VZCZCXRO5085
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHEG #1139/01 1721308
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 211308Z JUN 09
FM AMEMBASSY CAIRO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2890
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0446
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0299

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 CAIRO 001139 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR IO, IO/UNP, IO/RHS, G/TIP, NEA AND NEA/ELA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/21/2029 
TAGS: PREL PHUM KWMN KPAL KPKO SCUL IS SU EG
SUBJECT: MFA OFFICIALS STRIKE A POSITIVE TONE MFA OFFICIALS STRIKE A POSITIVE TONE WITH A/S BRIMMER REF: A. CAIRO 680 B. CAIRO 572 C. CAIRO 484 D. CAIRO 397 E. CAIRO 217 F. 08 CAIRO 2584 Classified By: Ambassador Margaret Scobey for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
1.KEY POINTS -- (C) On June 7, IO A/S Brimmer told MFA Assistant Minister for Multilateral Affairs Naela Gabr that the U.S. wants to enhance cooperation with Egypt in multilateral fora, particularly on issues such as human rights, NGO accreditation and financial management. MFA officials agreed on the need for improved coordination on these issues. -- (C) Assistant Minister Gabr welcomed U.S. membership in the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), and raised the candidacy of Culture Minister Farouk Hosny for the position of UNESCO Director-General. -- (C) MFA officials discussed Egypt's role in African peacekeeping, and noted they had agreed to work with the U.S. on a freedom of expression resolution for the September UNHRC session. -- (C) Civil society activists encouraged a more balanced U.S. position on Israel at the UNHRC, and criticized UN member states' interference with the work of special rapporteurs.

2.(C) Gabr welcomed the "different tone" from Washington on multilateral issues, saying that previous confrontations in the UN system "hurt" Egypt. She committed that Egyptian chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) would be "non-confrontational." Gabr was "extremely pleased" with U.S. membership in the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), and promised that Egypt would work with the U.S. to strengthen the council. She said Egypt had chosen a theme for the NAM Summit in Sharm-El-Sheikh, Egypt in July: "International Solidarity for Peace and Development." Egypt plans to open a NAM women's center in Egypt that would focus on women's issues in the Middle East and Africa. Gabr said the U.S. would be invited to the summit, which will focus on food prices, health and the global financial crisis. According to Gabr, Egypt will soon host a women's issues meeting within the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC).

3.(C) Gabr said that when the names of certain U.S. NGOs include "gay and lesbian," it is difficult for OIC countries to approve their applications for ECOSOC consultative status. She noted, however, that Egypt opposes discrimination "in all its forms." Gabr said it would not be possible in UN fora to urge countries to abolish the death penalty, and she hoped to reach compromise language on abortion.

4.(C) A/S Brimmer said that the U.S. wants to change the tone in multilateral organizations and enhance cooperation with Egypt on particular areas such as human rights, maternal health, NGO accreditation and Fifth Committee finance issues. She pressed for the GOE to vote in favor of accrediting certain U.S. NGOs. When Assistant Minister Gabr noted that gay and lesbian issues were particularly sensitive, A/S Brimmer emphasized that even some well-respected groups not dealing with gay and lesbian issues have been waiting years for accreditation. She noted that the President has appointed an ambassador for global women's issues, Melanne Verveer, and the U.S. hopes to work with Egypt on women's issues. A/S Brimmer called for a longer-term strategy on food security, and she suggested that the June PGA session could focus on the impact of the global financial crisis. --------------------------------------- Candidates for UN Jobs and Farouk Hosny ---------------------------------------

5.(C) Gabr urged increased U.S. cooperation on Egyptian and Egyptian-suggested candidates for positions in the UN system, particularly for non-permanent UN Security Council seats and jobs with the International Court of Justice. She raised concern about the lack of U.S. feedback on candidates Egypt has proposed. Gabr raised the candidacy of Egyptian Culture Minister Farouk Hosny for the position of UNESCO Director-General, saying Hosny had been accustomed to speaking "openly as an artist" and therefore had made a "few CAIRO 00001139 002 OF 003 undiplomatic comments."

6.(C) Deputy Assistant Foreign Minister for International Political Affairs Ashraf Al-Moafy said Hosny had achieved a "real cultural renaissance" in Egypt and is therefore deserving of the job. Al-Moafy noted that the Israelis have stopped their active opposition to Hosny, and that he has wide international support in the Africa Group. A/S Brimmer said the U.S. has expressed concerns about Hosny, and believes candidates need to have a long, clear record on tolerance, consistent with the values of UNESCO. She stressed that the U.S. has a "range of concerns" about Hosny. ------------------------------ Multilateral Human Rights, TIP ------------------------------

7.(C) Deputy Assistant Foreign Minister for Human Rights Wael Aboulmagd said Egypt wants to improve cooperation with the U.S. at the UN Human Rights Council on issues such as freedom of expression and defamation of religion that have become "battlegrounds" between the West and the Muslim World. Aboulmagd noted that Egypt had reached an agreement with the U.S. not to run a freedom of expression resolution at the UNHRC June session to create time for bilateral consultations on a resolution at the September session. On trafficking-in-persons, Aboulmagd said the GOE established a National Coordinating Committee and is creating a unified, specialized code. Gabr encouraged the U.S. to sign on to the Durban Conference Outcome Document. A/S Brimmer said she had held discussions in Geneva on June 5 with PermReps from Egypt, Canada, South Africa and Pakistan on postponing resolutions on freedom of expression and defamation of religions until September. ------------------------------ UN Management and Peacekeeping ------------------------------

8.(C) MFA Office Director for UN Affairs Yasser Al-Naggar said that U.S.-Egyptian relations regarding UN Fifth Committee management and budget issues have been "very bad." He hoped for better consultations on UN budget issues. Regarding scales, the GOE believes ceilings are a distortion and wants effectiveness and efficiency. On peacekeeping, Al-Naggar called for member states to distinguish between lower and middle income countries. Naggar said there will soon be more than 5,500 Egyptian peacekeeping troops in Cote D'Ivoire and Congo, and that Egyptian contingents are heading to Darfur and Congo to conduct training. He noted that Egypt is active within the African Union on peacekeeping in developing a "stand-by force." A/S Brimmer expressed appreciation for Egypt's role in African peacekeeping and noted that the role of police in peacekeeping is also important. ---------------------- Civil Society Meetings ----------------------

9.(C) Executive Director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights Hossam Bahgat said the U.S. has "great political capital" to make progress at the UNHRC. He suggested that the UNHRC could do more on issues such as human rights violations in Sri Lanka, and encouraged the U.S. to sponsor a resolution on racism that could be based on language from President Obama's June 4 speech. Bahgat did not believe that Israel should be the only country singled out for criticism at the UNHRC. He also said that there should not be a permanent agenda item on Palestine. However, he cautioned the U.S. against "always taking Israel's side." He hoped the U.S. position on Israel would be more balanced following the President's speech, and asserted that Israeli-Palestinian issues politicize the UNHRC.

10.(C) Director of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies Bahey Al-Din Hassan criticized Egypt for working with the Africa Group and the OIC to undermine the UNHRC. He expressed particular concern over limits on the work of UN special rapporteurs. He predicted that the Sudan special rapporteur's mandate would only be extended for three months. Hassan also raised concern over the lack of criticism by states at Universal Periodic Review sessions. He criticized negative U.S. comments on the report of the special rapporteur on extra-judicial killings. A/S Brimmer stressed the importance of special rapporteurs, and noted the U.S. believes the Sudan special rapporteur's mandate should be CAIRO 00001139 003 OF 003 extended for one year.

11.(U) A/S Brimmer cleared this message. SCOBEY