Cablegate: Peru Perplexed by Ecuadorian Maritime Complaint

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DE RUEHPE #1675 1291535
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 091535Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY LIMA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5363
INFO RUEHAC/AMEMBASSY ASUNCION PRIORITY 1645
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA PRIORITY 4637
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PRIORITY 7327
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES PRIORITY 2877
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS PRIORITY 0353
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ MAY 4207
RUEHMN/AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO PRIORITY 9166
RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO PRIORITY 1198
RUEHSG/AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO PRIORITY 1260
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUMIAAA/USCINCSO MIAMI FL PRIORITY

UNCLAS LIMA 001675

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL EC PE
SUBJECT: PERU PERPLEXED BY ECUADORIAN MARITIME COMPLAINT

1. (SBU) Peru's MFA is perplexed by recent news reports that
the Government of Ecuador (GOE) planned to send a formal note
of complaint for Peru's alleged failure to agree to GOE
protocol relating to Peruvian naval vessels' passage into
Ecuadorian territorial waters during upcoming UNITAS naval
exercises. (The news reports stated that the GOE would also
send a note of protest to the U.S. The initial venue of the
UNITAS exercises, in waters off Ecuador's coast, has been
changed due to Ecuadorian demands.)

2. (SBU) MFA Director General for South American Affairs
Jose Luis Salinas (protect) told us May 7 that, contrary to
news reports, there existed no dispute in connection with
maritime boundaries between Peru and Ecuador, and that
Foreign Minister Garcia Belaunde had reaffirmed this fact in
public responses to Ecuadorian allegations. Salinas said the
MFA had not received any formal note of protest from the GOE,
saw no justification for it, and doubted that one would be
forthcoming. He speculated that Ecuadorian government
officials had overreacted to the agitations of certain
sectors within that country and (speaking personally)
attributed the government's overreaction to inexperience.
Salinas affirmed that the 1952 Maritime Zone Declaration and
the 1954 Special Maritime Border Agreement unambiguously
defined the maritime boundary between Peru and Ecuador. He
acknowledged that these agreements fell short of formal
treaty status, which he averred was a longer term goal of the
Government of Peru.
STRUBLE

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