VZCZCXRO6076
OO RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #2276 2611358
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 181358Z SEP 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4613
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA PRIORITY
UNCLAS KHARTOUM 002276
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
DEPT ALSO FOR AF A/S FRAZER AND AF/SPG
NSC FOR COURVILLE AND SHORTLEY
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO SU
SUBJECT: DARFUR CONFERENCE REQUIRES COORDINATED
INTERNATIONAL ENGAGEMENT
REF: A. STATE 140816
B. KHARTOUM 02010
C. KHARTOUM 02020
D. KHARTOUM 02045
E. KHARTOUM 02104
F. KHARTOUM 02264
1. (SBU) At a working-level meeting of the Darfur Partners
Group on September 17, representatives of the USG, UK,
Netherlands, Canada, France, Norway, Italy, and EU agreed
that significant preparatory work with the non-signatories of
the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) is needed at the local level
prior to a leadership conference. Given the recent
splintering of the non-signatory commanders and political
leadership, such international engagement must be coordinated.
2. (SBU) The Embassy's Senior Security Advisor and his UK
colleagues began the meeting with a summary of their recent
exploratory trip to Darfur. They reported that SLM/Abdul
Wahid appeared to have splintered into four groups and said
they had heard from one SLM/Abdul Wahid commander that the
forces of Ahmed Abdul Shafi were "worse than the janjaweed."
Despite this, local commanders and leaders remain willing to
participate in a conference in Jebel Marra. The EU
representative informed the group that one Abdul Wahid
commander had later called to apologize for the hard-line
approach taken in meetings with the USG and UK
representatives. He had explained that several Abdul Wahid
relatives had been present, which had prevented free
discussion.
3. (SBU) The Darfur partners proposed the following
five-prong approach to lay the groundwork for a leadership
conference.
-- Creation of a small group of Western diplomats to reach
out to non-signatories, both in Darfur and through the
non-signatories' representatives in Khartoum, on behalf of
the international community. The group would engage with
local leaders to promote constructive political cooperation
in preparation for a leadership conference. The emphasis
would be on developing approaches to achieve peace and to
support the DPA.
-- Development of a contact list of non-signatories agreed to
by the Darfur Partners Group.
-- Development of talking points agreed to by the Darfur
Partners Group for use in outreach to the non-signatory
commanders and political leaders.
-- Development of a draft protocol or annex to the DPA to
address the concerns of the non-signatories and encourage
their accession to the agreement. This protocol could be
used during local outreach efforts.
-- Development of a list of essential requirements to support
and strengthen Minni Minawi and a recommended timeline for
implementation.
4. (SBU) The group recommended that the five-prong approach
be adopted at the Chief of Mission-level during the Darfur
Partners Group meeting on September 20.
HUME