

Currently released so far... 12689 / 251,287
Browse latest releases
2010/12/01
2010/12/02
2010/12/03
2010/12/04
2010/12/05
2010/12/06
2010/12/07
2010/12/08
2010/12/09
2010/12/10
2010/12/11
2010/12/12
2010/12/13
2010/12/14
2010/12/15
2010/12/16
2010/12/17
2010/12/18
2010/12/19
2010/12/20
2010/12/21
2010/12/22
2010/12/23
2010/12/24
2010/12/25
2010/12/26
2010/12/27
2010/12/28
2010/12/29
2010/12/30
2011/01/01
2011/01/02
2011/01/04
2011/01/05
2011/01/07
2011/01/09
2011/01/10
2011/01/11
2011/01/12
2011/01/13
2011/01/14
2011/01/15
2011/01/16
2011/01/17
2011/01/18
2011/01/19
2011/01/20
2011/01/21
2011/01/22
2011/01/23
2011/01/24
2011/01/25
2011/01/26
2011/01/27
2011/01/28
2011/01/29
2011/01/30
2011/01/31
2011/02/01
2011/02/02
2011/02/03
2011/02/04
2011/02/05
2011/02/06
2011/02/07
2011/02/08
2011/02/09
2011/02/10
2011/02/11
2011/02/12
2011/02/13
2011/02/14
2011/02/15
2011/02/16
2011/02/17
2011/02/18
2011/02/19
2011/02/20
2011/02/21
2011/02/22
2011/02/23
2011/02/24
2011/02/25
2011/02/26
2011/02/27
2011/02/28
2011/03/01
2011/03/02
2011/03/03
2011/03/04
2011/03/05
2011/03/06
2011/03/07
2011/03/08
2011/03/09
2011/03/10
2011/03/11
2011/03/13
2011/03/14
2011/03/15
2011/03/16
2011/03/17
2011/03/18
2011/03/19
2011/03/20
2011/03/21
2011/03/22
2011/03/23
2011/03/24
2011/03/25
2011/03/26
2011/03/27
2011/03/28
2011/03/29
2011/03/30
2011/03/31
2011/04/01
2011/04/02
2011/04/03
2011/04/04
2011/04/05
2011/04/06
2011/04/07
2011/04/08
2011/04/09
2011/04/10
2011/04/11
2011/04/12
2011/04/13
2011/04/14
2011/04/15
2011/04/16
2011/04/17
2011/04/18
2011/04/19
2011/04/20
2011/04/21
2011/04/22
2011/04/23
2011/04/24
2011/04/25
2011/04/26
2011/04/27
2011/04/28
2011/04/29
2011/04/30
2011/05/01
2011/05/02
2011/05/03
2011/05/04
2011/05/05
2011/05/06
2011/05/07
2011/05/08
2011/05/09
2011/05/10
2011/05/11
2011/05/12
2011/05/13
2011/05/14
2011/05/15
2011/05/16
2011/05/17
2011/05/18
2011/05/19
Browse by creation date
Browse by origin
Embassy Athens
Embassy Asuncion
Embassy Astana
Embassy Asmara
Embassy Ashgabat
Embassy Apia
Embassy Ankara
Embassy Amman
Embassy Algiers
Embassy Addis Ababa
Embassy Accra
Embassy Abuja
Embassy Abu Dhabi
Embassy Abidjan
Consulate Auckland
Consulate Amsterdam
Consulate Adana
American Institute Taiwan, Taipei
Embassy Bujumbura
Embassy Buenos Aires
Embassy Budapest
Embassy Bucharest
Embassy Brussels
Embassy Bridgetown
Embassy Bratislava
Embassy Brasilia
Embassy Bogota
Embassy Bishkek
Embassy Bern
Embassy Berlin
Embassy Belmopan
Embassy Belgrade
Embassy Beirut
