US embassy cable - 05LIMA3113

C O N F I D E N T I A L LIMA 003113 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/14/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, KUNR, AORC, PE, UNSC 
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES UN REFORM PRIORITIES WITH 
FOREIGN MINISTER RODRIGUEZ 
 
REF: A. LIMA 3075 
 
     B. STATE 111657 
     C. LIMA 2748 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Curtis Struble for Reason 1.4 (B, D) 
 
1. (SBU) On 7/13, the Ambassador discussed Ref B talking 
points on overall UN reform priorities of the USG with 
Foreign Minister Manuel Rodriguez; their exchange on Security 
Council Reform and the G-4 Resolution was reported in Ref A. 
The Ambassador emphasized the critical nature of the reform 
process for restoring credibility to the UN after the Oil for 
Food scandal, and highlighted our support for Commission on 
Human Rights (CHR) reform, the Democracy Fund, the new 
Peacebuilding Commission, and improved management practices 
under the leadership of U/SYG Christopher Burnham.  The 
Ambassador stressed USG interest in the Comprehensive 
Convention on Terrorism (CCIT) and in implementing the 
Monterrey Consensus on development objectives, and he said we 
wanted to see these matters reflected in the outcome document 
of the September High-Level Event. 
 
2. (C) Rodriguez said the GOP agreed with our emphasis on 
resisting terrorism and on the CCIT, and noted that he had 
hoped to see more activity by the UN Counterterrorism 
Committee in the wake of the recent London bombings. 
Rodriguez said Peru also agreed with the idea of creating a 
Peacebuilding Commission, which should be very operationally 
oriented.  The only caveats Rodriguez registered re the new 
Commission were that it should not interfere with existing 
mechanisms, in particular the Security Council, and should 
recognize long-standing principles such as the right to 
legitimate self-defense. 
 
3. (C) Regarding CHR reform, Rodriguez said that a way must 
be found to make this organization practical and relevant. 
Referring to Peru's reform proposal (described in Ref C), he 
indicated the need for creating a Council to evaluate 
situations in individual countries, and for an Oversight 
(Tutela) Group, to deal with crises like that in Sudan. 
Rodriguez stressed the need to do away with flawed mechanisms 
(like the 1503 Procedure) and to focus on what works. 
 
4. (C) Rodriguez also addressed the general issue of the 
unwieldy nature of existing geographic groupings at the UN, 
and the need to reassess these alignments.  He said existing 
structures are a reflection of Cold War, north-south 
polarities.  Peru can work practically and effectively in the 
context of the South American Community, but encounters a 
much more disparate situation within the Latin American and 
Caribbean Group (GRULAC).  With Cuba, for example, there is 
little communality for Peru to be able to engage on issues 
such as human rights, economics, or the UN budget. 
 
5. (C) Turning to development issues, Rodriguez said he was 
aware of some imaginative social and economic proposals 
relating to the activities of the UN Development Program, and 
he wanted to see a more vigorous debate on implementing the 
principles of the Millennium Declaration and Monterrey, which 
should be the points of reference.  The UN needed to pick up 
the pace on addressing development issues for certain groups, 
such as women, although this was a difficult topic to advance 
in areas like the Middle East.  When the Ambassador 
contrasted two development models, one based on dependency, 
and the other based on the thinking of Peru's Hernando de 
Soto, which emphasizes mobilization of national resources and 
market incentives, Rodriguez acknowledged that the latter 
must be promoted, as development is basically an internal 
problem. 
 
6. (C) EMBASSY COMMENT:  Despite Rodriguez's favorable 
comments on the development policy framework supported by the 
U.S., we would still expect Peru to push for more Official 
Development Assistance, as that is traditionally an important 
issue for Peru's MFA. 
STRUBLE