US embassy cable - 05PARIS7174

C O N F I D E N T I A L PARIS 007174 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/17/2015 
TAGS: PREL, IZ, FR, UNSC 
SUBJECT: POSITIVE GOF REACTION TO IRAQI REFERENDUM 
 
REF: A. STATE 190679 
     B. STATE 189909 
 
Classified By: Political Minister-Counselor Josiah Rosenblatt, reasons 
1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
1. (C) Summary: FM Douste-Blazy issued a positive public 
statement October 17 welcoming the results of the October 15 
Iraqi constitutional referendum.  While the FM's statement 
was not overly effusive, he welcomed and commended the 
conditions under which the referendum took place.  MFA 
contacts report that the GoF views the referendum and the 
last-minute compromises reached on the draft constitutional 
text as positive steps which mark the broadening of the scope 
of political participation long advocated by the GoF.  The 
MFA statement did not include a reference to the GoF-floated 
idea of an international conference.  An embassy translation 
of the October 17 MFA communique follows in para 2.  End 
summary and comment, 
 
2.  (U) Begin text:  The referendum organized in Iraq on 
Saturday, October 15, on the draft constitution marks a 
supplementary step in the political process engaged in 
conforming to UNSCR 1546.  I welcome the satisfactory 
conditions in which the referendum took place, with the 
support of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq.  I 
am delighted by the electoral mobilization of the great many 
Iraqis who participated in this vote.  The coming stages 
should permit the involvement of all political forces in the 
transition process and should contribute also to bringing 
together all Iraqis around their new institutions in the 
framework of a sovereign and united Iraq. End text. 
 
3. (C) Responding to reftel points, MFA Iraq desk officer 
David Cvach told us the GoF statement on the referendum was 
intended to be positive, while stressing the importance of 
the coming December 15 elections.  Cvach commented that the 
GoF viewed the referendum and the last-minute compromises 
reached over the draft constitutional text as important and 
welcome developments, which offered the potential to make the 
political process in Iraq "as inclusive as possible," as the 
GoF has long advocated.  Cvach concurred that there was a 
growing and welcome willingness among Iraqi Sunnis to advance 
interests to the political process, and somewhat defensively 
asserted that the GoF was not trying to be the "Sunnis' 
lawyer."  Instead, he reasoned, the GoF concluded that Iraqi 
Sunnis still needed to be convinced that they had a stake in 
participating in Iraq's political process, and December 
elections would be the decisive test.  Poloff responded that 
the GoF should seek to advance inclusivity by encouraging to 
the maximum degree Sunni participation in December elections 
and offering tangible support for the electoral process. 
 
4. (C) Comment: Despite the positive GoF response to the 
referendum, the GoF remains marginalized on the ground in 
Iraq.  Despite repeated MFA assurances to us that he will 
return to post, French Ambassador to Iraq Bajolet remains in 
France after departing Baghdad over two months ago due to 
security threats.  Meanwhile, the ongoing domestic 
investigation into the involvement of two senior French 
diplomats, including the former French UN permrep, for Oil 
for Food-related corruption, has put the GoF (and the MFA in 
particular) on the defensive, in the wake of unusually harsh 
French media coverage criticizing the MFA and GoF Iraq policy 
in general.  The end result is a GoF more prone to remain on 
the sidelines, rather than offer new, concrete assistance to 
help promote Iraq stability.  End comment. 
Please visit Paris' Classified Website at: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm 
STAPLETON