Embassy Beijing
Embassy Banjul
Embassy Bangkok
Embassy Bandar Seri Begawan
Embassy Bamako
Embassy Baku
Embassy Baghdad
Consulate Barcelona
Embassy Copenhagen
Embassy Conakry
Embassy Colombo
Embassy Chisinau
Embassy Caracas
Embassy Canberra
Embassy Cairo
Consulate Curacao
Consulate Ciudad Juarez
Consulate Chennai
Consulate Casablanca
Consulate Cape Town
Consulate Calgary
Embassy Dushanbe
Embassy Dublin
Embassy Doha
Embassy Djibouti
Embassy Dili
Embassy Dhaka
Embassy Dar Es Salaam
Embassy Damascus
Embassy Dakar
Consulate Dubai
Embassy Helsinki
Embassy Harare
Embassy Hanoi
Consulate Ho Chi Minh City
Consulate Hermosillo
Consulate Hamilton
Consulate Hamburg
Consulate Halifax
Embassy Kyiv
Embassy Kuwait
Embassy Kuala Lumpur
Embassy Kinshasa
Embassy Kingston
Embassy Kigali
Embassy Khartoum
Embassy Kathmandu
Embassy Kampala
Embassy Kabul
Consulate Kolkata
Embassy Luxembourg
Embassy Luanda
Embassy London
Embassy Ljubljana
Embassy Lisbon
Embassy Lima
Embassy Lilongwe
Embassy La Paz
Consulate Lahore
Consulate Lagos
Mission USOSCE
Mission USNATO
Mission UNESCO
Embassy Muscat
Embassy Moscow
Embassy Montevideo
Embassy Monrovia
Embassy Minsk
Embassy Mexico
Embassy Mbabane
Embassy Maputo
Embassy Manila
Embassy Manama
Embassy Managua
Embassy Malabo
Embassy Madrid
Consulate Munich
Consulate Mumbai
Consulate Montreal
Consulate Monterrey
Consulate Milan
Consulate Melbourne
Embassy Nicosia
Embassy Niamey
Embassy New Delhi
Embassy Ndjamena
Embassy Nassau
Embassy Nairobi
Consulate Naples
Consulate Naha
Embassy Pristina
Embassy Pretoria
Embassy Prague
Embassy Port Of Spain
Embassy Port Louis
Embassy Port Au Prince
Embassy Phnom Penh
Embassy Paris
Embassy Paramaribo
Embassy Panama
Consulate Peshawar
REO Basrah
Embassy Rome
Embassy Riyadh
Embassy Riga
Embassy Reykjavik
Embassy Rangoon
Embassy Rabat
Consulate Rio De Janeiro
Consulate Recife
Secretary of State
Embassy Suva
Embassy Stockholm
Embassy Sofia
Embassy Skopje
Embassy Singapore
Embassy Seoul
Embassy Sarajevo
Embassy Santo Domingo
Embassy Santiago
Embassy Sanaa
Embassy San Salvador
Embassy San Jose
Consulate Strasbourg
Consulate St Petersburg
Consulate Shenyang
Consulate Shanghai
Consulate Sapporo
Consulate Sao Paulo
Embassy Tunis
Embassy Tripoli
Embassy Tokyo
Embassy The Hague
Embassy Tel Aviv
Embassy Tehran
Embassy Tegucigalpa
Embassy Tbilisi
Embassy Tashkent
Embassy Tallinn
Consulate Toronto
Consulate Tijuana
USUN New York
USEU Brussels
US Office Almaty
US Mission Geneva
US Interests Section Havana
