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DE RUCNDT #1183/01 3522250
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 182250Z DEC 07
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3361
INFO RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI IMMEDIATE 1964
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO IMMEDIATE 8399
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA IMMEDIATE 0898
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN IMMEDIATE 0894
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD IMMEDIATE 1726
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL IMMEDIATE 0878
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO IMMEDIATE 0919
RUEHUJA/AMEMBASSY ABUJA IMMEDIATE 0344
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES IMMEDIATE 0577
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 USUN NEW YORK 001183
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL KUNR UNSC IN JA BR
SUBJECT: UNSC REFORM: LITTLE CHANGE IN SUBSTANCE BUT SOME
MOVEMENT ON PROCESS
REF: A. USUN 1142
B. USUN 1032
1. (SBU) Summary. During a meeting of the Open-Ended Working
Group (OEWG) on UNSC expansion on December 14, President of
the General Assembly (PGA) Srgjan Kerim announced that he had
created a three-PermRep "task force" to help him advance the
upcoming inter-governmental negotiations on Council reform.
But he emphasized that it would be up to member states to
identify the "elements" and put forward a document that could
serve as a basis for these negotiations. While G-4 (Japan,
India, Brazil, and Germany) and Uniting for Consensus (UFC --
led by Pakistan, Italy, and Egypt) delegations largely agreed
on the categories of negotiables, they disagreed sharply
about how these negotiations should proceed, with the G-4
arguing that the OEWG has outlived its usefulness and UFC
insisting that all negotiations must take place within the
working group. Amb Wolff underscored that delegations cannot
disregard Kerim's principle that UNSC reform must go
hand-in-hand with reform of the broader UN and joined China
and Russia in reinforcing the importance of inclusive
negotiations through the OEWG. G-4 delegations, led by
Germany, nevertheless forged ahead with a timeline that
envisions inter-governmental negotiations beginning in
February 2008. The Germans convened on December 12 a meeting
of an over-arching group, to which they did not/not invite
USUN, to develop proposals on the six categories of elements
to present to Kerim as a basis for negotiations. End Summary.
PGA Outlines General Process
----------------------------
2. (U) As previewed in ref A, PGA Kerim announced that
Bangladesh PR Ismat Jahan, Chilean PR Heraldo Munoz, and
Portugese PR Joao Salgueiro had agreed to serve as
Vice-Chairman of the OEWG, and that together with Kerim they
would comprise a "task force" on UNSC reform. The role of
the task force would be to serve as focal points for
communication with member states, in particular to identify
"elements" for the inter-governmental negotiations on UNSC
reform. But Kerim emphasized that "it will be up to member
states to identify and put forward a document to the task
force that could serve as a basis for inter-governmental
negotiations." He expressed the intention to convene
"focused meetings" in February, April, and June on UNSC
reform, but said this timetable would be conditional on the
progress achieved. Kerim also reiterated that his "seven
pillars" for UNSC reform (contained in ref B) should guide
the process going forward. In his concluding remarks, Kerim
emphasized that member states proposing a textual basis for
negotiations was not a substitute for the OEWG. Rather, the
working group would continue to exist until
inter-governmental negotiations actually begin.
Broad Agreement on Categories of "Negotiables"
--------------------------------------------- -
3. (U) Although G-4 and UFC countries repeated the same
substantive positions on UNSC reform they expressed during
the November 2007 plenary debate (ref B), they largely agreed
on the list of categories of elements that should serve as a
basis for inter-governmental negotiations called for in the
UNGA resolution on UNSC reform adopted in September 2007.
Drawing from the 2007 reports of the two facilitators, most
delegations agreed the negotiations should cover the
following areas: the size of an enlarged Council, categories
of membership (permanent vs. non-permanent), method of
electing new members, the question of the veto (for both
existing permanent members and new members), UNSC working
methods, and a review mechanism. Pakistan and Spain added
the question of regional representation to the list, but
India objected to this category on the grounds that neither
Spain nor Italy had convinced EU leaders to embrace regional
representation on the UNSC at the recent EU summit in Lisbon,
so the idea would not work at the UN. In his concluding
remarks, Kerim noted that there appeared to be "considerable
support for an intermediary approach" to UNSC reform, but he
did not endorse any particular list of negotiable elements.
