UGANDA MAY TAKE LEAD ON COUP PRST

C O N F I D E N T I A L USUN NEW YORK 000366 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/06/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL UNSC XA UV LY UG SUBJECT: UGANDA MAY TAKE LEAD ON COUP PRST REF: STATE 30234 Classified By: Ambassador S. Rice, for reasons 1.4 b/d ¶1. (C) Summary. USUN delivered reftel demarche to the missions of Libya, Uganda, Burkina Faso, and the African Union (AU). Uganda expressed interest in taking the lead in drafting a Council statement on recent coups in Africa, and is currently reaching out to the Libyans and the Burkinabe to gauge their interest. Libya expressed concern about singling out Mauritania and called for practical responses to coups. Burkina Faso was still awaiting formal instructions from Ouagadougou. The AU believed a formal Presidential Statement (PRST) would "definitely be helpful." End Summary. LIBYA SKEPTICAL ABOUT SINGLING OUT MAURITANIA ¶2. (C) DepPolCouns and Poloff met with Libyan Minister Counselor Mohamed-fakhri Elkrekshi and Political Coordinator Ahmed Gebreel on April 2 to deliver reftel demarche, suggesting that a UN Presidential Statement (PRST) would be an effective tool for supporting AU efforts regarding recent coups in Africa. Gabreel said Libya did not accept coups, but dealt with each crisis on a case-by-case basis. He called for practical responses to coups that encouraged a process that led to elections. He said Mauritania, which he noted will hold elections in June and has invited international monitors to observe them, might warrant different treatment vis-a-vis Guinea and Madagascar. DepPolCouns replied that an election process leaving coup leaders in office until election day was unlikely to prove free, fair, and transparent. ¶3. (C) Gabreel thought a PRST that offered a general statement against coups might make for an effective and preventative Council message. Elkreskshi suggested using the upcoming Council meetings on Guinea-Bissau (on April 8) or Madagascar (on April 7) as potential opportunities to consider a product of some sort. Gabreel said they would discuss the possibility of a PRST with Tripoli and their ambassador, and then, to get a common African position, with the Burkinabe and Ugandans. UGANDA APPEARS SUPPORTIVE OF PRST ¶4. (C) USUN also met with Ugandan Political Arthur Kafeero on April 2. The Ugandan Counselor said that Uganda supported some action from the Security Council, and had made the point with the African Union. He said that Uganda had strongly supported the AU decision to sanction Mauritania, and thought the AU decision could be used as the basis for a PRST. Following up on April 6, Kafeero said Uganda is in the process of reaching out to the Libyans and Burkinabe, and that, at this preliminary stage, he was encouraged for the PRST's prospects. BURKINA FASO AWAITING INSTRUCTIONS ¶5. (C) USUN delivered reftel demarche to Burkinabe Political Counselor Bonaventure Koudougou on April 3. Koudougou said the idea of a PRST was under consideration and that he would be in touch when he received further instructions. AFRICAN UNION SAYS A COUP PRST WOULD BE "DEFINITELY HELPFUL" ¶6. (C) Ambassador DiCarlo delivered reftel demarche to the AU on April 6. AU Mission PermRep Lila Ratsifandrihamanana said a PRST would be "definitely helpful," and welcomed any Security Council support for the AU. She also cited the AU's decision from the February Assembly which condemned the coups in Mauritania and Guinea, as well as its recent condemnation of Madagascar's coup, as specific AU actions that the Council could support. Ratsifandrihamanana said she would contact the African members of the Security Council to see how she could assist in the creation of a PRST. Rice