THE CESS POOL: QADHAFI ORGANIZES THE NEIGHBORS

C O N F I D E N T I A L NDJAMENA 000443

NAIROBI FOR EMBASSY KHARTOUM OFFICE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/06/08
TAGS: PREL CD LY
SUBJECT: THE CESS POOL: QADHAFI ORGANIZES THE NEIGHBORS

REF: NDJAMENA 402 AND PREVIOUS (ALL NOTAL)

CLASSIFIED BY D. HALSTED. REASON 1.5 (B,D).


1. (U) PRESIDENT DEBY BROUGHT BACK FROM HIS FEBRUARY 3-
5 VISIT NEWS OF THE FORMATION OF THE COMMUNITY OF SAHEL-
SAHARA STATES (COMMUNAUTE DES ETATS SAHELO-SAHARIENS, OR
CESS). CESS, ACCORDING TO DEBY'S ANNOUNCEMENT, WOULD
APPEAR TO BE FIVE STATES: LIBYA, CHAD, NIGER, MALI, AND
SUDAN. THE CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC, BURKINA FASO,
TUNISIA AND EGYPT WERE OTHERS REPORTED TO HAVE BEEN
REPRESENTED AT THE TRIPOLI MEETING, AND MAY ALSO BE PART
OF THE NEW ORGANIZATION.


2. (U) DEBY SAID THE IDEA DATED BACK TO 1972. CESS
WOULD BE FIRST AN ECONOMIC GROUPING, THEN LATER A
POLITICAL ASSOCIATION, GIVING A GROUP OF LANDLOCKED
STATES OCEAN FRONTAGE. UNITY THEMES FIGURED IN HIS
DESCRIPTION: "AT A TIME WHEN IMPORTANT GROUPS ARE BEING
FORMED IN EUROPE AND ASIA, WE HAVE A DUTY, AS AFRICANS,
TO DEVELOP THE REALITY OF TOTAL AFRICAN INTEGRATION."
CESS IS TO FOCUS ON ECONOMIC COOPERATION IN AGRICULTURE,
INDUSTRY, ENERGY, COMMERCE AND FINANCE. PROVISIONAL
HEADQUARTERS WILL BE IN TRIPOLI, WITH LIBYAN MAHDI
AZHARI AS EXECEUTIVE SECRETARY AND CHADIAN ADOUM TOGOI
AS HIS DEPUTY. QADHAFI WAS NAMED PROVISIONAL PRESIDENT
OF CESS.


3. (C) COMMENT. CESS IS NOT LIKELY TO AMOUNT TO MUCH,
AT LEAST WHERE CHAD IS CONCERNED. IT MAY PROMPT SOME
DEBATE AS ANY AGREEMENT WILL PROBABLY BE REVIEWED BY THE
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY. CHAD WOULD GO TO CONSIDERABLE
LENGTHS TO ACCOMODATE QADHAFI, WHO IS GENERALLY REGARDED
WITHIN CHAD'S RULING GROUP AS A MENACE. UNDER BETTER
CONDITIONS, CHAD WOULD HAVE A GENUINE INTEREST IN A
ROUTE TO THE MEDITERRANEAN AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO CURRENT
TRANSPORTATION ARRANGEMENTS.


4. (C) THE ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT ADOUM TOGOI SOLVES ANY
MYSTERY OF WHERE HE WENT AFTER HIS NAME SURFACED AS A
COUP PLOTTER AGAINST DEBY. ALREADY A LEGEND FOR HIS
PRO-LIBYAN SYMPATHIES, TOGOI LOST HIS JOB AS CHAD'S
AMBASSADOR TO LIBYA WHEN HE GOT INTO A FIST FIGHT IN
NOVEMBER 1996 YEAR WITH THEN-FOREIGN MINISTER KEBZABO
OVER DIFFERENCES ABOUT LIBYAN POLICY, ALL RIGHT IN FRONT
OF A VISITING LIBYAN DELEGATION. DEBY GAVE HIM A JOB AT
THE PRESIDENCY SO HE COULD KEEP AN EYE ON HIM. TOGOI
WAS REMOVED FROM THAT JOB LAST NOVEMBER, AND THERE
ENSUED - FOR THIS REASON AND EVIDENTLY OTHERS - THE
CHALLENGE TO DEBY'S LEADERSHIP FROM FELLOW ZAGHAWAS
(REFTELS).


HALSTED