AUSTRIA ON UNGA WALKOUT REDLINES

C O N F I D E N T I A L VIENNA 001217 SIPDIS IO/UNP FOR DEUTSCH; USUN FOR SIMON E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/21/2024 TAGS: PREL UNGA AU SUBJECT: AUSTRIA ON UNGA WALKOUT REDLINES REF: STATE 097566 Classified By: Econ/Pol Counselor Dean Yap. Reason: 1.4(b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Econ/Pol Counselor delivered reftel message to Austrian MFA Deputy UN Affairs Director Georg Diwald (Director Peter Huber was en route to New York) and Middle East Deputy Director Christoph Meran on Sept. 21. Diwald noted that, sharing U.S. concerns, Austria supported the development of an EU consensus on walkout redlines and would join whatever consensus emerged. He thought there was a realistic prospect for achieving that consensus at PolDir level. ¶2. (C) Meran indicated that the seven points in the U.S. redlines had, "since Durban II." been substantially adopted by the EU; he saw no problem with them. He asked, though, whether the U.S. would also consider an Iranian charge that foreign states had sought to instigate a counter-revolution in Iran to be sufficient grounds for a walkout. Austria would find such allegations "unacceptable." However, Austria and the EU would be interested in hearing U.S. views on how a walkout sparked by such a charge might affect the October 1 talks. ¶3. (C) Meran also asked whom the U.S. would have behind the U.S. placard for Ahmadinejad's speech and said that this point should also be coordinated between the U.S. and EU in New York. EACHO