Cablegate: Afghanistan Mou: Updated Interim Response

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PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHFR #0008 0051407
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 051407Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY PARIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7998
INFO RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 0937
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 7152
RUEHUP/AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST 0562
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 7311
RUEHMD/AMEMBASSY MADRID 3129
RUEHNY/AMEMBASSY OSLO 1876
RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA 0022
RUEHPG/AMEMBASSY PRAGUE 0610
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 9290
RUEHSM/AMEMBASSY STOCKHOLM 1892
RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE 3279
RUEHVL/AMEMBASSY VILNIUS 0246
RUEHWR/AMEMBASSY WARSAW 1117
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON 0005

UNCLAS PARIS 000008

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV EAID AF FR
SUBJECT: AFGHANISTAN MOU: UPDATED INTERIM RESPONSE

REF: A. 09 PARIS 1726
B. 09 STATE 129187
C. 09 KABUL 3981

1. (SBU) Post has followed up with the GOF on the interim
response reported in reftel A to points in reftel B. On
January 5, Francois Delmas, action officer from the
interagency Afghanistan and Pakistan Cell, said that delayed
transmission of the draft MOU from the French Embassy in
Kabul to Paris and a lack of personnel over the Christmas and
New Year holidays had unfortunately slowed the French reply.
However, he said the French Joint Staff was currently leading
an interagency effort to draft a detailed official response
to the MOU, and stressed that, while he could not offer
substantive comment at this time, the delay was purely
bureaucratic and not a tactic to express disapproval with the
MOU. Adding that it was clear that this issue was of
critical importance to Washington, Delmas said he would
encourage GOF stakeholders to expedite the process.
PEKALA

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