4. (U) Within the P-5, while the U.S., China, and Russia
USUN NEW Y 00001183 002 OF 003
avoided comment on the set of negotiable elements, the UK and
France appeared to endorse them. Amb Wolff noted that while
the U.S. has no specific proposal for Council expansion, it
looked forward to reviewing new "realistic and reasonable"
proposals for "modest expansion" of the Council. But he
emphasized that modest expansion of the Council is not a goal
in itself, and in this regard, reminded delegations that they
could not simply pay "lip service" to Kerim's first "pillar"
that UNSC reform must go hand in hand with transformation of
the wider UN system. Amb Wolff urged Kerim to help establish
mechanisms in parallel with the OEWG process to ensure broad
UN reform, including in areas such as UN decision-making and
financing. China did not endorse the list of categories but
did say UNSC reform should result in greater representation
for developing countries, especially in Africa, and protect
the interests of small countries. Russia also did not
comment on the list of negotiables, but said it was prepared
to examine proposals based on "realism," warning against
"excessive" expansion of the Council. Most African
delegations also endorsed the categories of negotiables
outlined by the UFC and G-4.
But Sharp Disagreement on Process
---------------------------------
5. (U) Although they largely agreed on the categories of
negotiables, G-4 and UFC delegations disagreed sharply about
where and how these negotiations should take place. G-4
delegations, led by India and Germany, bemoaned the "lack of
progress" within the OEWG over the past 14 years and argued
that inter-governmental negotiations could not/not take place
within the working group because of its reliance on consensus
decision-making. UFC delegations, led by Pakistan and Italy,
insisted that the OEWG must remain the forum in which to
begin inter-governmental negotiations, in order to ensure the
transparency and inclusiveness of the process. The rival
camps also disagreed about the utility of the over-arching
group meeting called by Germany (see para 7). While Brazil
and India endorsed the meeting called by Germany, Pakistan
expressed "great concern" about "any exclusive, unilateral,
or self-generated group" that seeks to "determine a course of
action or make proposals on behalf of the rest of the
membership." Italy, acknowledging it had been invited to
attend the German meeting but declined, implied that such
meetings replicate the work of the OEWG and are redundant.
6. (U) While the U.S., China, and Russia explicitly
reaffirmed the role of the OEWG and by implication the need
for the "broadest possible agreement" or even "consensus" on
UNSC reform, the UK and France ducked the issue entirely.
Amb Wolff argued the OEWG represents the "appropriate forum"
in which to undertake inter-governmental negotiations and the
best guarantee that the process will remain inclusive. China
said it was open to ideas like the PGA's task force, but the
process should be "open, transparent, and ensure equal
participation for all." In this regard, it noted that the
task force and any over-arching group convened to advise it
would present only "informal advice" to be considered by the
OEWG. Russia underscored the need for "very broad" support
for UNSC reform that goes beyond the two-thirds required for
an amendment to the Charter. Most African delegations
refrained from comment on the utility of the OEWG, although
Egypt argued that the working group constitutes the "only
forum in which to discuss UNSC reform."
G-4 Pushes Ahead (Maybe Without U.S.)
-------------------------------------
7. (SBU) Despite lack of agreement on the process moving
forward on UNSC reform, Germany led G-4 delegations in
outlining an ambitious timeline to begin inter-governmental
negotiations. The German PR announced that he had convened
on December 12 a meeting of an over-arching group, "open to
all" but about which only some were informed in advance, to
begin drafting options for the six categories of negotiable
elements. Although USUN was not/not invited to the German
meeting, we learned that of the roughly 25 delegations
present, most were either G-4 members or their supporters.
Representatives of the S-5 group on working methods were
invited, as were France and the UK from the P-5. Italy was
USUN NEW Y 00001183 003 OF 003
the only major UFC country invited, but it declined to
attend. According to participants at the meeting, the
Germans asked six different countries to volunteer to draft
six separate papers with options on the negotiable elements
by early January. If not enough volunteers come forward, the
Germans would draft the papers themselves, with a view to
presenting the PGA with a basis on which to begin
inter-governmental negotiations in February. The Japanese PR
said during the OEWG meeting that he supported this timeframe.
Khalilzad