US Delegation, Secretary
UNVIE
Embassy Ulaanbaatar
Embassy Vilnius
Embassy Vienna
Embassy Vatican
Embassy Valletta
Consulate Vladivostok
Consulate Vancouver
Browse by tag
AF
ASEC
AR
AEMR
AMGT
AE
AU
AID
AORC
APER
AS
AM
AFIN
AMED
AJ
AGR
ACOA
ANET
ASIG
ABLD
AL
AA
APECO
AGAO
AY
AGMT
APEC
AINF
AG
ACS
AECL
AFFAIRS
ABUD
ASUP
ADANA
AADP
AMCHAMS
ARF
ASEAN
ADPM
ATRN
ALOW
APCS
ADCO
ACAO
AORG
AROC
AO
AODE
ACABQ
AX
AMEX
AFGHANISTAN
AZ
AND
ARM
AQ
ATFN
AMBASSADOR
ACBAQ
AFSI
AFSN
AC
AUC
ASEX
AER
AVERY
AGRICULTURE
ASCH
AFU
AMG
ATPDEA
ASECKFRDCVISKIRFPHUMSMIGEG
AORL
ADM
AN
AIT
BU
BR
BL
BO
BA
BB
BG
BM
BBSR
BH
BEXP
BK
BD
BTIO
BT
BE
BY
BF
BX
BP
BRUSSELS
BILAT
BIDEN
BC
BMGT
BWC
BN
BTIU
CH
CG
CF
CU
CE
CVIS
CASC
CO
CS
CA
CIDA
CBW
CW
CMGT
CI
CODEL
CY
CPAS
CJAN
CD
CWC
CDG
CIA
CL
CROS
CAPC
CTR
CT
CR
CBSA
CEUDA
COM
CFED
CV
CACS
CARSON
CLINTON
CN
CONS
CM
CAC
CIC
COPUOS
CDC
CONDOLEEZZA
CICTE
COUNTER
COUNTRY
CBE
CKGR
CHR
CVR
COUNTERTERRORISM
CITEL
CLEARANCE
COE
CARICOM
CB
CSW
CITT
CACM
CDB
CJUS
CTM
CAN
CLMT
CBC
CNARC
CIS
EG
EZ
EUN
ECON
ETRD
ECPS
EFIN
ENRG
ETTC
EPET
EINV
EAID
EAIR
EWWT
EU
EAGR
EC
ELAB
EIND
EN
EMIN
ESENV
ENNP
EFIS
ELTN
ET
ECIN
EFTA
ES
EINT
EI
ENGR
ETRDEINVECINPGOVCS
ENVI
ETRDECONWTOCS
ECINECONCS
ELN
ELECTIONS
ENVR
EXTERNAL
EXIM
ETRO
ENIV
ESA
ER
EK
EUR
EFINECONCS
EUMEM
EUREM
EPA
ERNG
ENERG
ECA
ETRC
EINVEFIN
ETC
EAP
ECONOMY
EINN
ECONOMIC
EXBS
ECUN
ENGY
ECONOMICS
EIAR
EINDETRD
ECONEFIN
EURN
EDU
ETRDEINVTINTCS
ECIP
EFIM
EAIDS
EREL
EINVETC
ECONCS
ETRA
EAIG
EUC
ERD
ETRN
EINVECONSENVCSJA
EEPET
EUNCH
IS
IZ
IR
IC
IO
IN
ID
IGAD
IT
ILC
IAEA
ITU
ICAO
IMO
IBRD
IMF
ICJ
IAHRC
ITF
INRA
INRO
IWC
IQ
IV
ICRC
ICTY
INRB
IEFIN
ILO
ITRA
ITALY
IBET
ISRAELI
IL
INTELSAT
IRC
IDP
ICTR
IRAQI
IPR
IIP
INMARSAT
ITPGOV
ITALIAN
INTERNAL
IRS
IA
INTERPOL
IEA
INR
IZPREL
IRAJ
IF
ITPHUM
ISRAEL
IACI
INDO
IDA
ISLAMISTS
KSPR
KNNP
KWBG
KAWK
KISL
KPAO
KN
KS
KIPR
KCRM
KDEM
KIRF
KJUS
KHLS
KSCA
KOMC
KAWC
KV
KFRD
KWMN
KTIP
KPWR
KSUM
KGHG
KTIA
KTFN
KIRC
KCOR
KACT
KMDR
KGIC
KOLY
KUNR
KIDE
KMPI
KPKO
KCFE
KVPR
KRAD
KPAL
KFRDCVISCMGTCASCKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG
KTEX
KTDB
KFSC
KZ
KSEP
KFLU
KE
KU
KPLS
KRVC
KRIM
KSTH
KG
KFLO
KPOA
KICC
KDDG
KPRV
KTBT
KBCT
KSAF
KMOC
KDRG
KBIO
KREC
KSTC
KVRP
KBTR
KMIG
KENV
KNSD
KCGC
KWAC
KFRDKIRFCVISCMGTKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG
KWMM
KPRP
KNEI
KPAI
KO
KVIR
KX
KMCA
KCRS
KMFO
KID
KCIP
KNAR
KR
KCRCM
KBTS
KSEO
KHDP
KFIN
KOCI
KGIT
KNUP
KPAONZ
KNUC
KNNPMNUC
KERG
KSCI
KTLA
KHIV
KCSY
KTRD
KMRS
KNPP
KJUST
KCMR
KTER
KRCM
KCFC
