialogue presented a chance to expand relations and that new items should be added to the dialogue's agenda. Gallegos noted that relations between the United States and Ecuador needed to be transparent and respectful. ¶11. (S/NF) At different moments during the discussion, both Jalkh and Pozo raised the matter of vetted units in Ecuador (reftels). Jalkh stressed that the GOE had three main requirements for future cooperation: first, any agreements must be in writing; second, all agreements must be coordinated through the GOE's MFA; and third, the vetting process must be collaborative. He said that the GOE recognized that cooperating on intelligence matters was different, and that the GOE would try to accommodate the USG on this. He also mentioned, "It is not good to have only one good unit" to combat narcotics trafficking in Ecuador. Pozo stressed that vetted units must be under the control of the civilian authority. ¶12. (S/NF) As the meeting ended, Minister Pozo handed A/S Shannon two documents providing details of illegal armed groups along Ecuador's northern border and the GOE's military position along the northern border. He also provided a printed PowerPoint presentation that outlined the GOE's specific assertions regarding the March 24 meeting of the Ecuadorian "bad actors" and embassy officers. April 3 Follow Up Meeting -------------- ¶13. (S/NF) A/S Shannon and WHA DAS McMullen met with Minister Jalkh and Ambassador Gallegos on April 3 for a follow up discussion. A/S Shannon told Jalkh that Embassy Quito had completed a preliminary inquiry into the March 24 meeting, when the allegedly "inappropriate meeting" took place. He said that what the Embassy had discovered caused us concern, though our concerns were different from those expressed by the GOE at the April 1 meeting. A/S Shannon said that the USG was concerned that a third party might have been involved in this approach to the Embassy. He said the USG considered it important for the GOE to work cooperatively with our embassy to investigate what happened; he asked the GOE to share any additional information -- such as tapes of telephone conversations between Munoz and Rodas following the meeting at the embassy. He emphasized to Jalkh that the embassy official had done nothing inappropriate by simply meeting with Ecuadorians who had claimed to have information on the FARC. ¶14. (S/NF) A/S Shannon reiterated that the USG had no reason to try to destabilize the Correa government. He said that, given Ecuador's recent turbulent history, the USG was hoping that Correa would bring stability, democracy and development to Ecuador. He added that the United States would like to get past this incident as soon as possible and reestablish close cooperation in areas of mutual interest. ¶15. (S/NF) Minister Jalkh responded that the GOE appreciated the quick response and committed the GOE to working with Embassy Quito to follow up. He pledged to set up a meeting with Ambassador Hodges on April 6 to discuss next steps. Jalkh added that the GOE also wanted to turn the page and move on -- and collaborate closely on a broad set of issues, not just security. He said the GOE appreciated the U.S. decision not to retaliate for Ecuador's expulsion of two Embassy officers. While the GOE believed that those Embassy officers had acted inappropriately, he acknowledged that the USG had the sovereign right to retaliate, but had chosen not to do so. In an implied reference to the Summit of the Americas, Jalkh mentioned that it would be helpful if both countries' leaders could meet and get to know one another. ¶16. (S/NF) A/S Shannon again stated that the United States wanted to find points of convergence with Ecuador and was not seeking confrontation. He warned, however, that any further expulsions by the GOE would be very problematic. He closed by stressing the importance of both countries moving beyond this rough patch in relations; he hoped that the April 6 meeting with Ambassador Hodges and her team would be a first step in that direction. CLINTON =======================CABLE ENDS============================