US embassy cable - 03VATICAN5644

C O N F I D E N T I A L  VATICAN 005644 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPT. FOR NEA-WBURNS, EUR/WE-JLEVIN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/16/2013 
TAGS: IR, IS, IZ, PREL, SY 
SUBJECT: ASSISTANT SECRETARY BURNS MEETING WITH VATICAN FM 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Jim Nicholson.  Reasons:  1.5 (b) and (d). 
 
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Summary 
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1. (C) In a December 12 meeting, A/S Burns told the Holy 
See's new Foreign Minister Giovanni Lajolo that the U.S. saw 
an opportunity to move the Middle East peace process forward 
in the face of anger and frustration on both sides.  Lajolo 
expressed the Holy See's support for the Road Map, noting 
that both sides need to recognize that the Road Map is a 
process, not a final resolution.  Burns outlined U.S. 
concerns about the route of Israel's security fence, and 
Lajolo, in turn, said he has told the Israeli Ambassador that 
the security fence was having a negative effect on world 
opinion.  On Iraq, Burns emphasized the considerable economic 
and social progress achieved by the Coalition, and reviewed 
the process ahead for a political transition.  Lajolo also 
inquired about Syria and Iran, with Burns noting problems 
posed by both governments and our efforts to encourage 
greater cooperation to deal with terrorism and remove the 
nuclear threat from Iran.  End Summary. 
 
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Opportunity to Move Peace Process 
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2. (C) Assistant Secretary Bill Burns, in Rome to attend the 
meeting of major donors to the Palestinians, met with new 
Vatican Secretary for Relations with States Giovanni Lajolo 
to outline U.S. priorities for the Middle East -- which 
Lajolo considers the Holy See's top international priority 
(reftel).  Burns told Lajolo that despite the anger and 
frustration on both sides, there is an opportunity to press 
both Israel and the Palestinians to take steps needed to 
reinvigorate the Road Map.  President Bush, Burns emphasized, 
is committed to the Road Map, which calls for obligations on 
both sides: for the Palestinians to stop terror and violence 
and for Israel to halt settlement activity and improve 
conditions for Palestinians.  Regarding Israel's security 
fence, Burns observed that the issue for the U.S. was not the 
fact of the barrier, but its course and whether it prejudges 
a final settlement.  Moreover, he pointed out that it has the 
practical effect of making living conditions for many 
Palestinians even more difficult.  Burns noted that the U.S. 
has had "intense private discussions " with Israel on the 
issue. 
 
3. (C) Archbishop Lajolo emphasized the Holy See's continued 
support for the Road Map, observing "we want it to be a 
success."  At the same time, he said the parties needed to 
recognize that it was "just a road, not a final answer."  On 
the security fence, Lajolo observed that he had recently told 
Israel's Ambassador to the Holy See that the barrier was 
having a negative impact on international public opinion 
toward Israel.  While Lajolo acknowledged that the barrier 
had a different objective from the Berlin Wall -- keeping 
threats out rather than people in -- he said that the public 
perception was the same.  The Israeli Ambassador, according 
to Lajolo, had responded that Israel was more concerned by 
the security of its people than its image, to which Lajolo 
countered that the two were related.  For the Holy See, 
Lajolo observed, the wall itself was an issue, not just its 
location. 
 
4. (C) Lajolo believed that the most pressing need was to 
"silence the weapons" for a while so that people can recall 
how different life could be without conflict.  People on both 
sides, he added, needed to see political hope combined with 
movement toward a long-term resolution.  In this regard, 
Lajolo asked Burns whether the U.S. believed Arafat was 
capable of stopping the terror.  Burns responded that there 
is no doubt Arafat could do more.  The U.S. recognizes that 
neither Arafat nor any one individual can ensure a 100 
percent end to terror.  Still, more effective Palestinian 
actions would give the U.S. the ability to go to Israel and 
say we believe the Palestinians are working in good faith to 
halt terror.  This has not been the case over the past few 
years, Burns noted.  Lajolo then asked about Arafat's 
assertions that he was against terror.  Burns pointed out 
that Arafat has "knowingly turned a blind eye."  Abu Alla 
appears to understand the obligation to stop terror, Burn 
observed, and not only as a favor to the U.S. but as 
something in the Palestinians' own interest.  He also noted 
that Egypt has been actively engaging to help achieve a 
cease-fire, engagement President Bush has encouraged. 
 