KSAC
KCHG
KREL
KFTFN
KCOM
KLIG
KDEMAF
KAID
KGCC
KICA
KHUM
KSEC
KPIN
KESS
KDEV
KWWMN
KOM
KWNM
KRFD
KRGY
KIFR
KWMNCS
KPAK
KOMS
KHSA
MPOS
MOPS
MARR
MTCR
MNUC
MASS
MX
MCAP
MAR
MTRE
MASC
MK
MG
MTCRE
MI
MD
MA
MO
MY
MU
ML
MRCRE
MAS
MEDIA
MC
MR
MIL
MW
MARAD
MAPP
MZ
MP
MOPPS
MTS
MLS
MILI
MEPN
MEPI
MEETINGS
MERCOSUR
MT
MCC
MIK
MAPS
MV
MILITARY
MDC
MEPP
MASSMNUC
MUCN
MQADHAFI
NATO
NG
NL
NZ
NT
NW
NO
NU
NS
NPT
NASA
NI
NK
NSG
NE
NORAD
NAFTA
NP
NATIONAL
NSSP
NSF
NA
NGO
NV
NR
NDP
NIPP
NZUS
NH
NC
NEW
NRR
NAR
NATOPREL
NPG
NSC
NPA
NSFO
OPDC
OPRC
OEXC
OTRA
ODIP
OIIP
OVIP
OPIC
OPCW
OAS
OREP
OSCE
OSCI
OES
OFDP
OECD
OCS
OIC
OPAD
OVP
OHUM
OFFICIALS
OIE
OTR
OMIG
OSAC
OBSP
OFDA
ON
OCII
PREL
PGOV
PARM
PINR
PTER
PHUM
PK
PREF
PM
PHSA
PA
PINS
PE
PBTS
PCI
PO
PL
POGOV
PAK
PEL
PGIV
PROP
PP
PBIO
POL
POLITICS
POLICY
PINL
PBT
PMIL
POV
PTBS
PG
POSTS
PALESTINIAN
PROV
PNAT
PINF
PRL
PAS
PDOV
PRAM
PREO
PAHO
PHUMPGOV
PAO
PREFA
PSI
POLITICAL
PAIGH
PARMS
PROG
PTERE
PRGOV
PORG
PS
PGOF
PKFK
PSOE
PEPR
PPA
PINT
PMAR
PRELP
PNG
PFOR
PUNE
PGOVLO
PHUMBA
PSEPC
PNR
POLINT
PGOVE
PHALANAGE
PARTY
PDEM
PECON
PGOC
PY
PLN
PHUH
PF
PHUS
PU
PARTIES
PCUL
PGGV
PSA
PGOVSMIGKCRMKWMNPHUMCVISKFRDCA
PHUMPREL
RS
RU
RW
REACTION
RCMP
RSO
RO
RP
ROOD
RM
ROBERT
RICE
REGION
RSP
RF
RIGHTS
RIGHTSPOLMIL
RUPREL
RELATIONS
RFE
REPORT
SY
SP
SOCI
SMIG
SNAR
SCUL
SC
SU
SO
SI
SENV
SZ
SW
SA
SR
SF
SEVN
SN
STEINBERG
SEN
SG
SYR
SWE
SK
SH
SNARCS
SAARC
SNARIZ
SPCE
SARS
SNARN
SCRS
SYRIA
SL
SENVKGHG
SAN
ST
SIPDIS
SSA
SPCVIS
SOFA
SANC
SHI
SHUM
SIPRS
TSPA
TSPL
TU
TBIO
TRGY
TPHY
TS
TP
TW
TBID
TI
TF
TZ
TD
TT
TN
TNGD
TC
TX
TH
TL
TIP
THPY
TV
TK
TERRORISM
TO
TRSY
TURKEY
TINT
TFIN
TAGS
TR
US
UNSC
UNGA
UK
UP
UNCHC
UN
UNMIK
UNCSD
UY
USTR
USOAS
UNHRC
UNFCYP
UG
UNAUS
UNESCO
UNIDROIT
UNO
UV
UNHCR
USUN
UZ
USNC
UNCHR
UNCND
UNEP
USEU
USPS
USAID
UE
UNVIE
UAE
UNDP
UNODC
UNCHS
UNFICYP
UNDESCO
UNC
UNPUOS
UNDC
UNICEF
Browse by classification
Community resources
courage is contagious
Viewing cable 09BRASILIA1391, PERES AND ABBAS VISITS IN PERSPECTIVE
If you are new to these pages, please read an introduction on the structure of a cable as well as how to discuss them with others. See also the FAQs
Understanding cables
Every cable message consists of three parts:
- The top box shows each cables unique reference number, when and by whom it originally was sent, and what its initial classification was.
- The middle box contains the header information that is associated with the cable. It includes information about the receiver(s) as well as a general subject.
