United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-Moon criticised President Robert Mugabe for the crisis in Zimbabwe which had resulted in an outbreak of cholera in the country and accused him of not forthcoming to ask for help.
United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Mugabe was either evil or mad and it was long pastime for him to go. She said the power-sharing agreement shouldn’t include him.
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband urged the United Nations Security Council members to agree that:
- That Zimbabwe’s predicament has been caused by misrule and corruption;
- That Zimbabwe’s people had clearly voted for change;
- That the crisis in Zimbabwe, especially in its health aspects, has become regional;
- and that the international community, most particularly the Security Council, needed to show leadership by helping to restart a process that could lead to progress on the humanitarian and political fronts.
Russian Permanent Representative Vitaly Churkin said that neither side to the Zimbabwe dispute seemed to be in a hurry to resolve the crisis and that both acted “almost like it does not exist”.
South Africa’s Permanent Representative Dumisani Kumalo said the negotiation process could produce a Prime Minister by Christmas but, “because we try to push, it moves very slowly”.
Full cable:
Viewing cable 08PARTO122201, U) Secretary Rice’s Participation in the December
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Reference ID |
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VZCZCXRO2839
OO RUEHAG RUEHBZ RUEHDF RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHIK RUEHJO RUEHLZ RUEHMA
RUEHMR RUEHPA RUEHRN RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHTRO
DE RUCNAI #0003/01 3572130
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 222130Z DEC 08
FM USDEL SECRETARY//NEW YORK//
TO RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK IMMEDIATE
INFO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHSB/AMEMBASSY HARARE PRIORITY
RUEHZO/AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARTO 122201
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: N/A
TAGS: OVIP RICE CONDOLEEZZA PHUM PGOV ZM
SUBJECT: (U) Secretary Rice’s Participation in the December
15, 2008 UN Security Council Meeting on Zimbabwe
¶1. (U) December 15, 2008; 3:00 PM; New York City
¶2. (U) Participants:
U.S.
The Secretary
Ambassador Khalilzad
Ambassador DiCarlo
Assistant Secretary Hook
Assistant Secretary Frazer
United Nations
Security General Ban Ki-moon
United Nations Security Council
Croatian Prime Minister Sanader (Council President)
United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Miliband
The Permanent Representatives of China, France, Russia,
Belgium, Indonesia, Panama, South Africa, Costa Rica, Libya,
Vietnam
The Deputy Permanent Representative of Italy
¶3. (SBU) SUMMARY: UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the
Security Council on December 15 that Zimbabwe’s leaders had
failed to address the crisis in the country and that their
inaction had caused a dramatic deterioration in the situation
as witnessed by a widespread and growing incidence of cholera.
The Secretary supported Ban’s call for heightened
international community action in Zimbabwe, adding that the
crisis there was particularly tragic in that it was man-made
and left no doubt that the man responsible was Robert Mugabe.
British Foreign Secretary Miliband said the “real disease is
the misrule of the regime.” France, Belgium, and Italy
strongly supported a heightened Security Council role in
mitigating the crisis. Russia was very critical of “both
sides” in Zimbabwe for failing to appreciate the crisis. END
SUMMARY.
¶4. (SBU) In a 90-minute meeting closed to television and the
press on December 15, UNSYG Ban used, what was for him,
unusually pointed language in criticizing Zimbabwe’s
leadership. Ban said Robert Mugabe had “not been forthcoming”
and that his regime had failed to address the political crisis
confronting the country. This inattention, Ban said, had
created a dramatic deterioration in living conditions and a
humanitarian crisis featuring a widespread outbreak of
cholera, dependency on international assistance for the
necessities of life, and the collapse of health and education
infrastructures. He put the number of cholera cases at
18,000, adding that projections had the total eventually
reaching 60,000. He said neither the Zimbabwe leadership nor
the mediators had welcomed a UN role and had “left limited
space for my good offices.”
¶5. (SBU) The Secretary said Ban’s report was very difficult
to listen to, particularly because the devastating crisis he
described was not the result of natural disaster but was man-
made instead. She called Mugabe’s recent accusation that the
international community was unleashing disease on Zimbabwe the
ranting of a man who was either evil or had gone mad. She
concluded that we were long past the time for Mugabe to go and
that a power-sharing government could not include him.
¶6. (SBU) UK Foreign Secretary Miliband urged Council members
to agree on four points: that Zimbabwe’s predicament has been
caused by misrule and corruption; that Zimbabwe’s people had
clearly voted for change; that the crisis in Zimbabwe,
especially in its health aspects, has become regional; and
that the international community, most particularly the
Security Council, needed to show leadership by helping to
restart a process that could lead to progress on the
humanitarian and political fronts.
