US embassy cable - 04ISTANBUL1090

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ISTANBUL 001090 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/13/2014 
TAGS: KISL, PREL, PGOV, TU, Istanbul 
SUBJECT: NEW OIC SECRETARY GENERAL ON ISRAEL/PALESTINE, 
SUDAN, AND THE OIC 
 
REF: JEDDAH 1603 
 
Classified By: Consul-General David Arnett for Reasons 1.5 (b&d) 
 
1. (C) Summary and Comment: Elected on June 16 as the next 
Organization of Islamic Conferences (OIC) Secretary General 
(reftel), Dr. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu met with poloff on July 12 
to discuss his recent election, plans for the organization, 
and views on a range of topics.  Well-known to the Consulate, 
Ihsanoglu will likely bring a more academic and less 
political approach to the OIC.  Ihsanoglu's experience and 
fluent English should make him an accessible and reasonable 
interlocutor, but his views on Israel/Palestine and U.S. 
policy in the Middle East will ensure that he is a firm 
advocate of long-held OIC positions on these and other 
issues.  End Summary and Comment. 
 
2. (SBU) Meeting with poloff on July 12, Dr. Ekmeleddin 
Ihsanoglu, the Director General of the Istanbul-based 
Research Center for Islamic History, Art, and Culture 
(IRCICA, a subsidiary of the OIC), credited both Turkish 
diplomacy and his own qualifications for his recent 
appointment as the next OIC Secretary General.  Following an 
initial impasse among three candidates (from Turkey, 
Malaysia, and Bangladesh) for the position (note: by 
tradition the position rotates between the Arab, African, and 
Asian groups within the OIC), Ihsanoglu was selected in the 
first-ever OIC "election" by 32 of the 56 voting members. 
Ihsanoglu told poloff that he sees this election, although 
the ballot was secret, as a particularly significant 
democratic development.  Asked whether it should be seen as a 
precedent or a one-time incident, Ihsanoglu said that as the 
presiding Secretary General for the next appointment he hopes 
to ensure that this practice is institutionalized. 
 
3. (C) Ihsanoglu remarked that the Istanbul OIC Meeting, like 
previous gatherings, was characterized by a consensus on the 
need for more democratic reform and civil society development 
among member states.  Several speakers underlined the "image" 
problem faced by the Islamic world in light of continuing 
terrorist activities.  Poloff suggested that these statements 
point to significant areas of common cause with the U.S. 
Broader Middle East and North Africa initiative.  Ihsanoglu 
seized on the opening to lambaste the U.S. for what he called 
a "short-sighted, one-size-fits-all" approach to the region. 
While conceding that the U.S. has a credibility problem, 
poloff assured Ihsanoglu that we are keenly aware of the 
regional diversity and do not intend to "impose" our own 
democratic model on the region.  Based only on the 
self-stated objectives of the OIC and its members, poloff 
reiterated that there should be substantial room for 
cooperation in this area. 
 
4. (C) Returning to the subject of U.S. credibility in the 
region, Ihsanoglu agreed that much of the public criticism 
directed against the U.S. was unwarranted.  Ihsanoglu 
conceded that U.S. interventions in Somalia, Bosnia, and 
Kosovo on behalf of local Muslim populations directly 
contradict charges of a U.S. "anti-Islamic" bias (Note: An 
expert on Bosnia, Ihsanoglu could not resist commenting that 
intervention had come late and that the Dayton Accords had 
created an unworkable situation for the Bosnian Muslims.  End 
Note).  Asked for his views on the ongoing crisis in Darfur, 
Sudan, Ihsanoglu openly dismissed OIC efforts and statements 
to date as inadequate and undertook to take a more aggressive 
approach on such humanitarian crises. 
 
5. (C) Ihsanoglu pointed to the Israel/Palestinian issue as 
the principal cause for the lack of U.S. credibility in the 
region.  Ihsanoglu remarked that as a teenager growing up in 
Cairo, despite official propaganda to the contrary, he 
remembered the U.S. as the "land of the free" and as an 
"unbiased arbitrator."  This public image, he added ruefully, 
has been turned on its head over the last few decades. 
Ihsanoglu called on the U.S. to pressure Israel to abandon 
the "illegal" wall it is constructing, its settlements in the 
occupied territories, and its tactics of humiliation and 
violence.  Poloff argued that the U.S. is prepared to urge 
both sides to reach an agreement, but that any settlement 
will depend on the leadership and political will of the 
parties.  Ihsanoglu concurred when poloff noted that the 
absence of such leadership and any kind of democratic 
legitimacy on the Palestinian side are major obstacles to 
peace.  Ihsanoglu reminded poloff, however, that this issue 
led to the creation of the OIC and remains its "raison 
d'tre." 
 
6. (C) Ihsanoglu told poloff that the hiring of more capable 
and experienced staff would be his highest priority as OIC 
Secretary General when he assumes office next year.  Clearly 
 
SIPDIS 
dissatisfied with the caliber of the existing OIC staff, 
Ihsanoglu stressed the need for more "capable" personnel with 
"international (i.e., U.N.) experience."  Although the four 
OIC Assistant Secretary Generals are appointed by the OIC 
members, Ihsanoglu believes that he will be in a position to 
make a positive difference at the middle and lower levels of 
the 150-strong OIC staff. 
 
7. (SBU) Bio Notes: 
 
Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, a Turkish national, was born in 1943 in 
Cairo, Egypt.  Before assuming his current position as the 
Director General of the Research Center for Islamic History, 
Art, and Culture (IRCICA) in 1980, Ihsanoglu was a professor 
of organic chemistry and has since continued his academic 
career as a professor of the history of science.  As the 
Director General of IRCICA and the Secretary of the 
International Commission for the Preservation of Islamic 
Cultural Heritage, Ihsanoglu has organized and directed 
research projects on various aspects of Islamic culture and 
civilization and has also edited a number of publications and 
periodicals.  He is fluent in Turkish, Arabic, and English 
and has a working knowledge of French and Persian.  He is 
married with three sons. 
 
Ihsanoglu has been a valuable Consulate contact for many 
years.  He is urbane, intellectual, friendly, and 
approachable.  While adept at developing and maintaining 
political contacts, Ihsanoglu's knowledge of foreign affairs 
and his personal manner and style are more academic than 
political. 
 
Visit Consulate-General Istanbul's classified website at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/Istanbul/inde x.cfm 
ARNETT