- The bottom box presents the body of the cable. The opening can contain a more specific subject, references to other cables (browse by origin to find them) or additional comment. This is followed by the main contents of the cable: a summary, a collection of specific topics and a comment section.
Discussing cables
If you find meaningful or important information in a cable, please link directly to its unique reference number. Linking to a specific paragraph in the body of a cable is also possible by copying the appropriate link (to be found at theparagraph symbol). Please mark messages for social networking services like Twitter with the hash tags #cablegate and a hash containing the reference ID e.g. #09BRASILIA1391.
Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin |
---|---|---|---|---|
09BRASILIA1391 | 2009-12-02 17:40 | 2011-01-28 12:00 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Brasilia |
VZCZCXRO5600
PP RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHDIR RUEHKUK RUEHTRO
DE RUEHBR #1391/01 3361740
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 021740Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY BRASILIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5529
INFO RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 0183
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM 0033
RUEHRG/AMCONSUL RECIFE 0166
RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO 0094
RUEHSO/AMCONSUL SAO PAULO 0145
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BRASILIA 001391
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/02/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL KHUM KPAL IS IR
SUBJECT: PERES AND ABBAS VISITS IN PERSPECTIVE
REF: A. BRASILIA 1368
¶B. BRASILIA 1112
¶C. BRASILIA 658
¶D. BRASILIA 391
BRASILIA 00001391 001.2 OF 003
Classified By: Charge D'Affaires Lisa Kubiske for reasons 1.4 (b) and ( d)
¶1. (C) Summary. The November visits by Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, both shortly in advance of Iranian President Ahmadinejad's visit (ref A), led to few substantive results but helped Brazil craft its narrative as a hopeful emerging player in the Middle East. During the Abbas visit, President Lula made separate comments criticizing the U.S. role in the Middle East and arguing that the United Nations, not the United States, should play a mediating role in the region. The Israeli Embassy expressed satisfaction with the Peres visit but does not see Brazil as a viable neutral third party in the region, given the GOB's lack of regional knowledge and its lean against Israeli interests in efforts to accumulate supporters of a permanent Brazilian UN Security Council seat. Diplomats representing Israel/Palestine's neighbors with whom we have spoken welcome Brazil's interest in the region and generally support Brazil's goals, but see the current aggressive outreach as largely a product of Lula's strong presidency, and expect little from Brazil besides an emerging commercial relationship. End summary.
Brief Summary of Peres and Abbas Visits ---------------------------------------
¶2. (SBU) In his November 11-12 visit to Brazil, Shimon Peres met separately with President Lula and Defense Minister Jobim, then addressed a joint session of Congress, before departing to Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro for meetings with business leaders (including Petrobras) and the Jewish community. Various minor commercial agreements were signed. In many ways the agenda for the visit -- the first by an Israeli president since 1966 -- mirrored the November 23 agenda of Ahmadinejad. Iran was a consistent topic of discussion in Peres' visits with Brazilian officials, businessmen and politicians. Local press coverage was relatively limited and highly favorable; nothing particularly interesting was said in the media during the visit.
¶3. (C) President Lula met Palestinian President Abbas on October 20 in the state of Bahia on Brazil's northeastern coast. Abbas was warmly supportive of a Brazilian role in the Middle East peace process. In the Bahia press conference, Lula criticized the USG role in the region, saying, "As long as the United States is trying to negotiate peace in the Middle East there won't be peace...The one who should oversee the negotiations is the United Nations, and that's why Brazil wants to reform the UN system." The following day he made similar comments blaming the United States for problems in the Middle East. Despite this, Lula's policy prescriptions for the region were nothing outside the mainstream, calling for a halt to new West Bank settlements (but not removal of existing ones), and preservation of current borders for a future Palestinian state. Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE or Itamaraty) officials from both the Iran/Central Asia and Israel/Palestine desks later told poloff that Foreign Minister Amorim weighed in with Lula and his advisors right after the Abbas visit to get him to refrain from directly criticizing the United States or other countries by name during the Ahmadinejad visit. This effort apparently proved to be successful (ref A).
