Cablegate: Demarche Delivered: French Unsc Resolution On

VZCZCXYZ0001
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHMO #1318 1331414
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 121414Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8018
INFO RUEHGO/AMEMBASSY RANGOON 0051
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0424

UNCLAS MOSCOW 001318

SIPDIS

IO/UNP PAUL WICKBERG
EAP/MLS AARON COPE
USUN JEFF RENEAU

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM UNSC BM RS
SUBJECT: DEMARCHE DELIVERED: FRENCH UNSC RESOLUTION ON
BURMA

REF: A. STATE 49813

B. RANGOON 349

1. (SBU) We delivered reftel demarche to MFA Senior Counselor
for International Organizations Petr Ilichev on May 12.
Ilichev said that owing to the long Russian holiday weekend,
the MFA was unaware of the French draft resolution on Burma.
After reading a copy of the draft we provided, Ilichev
thought the GOR could support the resolution with the
exception of Operating Paragraph 2's call for the Burmese
government to "grant full and immediate access" to foreign
aid workers, which imposed upon Burmese sovereignty. Ilichev
also questioned the efficacy of such a demand considering
that Burma was run by a military government that thought
itself capable of handling an emergency and was unlikely to
allow extensive access by foreigners.

2. (SBU) MFA Myanmar desk officer Aleksey Semenikhin told us
that two planes from the Russian Ministry of Emergency
Situations had landed in Burma and off-loaded relief
supplies. Semenikhin believed that emergency response
experts traveling on the planes had been allowed to remain in
the country. He was unaware of reports that the Burmese
government denied visas to Russian aid workers (ref B).
RUSSELL

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