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Iraq: Progress Amidst Uncertainty 
--------------------------------- 
 
5. (C) Turning to Iraq, Lojolo asked for Burns' assessment of 
the situation on the ground.  Burns responded that although 
the security situation remained difficult, the economic and 
social situation was improving.  Electricity, health care, 
water, and education were all at pre-war levels or better. 
The challenge now for the coalition was to move beyond repair 
of existing infrastructure and repair the neglect and damage 
of the past 30 years.  So much of the economic and political 
system was broken under Saddam, Burns noted, that it will 
take time to fix. 
 
6. (C) The U.S. hoped to see a sovereign transition 
government by the summer of 2004, Burns said, which would be 
one step in a multiyear process.  To assure progress in this 
difficult transition, he added, Iraq would need the support 
of the UN and international community.  Lajolo said that from 
the Holy See's perspective, they did not want to see the U.S. 
out of Iraq until a stable government had been established 
with generally democratic principles.  "All the world is 
watching what the U.S. is doing," Lajolo observed, aadding 
that the Holy See was hoping and praying for U.S. success. 
In this regard, he stressed the importance of convincing the 
Iraqi people that the U.S. was in Iraq for the good of the 
people of Iraq.  Burns agreed, noting that the U.S. intended 
to move as quickly as possible to restore authority to 
Iraqis, so that people would see that the U.S. did not intend 
to stay, but would also see the enduring U.S. commitment to a 
democratic and effective government. 
 
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Syria 
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7. (C) Recognizing U.S. concerns about Syria, Lajolo asked 
Burns for his assesment of developments there and of Syria's 
relations with the U.S.  Burns told Lajolo that relations 
remained difficult.  Noting a series of recent high-level 
meetings with Assad, Burns said the U.S. had been candid in 
explaining our concerns, but that we have also made clear our 
interest in better relations with Syria if it takes the steps 
needed to make that possible, including greater cooperation 
against terrorists.  Burns observed that Syria had stepped up 
cooperation over the past three months to control its border 
with Iraq, but that there was still much to do on terror. 
Burns also noted Assad's recent opening to Israel in a New 
York Times interview.  While the time may not be ripe to 
resolve the Israeli-Syrian issues now, he added, the U.S. 
would nevertheless encourage both sides to pursue this 
opening.  But the Syrians also need to match their more 
encouraging rhetoric on this issue with real changes in 
behavior, particularly stopping the actions of terrorist 
groups headquartered in Damascus.  Words alone are not enough. 
 
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Iran 
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8. (C) Turning to Iran, Burns emphasized that the nuclear 
program was our first concern.  While the U.S. welcomed the 
recent Iranian commitments to the IAEA and would work with 
others to try to lock them in, we remained very skeptical of 
Iran's seriousness.  Burns observed that there may be some 
areas of common interest with Iran, including Afghanistan and 
perhaps even Iraq.  For example, even though Iran had sent 
some intelligence service members into southern Iraq, the 
U.S. did not believe Iran wanted to see Iraq destabilized. 
It was therefore possible to find accommodations, as in 
Afghanistan. 
 
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Comment 
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9. (C) Lajolo has indicated that the Middle East would be his 
top priority as the Vatican's new Foreign Minister 
equivalent, and A/S Burns visit afforded an excellent 
opportunity to convey U.S. priorities and concerns in the 
region at the outset of his tenure.  Lajolo, who was 
preparing to meet the Israeli FM the following day, was 
clearly focused, attentive, and open to U.S. views.  His 
acknowledgment that the Holy See wants the U.S. to stay in 
Iraq reflects both the Vatican's concern for Chaldean 
Catholics in Iraq and its recognition that what happens there 
will have lasting implications for the region and its 
relations with the Western world. 
 
Nicholson 
 
 
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 2003VATICA05644 - Classification: CONFIDENTIAL