Cablegate: Lebanon: Codel Shays Meets with Pm Siniora
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OO RUEHAG RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHKUK RUEHLZ
DE RUEHLB #2804/01 2411601
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O 291601Z AUG 06
FM AMEMBASSY BEIRUT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5331
INFO RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 0201
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIRUT 002804
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E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: IS LE MOPS PGOV PREL PTER SY
SUBJECT: LEBANON: CODEL SHAYS MEETS WITH PM SINIORA
SUMMARY
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1. Prime Minister Siniora asked CODEL Shays for help in
lifting the air and sea blockade of Lebanon by IDF forces.
PM Siniora stated that not only was the blockade severely
impairing humanitarian and reconstruction efforts, but it
made the Lebanese people feel that the current period is
simply a hiatus in a continuing conflict. As he has with
many recent visitors, PM Siniora also emphasized the
importance of dealing with Shebaa Farms. If a just
resolution could be found, Siniora argued that Hizballah's
militia would lose its legitimacy with the Lebanese people,
Iran and Syria would lose influence in Lebanon, and Israel
would gain a stable northern border. Although the Prime
Minister discussed reconstruction assistance, he stated that
the U.S. aid would be even more valuable in helping the LAF
develop the necessary capabilities it needed to fulfill its
constitutional responsibility of securing Lebanon's borders.
CODEL Shays conveyed the support of the American people for
Lebanon and said they would ensure that their colleagues in
the U.S. House of Representatives understand the
precariousness of the cease-fire and the challenges faced by
the country's pro-reform forces. End summary.
2. CODEL Shays, comprising Representative Christopher Shays
(R-CT), Representative Al Green (D-TX), Representative Robert
Inglis (R-SC), and Representative Brian Higgins (R-NY), and
the Ambassador met with Prime Minister Siniora at the Grand
Serail on August 23. Senior GOL advisors Mohammad Chatta and
Rola Nouraddine also attended the late afternoon meeting.
3. The Prime Minister described the difficult challenges his
Government and the Lebanese people were facing as it tried to
stabilize a post-conflict environment that many of the
country's citizens believe may only be a pause in a much
longer war. PM Siniora said he was concerned about comments
coming out of Israel that could be interpreted as signaling
further hostilities. He also spoke of the considerable
damage inflicted on Lebanon, not only the loss of life, but
the leveling of many towns, and the destruction of a
significant portion of the country's industrial and
agricultural productive capacity.
LOSS OF CONFIDENCE
------------------
4. PM Siniora also explained to CODEL members that his
country was not exhibiting the same resilience it had shown
after prior conflicts, because few Lebanese now had
confidence in the future. He spoke of increasing emigration
of the best and the brightest of its citizens, and a notable
reluctance to re-invest in the country's badly damaged
economic base.
5. The Prime Minister spoke in grave tones about other
damage -- both material and in terms of morale -- from the
continuing air and sea blockade of his country by IDF forces.
He argued that unless this "state of siege" was removed, the
unique nature of Lebanon, which had made it a force for
moderation, tolerance, and democratic principles in a
difficult region, could well be lost. He cautioned that
unless the pro-reform Government was able to change things
for the better in Lebanon, extremist forces would take
advantage of the resulting desperation.
6. PM Siniora stated that despite the dangers, not all was
bleak. The Government has been able to garner sufficient
support across the political spectrum to authorize and
implement the first deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces
(LAF) to south Lebanon in almost 40 years. Siniora also felt
that his Government now had the instrument it needed to
compel the disarmament of Hizballah -- and that was UNSCR
1701's acknowledgment of the issue of Shebaa Farms.
7. PM Siniora asked the CODEL members to help his Government
find a just solution to the persistent problem of Shebaa. If
the people of Lebanon perceived that Shebaa was settled in a
fair manner, Siniora argued that they would then demand that
Hizballah put down its arms. In this manner, the Prime
Minister maintained the state could reclaim its
constitutional authority to be the only bearer of arms
throughout the country. He further stated that such a result
would not only bring stability to Lebanon, but to Israel as
well. In an ironic way, Siniora said that the "terrible
experience" of the recent war might lead to a rare
opportunity for Israel to finally live in peace with its
BEIRUT 00002804 002 OF 002
neighbors.
8. Representative Shays stated he was speaking for his
colleagues when he said that Lebanon's capacity to withstand
the many challenges of the past month had elicited wide
admiration in America. Rep. Shays said that the USG wanted
to assist in such a way that this would be the last war that
Lebanon would have to suffer, and asked the Prime Minister
for his priorities for U.S. support.
REQUEST TO LIFT THE BLOCKADE
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9. PM Siniora immediately stated that his most urgent
request was for America to use its influence to lift Israel's
"suffocating" air and sea blockade of his country. Siniora
said he understood Israel's concern that the flow of weapons
that prevailed prior to the conflict had to stop and that it
required his Government to implement much firmer control of
the country's borders. He insisted that the focus, however,
was misplaced by the on-going blockade. PM Siniora
maintained that neither the international airport nor the
port of Beirut were the principal routes for arms, but rather
it was Lebanon's border with Syria. And even here, Siniora
argued that recent deployments of additional LAF troops to
the border areas had begun to stanch such activity.
10. Next in importance for the Prime Minister was a request
for the USG to help focus international attention on Shebaa
Farms. In his opinion, not only was the "return" of Shebaa
the key to disarming Hizballah, but it also provided the
means to reduce Iranian influence in Lebanon. The popular
appeal of Hizballah relied on its reputation as a
"resistance" movement, and similarly, the importance of this
perceived mission allowed it to receive heavy Iranian
subsidies without much scrutiny from the Lebanese. If Shebaa
could be resolved, reasoned Siniora, the heavy influence of
Iran would no longer be tolerated. Regardless, Siniora
acknowledged the complexity and difficulty of the issue by
remarking, "...only the U.S. can solve the tough ones."
11. PM Siniora also noted that USG assistance with
reconstruction and rebuilding the country's security services
in accordance with modern, democratic principles would be
effective and most welcome, but he also admitted that other
nations could handle these tasks as well. The Prime Minister
emphasized again that the unique power and leverage of the
U.S. should be applied foremost to the issues of the blockade
and Shebaa.
"A WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY"
-------------------------
12. When asked by Rep. Shays why his Government doesn't
engage directly with the Government of Israel, PM Siniora
said that in the present context that would not be feasible.
But he did state that with a just and stable cease-fire, with
the LAF in control of the south, and Lebanon's borders
secure, the opportunity for solutions to region-wide issues
was more possible than ever before.
13. PM Siniora stated his belief that the violent and
basically inconclusive four weeks of warfare must have
convinced the Government of Israel that its security could
not be attained on the battlefield -- it would only be
achieved through honest negotiations with all its neighbors
and the eventual resolution of the long-standing grievances
of both sides.
14. PM Siniora stated that, with the probable exception of
Syria, all the Arab countries were finally beginning to speak
of the incalculable waste of the past decades and of a
lasting solution that would at long last stabilize and bring
prosperity to the region. Siniora also remarked that even
Syria, at some point, could be persuaded by the moderate Arab
world to end its alliance with a radicalized Iran. He
postulated that the Arab and Muslim worlds were frustrated
that decades of war and antagonism had done nothing but
enable the rise of extremism. With patience and reason, PM
Siniora contended, both the moderate Arab world and the
Government of Israel could find a way to once and for all put
away the instruments of war.
15. CODEL Shays has cleared on this cable.
FELTMAN