Cablegate: Panama: Demarche On Keeping Pressure On the Farc

VZCZCXRO6364
RR RUEHAO RUEHCD RUEHGA RUEHGD RUEHHA RUEHHO RUEHMC RUEHMT RUEHNG
RUEHNL RUEHQU RUEHRD RUEHRG RUEHRS RUEHTM RUEHVC
DE RUEHZP #0606 2071530
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 251530Z JUL 08
FM AMEMBASSY PANAMA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2317
INFO RUEHWH/WESTERN HEMISPHERIC AFFAIRS DIPL POSTS
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 1177
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA 2696
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ 0242
RUEHUB/USINT HAVANA 0097

C O N F I D E N T I A L PANAMA 000606

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/25/2018
TAGS: PTER SNAR PGOV PREL CO VE HR EUN AF PM
SUBJECT: PANAMA: DEMARCHE ON KEEPING PRESSURE ON THE FARC
DELIVERED

REF: STATE 77205

Classified By: POLCOUNS BRIAN R. NARANJO. REASONS: 1.4 (B) AND (D).

1. (C) First VP and FM Samuel Lewis thanked Charge for
sharing with him reftel demarche, but did not commit to make
any efforts to encourage governments and entities that
historically supported the FARC to take demonstrable steps to
sever ties with the FARC, deny it safe-haven, and withhold
any form of material or other support.

2. (C) COMMENT: Post does not believe that Panama will do
much, if anything, to increase the pressure on the FARC.
Struggling to accept -- to say nothing of taking effective
action to grapple with -- the growing FARC presence and
activity on its own soil, Panama is reluctant to draw
attention to itself by directly confronting the FARC. Also,
GOP officials refrain from commenting on the FARC, something
view the FARC as Colombia's problem, and prefer to refer to
Colombian criminal organizations.
MESA

=======================CABLE ENDS============================

© Scoop Media