US embassy cable - 04TEGUCIGALPA365

C O N F I D E N T I A L TEGUCIGALPA 000365 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR INR/AN/IAA, IO, AND USUN 
STATE FOR WHA/CCA, WHA/CEN, AND WHA/PPC 
STATE FOR DRL AND DRL/MLA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/18/2014 
TAGS: PHUM, PINR, PREL, KDEM, CU, HO, CHR-1 
SUBJECT: HONDURAS UNWILLING TO TAKE LEAD IN DRAFTING UNCHR 
CUBA RESOLUTION; LIKELY TO REPLACE CURRENT CHARGE IN HAVANA 
 
REF: A. TEGUCIGALPA 307 
 
     B. STATE 20401 
     C. STATE 13279 
     D. 03 STATE 313469 
     E. 03 TEGUCIGALPA 2866 
 
Classified By: Political Counselor Francisco Palmieri; 
reasons 1.5(B) and (D). 
 
1. (U) Deputy Chief of Mission and Political Counselor met 
with Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Anibel Quinones and 
Senior Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Foreign Policy 
Advisor Policarpo Callejas on February 18 to further discuss 
GOH willingness to draft this year's Cuba human right 
resolution at the UN Commission on Human Rights session (Ref 
B.)  Quinones repeated earlier MFA position that Honduras was 
not ready to take the lead in drafting the resolution but 
left open the door to the possibility of co-sponsoring a 
resolution drafted by fellow Latin Americans.  He stated that 
Honduras was prepared to press Cuba at the UNCHR on its human 
rights record.  He also made clear that the GOH felt no 
pressure from Cuba over the issue of the two countries' 
pending bilateral maritime treaty.  However, he demurred when 
pressed to become one of the principal drafters of a 
resolution. 
 
2. (C) Quinones asked for Washington's view on his earlier 
proposal to strengthen Honduran diplomatic representation in 
Havana without upgrading its relations (Ref E.)  When we 
passed guidance in Ref D, Quinones indicated that the MFA may 
move soon (no specific timetable was outlined) to name a 
senior career Honduran diplomat to the Charge post in Havana. 
 He added that the current Honduran Charge was simply not 
producing enough information about the situation in Cuba.  He 
repeated earlier comments that the GOH is concerned about the 
more than 700 Honduran nationals who are studying there. 
 
3. (C) Quinones confirmed Foreign Minister (FM) Leonidas Rosa 
Bautista's desire to visit Washington during March 5 through 
8 timeframe after the FM's March 1-5 trip to Madrid with 
President Maduro (Ref A.)  DCM told Quinones that the Cuba 
UNCHR resolution would figure prominently on the agenda of 
any visit to Washington by the FM.  Quinones took the point. 
 
4. (C) COMMENT: DCM pressed Quinones on need for GOH to draft 
this year's resolution.  However, while Quinones is generally 
very pro-U.S. and friendly to U.S. interests (he played a key 
role in moving the ICC Article 98 agreement through the GOH 
bureaucracy), he did not move much on the issue.  Quinones 
also quipped that Rosa Bautista would need to be accompanied 
to DC, if the Cuba issue was to be raised, suggesting that 
Rosa Bautista would need more seasoned MFA advice on how to 
deal with the issue.  END COMMENT. 
PALMER