AMBASSADOR'S CONVERSATION WITH PRESIDENT ARIAS

C O N F I D E N T I A L TEGUCIGALPA 000596 SIPDIS STATE FOR WHA A/S TOM SHANNON E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/15/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM HO SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S CONVERSATION WITH PRESIDENT ARIAS REF: A. TEGUCIGALPA 516 ¶B. SECSTATE 69222 Classified By: Classified by Hugo Llorens for reasons 1.4 (b & d). ¶1. (C) The Ambassador spoke to Costa Rican President Oscar Arias yesterday afternoon. Arias reiterated his position that the Saturday mediation session in San Jose will be critical to his efforts. He said he planned to put on the table the core issues that need to be dealt with soon if a solution was to be found for the Honduran crisis and its return to the democratic path. He said he planned to table the issue of President Zelaya's return to Honduras, and allow him to resume his rightful presidential mandate. He said he would also be willing to discuss the terms of a negotiated settlement that would give Zelaya opponents and de facto regime members the guarantees necessary to ensure an agreement. Arias said that he supported many of the ideas that he and the Secretary had previously discussed. For example, he believed that the granting of political amnesty and the creation of a national unity would be important elements of an agreement. He said amnesty would be strictly political and not absolve anyone accused of committing common crimes. Arias believes that part of an agreement would require the military high command, at the very least General Vasquez, to resign. However, Arias said he would suggest giving someone like Vasquez an Ambassadorship, or some incentive to get him out of the country. He said he wanted to try to convince Micheletti that he needed to go out through the "big door," by which he meant that Micheletti should be allowed to make the case that he had acquired the power but had given it up for the good of the nation, democracy and the constitution. ¶2. (C) Arias said his brother Rodrigo and Foreign Minister Stagni had pressed Micheletti commission representative Arturo Corrales yesterday on the urgent need for the Micheletti team to come to San Jose ready to seriously consider a deal. Arias said Rodrigo and Stagni believed that for the first time they had begun to have an impact on Corrales and that Corrales had vowed to try to convince de facto regime officials including Micheletti. ¶3. (C) The Ambassador briefed Arias on the status of the Zelaya-Flores channel and Zelaya's view that the Flores channel could be critical to the success of the Arias mediation. The Ambassador gave Arias Flores's contact information and Arias said he would call him. The Ambassador told Arias that his instructions from Washington were to keep the pressure on the Micheletti side and press them to come to the table in San Jose in a serious way. Arias appreciated the U.S.'s strong support for his mediation effort. ¶4. (C) Arias called the Ambassador again on July 15, 2009 saying he was seeking support from other countries, in addition to the U.S., to put pressure on the Micheletti side. He said he had spoken to Spanish President Zapatero who agreed to have his Charge d'Affaires weigh-in with Micheletti regime officials. He said he would also be seeking the support of President Calderon of Mexico. Arias told the Ambassador that he was considering asking both Micheletti and Zelaya whether they would agree to face-to-face conversations. The Ambassador agreed that personal contact between the two would be positive. He asked who else should he be talking to in Honduras. The Ambassador suggested that Cardinal Rodriguez was a critical player here, although he was in the anti-Zelaya camp. The Ambassador said he was in contact with the Cardinal and was attempting to get him to throw his weight behind the Arias mediation effort. The Ambassador suggested that Arias also call the Cardinal and appeal directly to him. Arias said he would do so. LLORENS