US embassy cable - 04THEHAGUE2712

C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 002712 
 
SIPDIS 
 
USUN FOR STOFER, REPASCH, ATWOOL 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/20/2014 
TAGS: PREL, AORC, NL, UNGA-59 
SUBJECT: NETHERLANDS/EU/UNGA:  DUTCH PLANS FOR UN WORKING 
GROUP OCTOBER 25 
 
Classified By: Political Counselor Andrew Schofer for reasons 1.4 (b) a 
nd (d). 
 
1.  (SBU)  SUMMARY:  UN Funding, UN security, and the 2005 
"Major Event" will dominate the EU's UN Working Group (CONUN) 
meeting on October 25, according to its chair, Karel van 
Kesteren.  Other issues on the agenda include a discussion of 
regional groupings, the social dimension of globalization, 
the SIDS conference, and WSIS.  Please see guidance request 
at paragraph four.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2.  (C) In a meeting with Poloff on October 19, Karel van 
Kesteren, head of the Dutch MFA's Department of International 
Organization Affairs and current chair of the EU's UN Working 
Group (CONUN), briefly discussed the agenda for the October 
25 CONUN meeting.  Items to be discussed include: 
 
3. (C) The 2005 Major Event:  The EU is discussing how best 
to implement the so-called millennium development goals and 
the Millennium Declaration.  During the Dutch presidency of 
the EU, according to van Kesteren, the economic counselor at 
the Dutch mission in New York will be the main focal point 
for coordinating EU guidance on this event. 
 
4.   (C)  Security/Safety of UN Staff:  Van Kesteren referred 
to the SYG's report and said the sticking point is money and 
who will pay the expected USD 100 million bill.  He asked for 
clarification of the USG preferences for financing security 
operations for UN staff, i.e., would we prefer a) centralized 
financial administration for all UN security operations, or 
b) control at the level of the operation where costs are 
shared among those member states involved?  (Post would 
appreciate guidance on how to respond to these questions.) 
 
5. (C)  Financing of the multilateral system:  Van Kesteren 
said he added this point to the agenda to encourage 
reflection and discussion on "the chaotic state of UN 
financing," looking at the nexus between assessed and 
voluntary contributions across all agencies.  The objective, 
he said, is to find ways to make funding "more rational."  He 
added that the CONUN should explore how the UN can free 
itself from the excessive influence of earmarked donations 
supporting member states' favorite causes, especially when 
these do not appear rational in the context of the UN's 
larger picture. 
 
6.  (C)  Heads of UN Organizations, candidatures:  Van 
Kesteren said the EU still had no new names for a successor 
to UNRWA's Hansen and he will raise the issue again. 
 
7.  (C)  Discussion of regional groups:  Van Kesteren said 
this topic is the initiative of the EU Commission, which 
wants to discuss the problems that arise from the fact that 
some EU member states are WEOG members and others are Eastern 
European Group members, notably in cases where regional 
groups are used, e.g., in the area of environmental treaties, 
to coordinate substantive positions. 
 
8.  (SBU)  Other Issues:  Van Kesteren expected cursory 
review of the remaining agenda items, which include reception 
of the report on the social dimension of globalization, the 
SIDS Conference, and WSIS. 
SOBEL