Cablegate: New French Ambassador to Finland Gerard Cros
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
C O N F I D E N T I A L PARIS 003014
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/04/2015
TAGS: PREL PINR FI PBIO FR CROS GERARD
SUBJECT: NEW FRENCH AMBASSADOR TO FINLAND GERARD CROS
Classified By: CDA Josiah Rosenblatt for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
1. (C) According to the official GoF "Daily Bulletin" on May
2, Gerard Cros will be the next French Ambassador in
Helsinki. Although Cros has been involved in work on the
Congo Basin Forest partnership, he appears to have been
essentially without a job since being replaced as MFA Africa
Director at the end of 2002. His official title has been
Diplomatic Counselor.
2. (C) When Cros left the Africa Department, then-FM Villepin
said it was because Cros had asked for a change, and that his
performance since assuming his duties in July 2001 had been
excellent. Our contacts in the Africa Department confirmed
that because Cros' wife was extremely ill, suffering from
cancer, Cros had asked for less demanding duties. However,
it had also become apparent during Villepin's frequent
travels to Africa that Cros did not have the Foreign
Minister's confidence.
3. (C) We found Cros to be relatively open during his tenure
as Africa Director and he maintained excellent relations with
then-AF A/S Kansteiner. Cros has served overseas at the UN,
Pretoria, Beijing, and as Ambassador to Mozambique, Chile,
and Indonesia. His English is approximately 3/3 plus.
ROSENBLATT