¶7. (SBU) French PermRep Ripert said implementation of the
September 15 power-sharing agreement between the Zimbabwean
parties ZANU-PF and MDC was being blocked by the Mugabe regime
and that human rights abuses continued as evidenced by the
recent abduction of activist Jestina Mukoko. Belgian PermRep
Grauls criticized unnamed Council members for preventing the
Council from becoming unambiguously seized with the crisis in
Zimbabwe by holding a public session with a clear agenda
listing rather than the generic “Peace and Security in
Africa.” Italy, Panama, and Costa Rica agreed that the
session should have been open to the public in order to shine
a light on conditions in Zimbabwe. Costa Rican PermRep Urbina
added that the UN should play a more active role in resolving
the crisis.
¶8. (SBU) Russian PermRep Churkin said that neither side to
the Zimbabwe dispute seemed to be in a hurry to resolve the
crisis and that both acted “almost like it does not exist.”
He urged continuation of the mediation efforts of former South
African President Mbeki. South Africa PermRep Kumalo, after
declining to speak initially, offered a few words after being
directly invited by Miliband. Kumalo said he had not spoken
“because I agree with what has been said.” He said the
negotiation process could produce a prime minister by
Christmas but, “because we try to push, it moves very slowly.”
RICE
———————-
International Response
———————-
¶9. (C) Advani said the international community must
deliver a coordinated message to the Pakistani leadership
that it must permanently put a stop to terrorism emanating
from its territory. The Secretary agreed that the
international community should call on Pakistan to respond
in a responsible manner. She said that the USG had a
special interest in being involved in this matter because
six Americans had lost their lives in the attacks.
Citizens of many other countries had died in these attacks
as well. She noted that she had stopped in London on the
way to India and the United States and UK are in agreement
that they need to deliver a unified message to Pakistan.
———————————
GOP Recognizes the Responsibility
———————————
¶10. (C) The Secretary said she has spoken to President
Zardari and believes that he understands that Pakistan has
a special responsibility to respond in a credible manner
because Pakistan territory is involved. She observed that
the internal political situation in Pakistan is such that
the civilian government finds it difficult to respond in
the manner it would like to. She counseled that the
United States, India, and other countries should work
together to give the civilian government a chance to
respond.
—————
State of Denial
—————
¶11. (C) Advani observed that Pakistani state of denial on
Pakistani involvement in this attack is unacceptable. He
said that Pakistani leaders have a disinclination to do
anything other than make empty offers to cooperate in
investigating something that they know fully well
originated in their country. What matters, according to
him, is that Pakistan take concrete measures, not provide
mere assurances. In his view these measures must start
with steps to dismantle the infrastructure of cross-border
terrorism aimed at India. The Secretary responded that
she believes President Zardari wants to do that but faces
internal constraints. Advani said he is aware of the
multiple centers of power in Pakistan.
————————–
Instrument of State Policy
————————–
¶12. (C) Advani noted that Pakistan has long used terrorism
and terrorist groups as an instrument of state policy. It
had begun deploying these groups in a proxy war, according
to him, after conventional war failed to wrest Kashmir
from Indian control. He said that then-President
Musharraf had shared with him the inability of the GOP to
control or disband these groups, telling Advani in 2005
that “once a country adopts a certain approach (i.e., to
support these groups), it is difficult to reverse it.”
Advani added that the GOP had not realized that these
groups would finally turn on their masters, as they had
now begun to do. He emphasized, however, that the
Lashkar-e-Taiba is treated differently because it has not
yet acted against Pakistan. The Secretary responded that
the Pakistani leadership is starting to understand that
some of its past associations with extremist groups are
coming back to haunt it. She felt that President Zardari,
who lost wife Benazir Bhutto to a terrorist attack,
certainly understands this.
—————————-
Kashmir: De facto to De Jure
—————————-
¶13. (C) Advani suggested the Secretary could also
contribute to lowering tension in the region by “making
Islamabad realize that no gain will come” from its
fixation with Kashmir. According to him, India will never
part with Kashmir and after 60 years, “what was de facto
has become de jure.” He noted that Pakistan had assured
India of this in the 1972 Simla Agreement but ignored its
commitment. In his view, Kashmir is not the “core problem
and if it is a problem today, it became one only after
Pakistan used aggression there” he said. When asked by
the Secretary and A/S Boucher whether a resolution to the
Kashmir issue is possible if Pakistan agrees to accept the
Line of Control and then takes steps against terrorist
groups targeting India, Advani responded: “Mumbai comes
first. The country expects a clear and firm response.”
He evaded the question about resolving Kashmir and pointed
instead to a 1994 Indian parliament resolution on the
liberation of “Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.”
—————————-
Appreciation for Afghanistan
—————————-
¶14. (C) Advani offered his support and encouragement to
the United States as it faces enormous challenges in
fighting two wars and dealing with the financial crisis.
The Secretary thanked him and noted that the situation in
Iraq was going well with the country taking steps towards
stable government and democracy. In Afghanistan, the
problems that the United States and its allies are dealing
with are: safe havens for insurgents in Pakistan,
strengthening the government, and reconstruction and
economic stability. The Secretary expressed her
appreciation for the significant Indian effort in
Afghanistan.
RICE
(53 VIEWS)
