VZCZCXYZ0024
RR RUEHWEB
DE RUEHOT #0563 1131928
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 221928Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY OTTAWA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7740
INFO RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 1101
RUEHSW/AMEMBASSY BERN 1702
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS 0722
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 1341
RUEHCP/AMEMBASSY COPENHAGEN 2335
RUEHLJ/AMEMBASSY LJUBLJANA 0074
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0921
RUEHMD/AMEMBASSY MADRID 2173
RUEHNY/AMEMBASSY OSLO 2365
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 0996
RUEHPG/AMEMBASSY PRAGUE 0539
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 1362
RUEHSM/AMEMBASSY STOCKHOLM 2046
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 1459
RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE 3473
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 3351
RUEHWR/AMEMBASSY WARSAW 0926
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON 0250
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS 0629
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0395
UNCLAS OTTAWA 000563
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR WHA, IO/EDA AND OES/ENV
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SENV AORC PREL EAGR EUN EAID ECON CA
SUBJECT: CANADIAN REPRESENTATION AT CSD-16
REF: STATE 40180
Sensitive but Unclassified. Protect accordingly.
1. (SBU) Embassy made demarche requested reftel and discussed
U.S. views on Zimbabwe chairing the 16th session of the UN
Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-16) with Pamela
O'Donnell, director of the Department of Foreign Affairs and
International Trade's Sustainable Development Division.
O'Donnell confirmed that Canada has similar concerns with
Francis Nhema chairing CSD-16 and is "on the same wavelength"
with the U.S. on this matter.
2. (SBU) O'Donnell said the Canadian delegation to the
meeting will be lead by her deputy (Rachel McCormick), but
that the highest ranking member of the delegation will
actually be a director general (roughly equivalent to a
deputy assistant secretary) from Agriculture Canada. While
Canada will thus not be represented at a high level at
CSD-16, this in fact is not a departure from previous
meetings: O'Donnell said it had been years since a Canadian
minister attended.
3. (SBU) O'Donnell added that Canadian officials had been
hearing rumors recently that Zimbabwe might yield chair
duties for the meeting to Tanzania, ostensibly because Nhema
might not be able to depart Zimbabwe.
Visit Canada,s Economy and Environment Forum at
http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/can ada
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