Israeli and other Perspectives ------------------------------
¶4. (C) Israeli Deputy Chief of Mission Raphael Singer told poloff November 27 that he was happy with the Peres visit outcomes, and content with the Abbas visit outcomes. Peres' joint session before Congress was a particular point of pride, since it was difficult to set up, drew several dozen sympathetic senators and deputies from a wide range of parties, and contrasted sharply with Ahmadinejad's relatively frosty courtesy call with the presidents of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies. He was also proud of setting up a widely run photo of Peres with soccer star Ronaldo. Singer acknowledged concerns about Lula's rhetoric during the Abbas visit but believed the visit was helpful at least to the extent that Abbas explained to Lula how Iranian assistance to Hamas and Hezbollah undermines his position and peace in the region generally. Media reports assert that Abbas pressed
BRASILIA 00001391 002.2 OF 003
Lula to push Ahmadinejad to stop such assistance. (Comment: Previous poloff discussions with MRE indicate very little institutional Itamaraty understanding of Iran's role in Israel/Palestine/Lebanon. End comment.)
¶5. (C) The MRE Israel/Palestine desk officer offered general pleasantries about the visits and had no comment on President Lula's remarks in Bahia concerning the USG role in the Middle East. He told poloff that MRE has committed to providing additional support to the Palestinian Authority (PA), but allocation decisions won't be made until 2010. Singer told poloff that the Israeli Embassy has no problems with the GOB providing funding to the Palestinian Authority, but would appreciate advance consultation with MRE, which did not happen before Amorim's March announcement that Brazil would provide 20 million reais (then USD 10 million) to the PA (ref D).
Getting in the Game? --------------------
¶6. (C) Leading Brazilian officials, including Undersecretary Jaguaribe, have described -- to us and to other diplomatic missions -- their initiatives in the Middle East as an effort to "get in the game." Lula took that metaphor literally in meetings with his counterparts, frequently calling for a soccer game between Israelis, Palestinians, and Brazilians as a precursor to peace. Singer takes exception to Brazil's tendency to look at the Middle East through this prism, arguing that it underscores the point that Brazil's involvement has to do more with burnishing its own self-image than being an honest broker in the Middle East. While he describes Israel-Brazil relationships as amicable, Brazil's tendency to look at the region in terms of potential votes for a theoretical UN Security Council seat consistently puts them against Israeli interests. Peres, he said, was particularly annoyed with Lula's "unserious" response to Peres' inquiries about Brazil voting consistently for anti-Israel resolutions in the UN.
¶7. (C) Singer emphasized Brazil's lack of capacity in the region, a point also made by diplomats from neighboring states who are much more favorably inclined to Brazil's basic policy. The Jordanian DCM, who has been in Brasilia nearly three years, told poloff recently that he has never spoken Arabic with anyone at Itamaraty in a work situation and said he doesn't know of anyone in MRE not of Syrian-Lebanese Christian descent who can comfortably speak the language. (Note: MRE admits it has no Farsi speakers, and the Israeli Embassy counts one passable Hebrew speaker in MRE. End note.) There is also an awareness among many that Lula and his advisors in the Presidency are the driving force behind this effort, one that might have difficulty outlasting Lula's presidency. In a mid-November conversation with poloff, the Turkish Ambassador and DCM spoke in glowing terms of a recent Turkish congressional visit to Brazil and envisioned robust growth in Turkish-Brazilian commercial relations. They also talked about how Lula's personality draws world leaders into wanting a closer relationship, and joked about how there was no way that Lula's handpicked presidential candidate Dilma Rousseff could be able to project herself the same way in the region.
Comment -------
¶8. (C) The Israeli DCM told us that Brazil is "a long way from being a player in the Middle East." While that may be true, the package of presidential visits -- Peres, Abbas, Ahmadinejad -- helped Lula underscore his point both domestically and with certain Middle Eastern leaders that Brazil should be considered a rising player in the region. Return visits by Lula to Israel, Palestine, and Iran, all planned for roughly March-April 2010, will further advance his case. Lula's expectations are rising rapidly, as seen in his November 26 reply letter to President Obama, which includes demands to involve new players (Brazil) in Middle East peace negotiations. The GOB's Middle East strategy, designed to position Brazil as a "leader of the South" and one-day permanent UNSC member, has led Lula and his advisors to pick at minor policy differences rather than play an overtly supportive role of efforts by the major players. This was seen clearly in the Abbas visit, when Lula sharply criticized the USG, then laid out policy recommendations for Israel/Palestine essentially identical to our own. Moving forward, our lack of serious visible policy differences on Israel/Palestine suggests ample room for cooperation with
BRASILIA 00001391 003.2 OF 003
Brazil, such as providing coordinated financial support to the PA for purposes of improving negotiation prospects. Unfortunately, the current Brazilian government may see the need to balance such coordination with needling statements aimed at maintaining its role as an independent player. End comment.
KUBISKE