US embassy cable - 05MADRID2746

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SPAIN ON SYRIAN-LEBANESE BORDER BLOCKAGE

Identifier: 05MADRID2746
Wikileaks: View 05MADRID2746 at Wikileaks.org
Origin: Embassy Madrid
Created: 2005-07-22 14:21:00
Classification: CONFIDENTIAL
Tags: PREL PGOV ECON ETRD SP
Redacted: This cable was not redacted by Wikileaks.
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

221421Z Jul 05

 
C O N F I D E N T I A L MADRID 002746 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/22/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, ECON, ETRD, SP 
SUBJECT: SPAIN ON SYRIAN-LEBANESE BORDER BLOCKAGE 
 
REF: STATE 135904 
 
Classified By: Poloff Ricardo Zuniga; reasons 1.4 (B) and (D) 
 
(C) Poloff conveyed reftel points on July 22 to MFA Office 
Director for the Middle East Alberto Moreno.  Moreno said 
that Syrian officials had recently briefed EU diplomats in 
Damascus regarding the disposition of Syrian forces on the 
border with Iraq, during which meeting they also discussed 
the issue of the blockage of the Lebanese border.  Moreno 
said that Syrian officials had indicated that the blockage of 
the border would not be a long-lasting measure.  He ventured 
that the Syrian government had not yet reconciled itself with 
the new state of affairs in Lebanon and said it was likely 
that well-placed Syrian businessmen or officials were also 
smarting from their loss of control over cross-border trade 
with Lebanon.  Moreno suggested that the border blockage 
could be one symptom of Syrian pique.  We will follow up and 
report any feedback gathered by the GOS regarding this issue. 
AGUIRRE 

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