This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRETORIA 001384 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
TREASURY FOR IAO/OAN/BEN CUSHMAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON EFIN EAID SF
SUBJECT: SOUTH AFRICA ON U.S. VIEWS ON DEBT RELIEF 
 
REF: A. STATE 31823 
 
     ¶B. PRETORIA 966 
     ¶C. APRIL 5 AND 6 2005 E-MAILS FROM TREASURY/BEN 
        CUSHMAN AND PRETORIA/JOE RIPLEY 
 
¶1. (SBU) Begin Summary.  On April 5, Econoff met with Acting 
Chief Director for International Economics Danel van Rensburg 
at the South African National Treasury to discuss U.S. views 
on debt relief and other development funding issues.  Van 
Rensburg said that South Africa was supportive of the general 
effort to increase official development assistance, but 
realized that the specific vehicles for doing so would 
ultimately depend on decisions that donor countries had to 
make.  The National Treasury was actively engaged with the 
U.K. on its proposal to create an International Financing 
Facility, and sought to better understand how it would 
function and the impact that it might have on international 
financial institutions.  Van Rensburg said that South Africa 
was generally supportive of using IMF gold to pay off 
developing country debt, as long as the process was well 
managed.  Van Rensburg will be traveling to the United States 
along with Finance Minister Trevor Manuel to participate in 
annual IMF and World Bank meetings in Washington April 16-17. 
 Manuel is scheduling bilateral meetings on April 15 and is 
open to attending a roundtable hosted by Secretary Snow (Ref 
C).  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) While the Embassy delivered talking points 
discussing U.S. views on debt relief to Acting Chief Director 
van Rensburg at the National Treasury and Chief Director for 
Economic Development John Davies several weeks ago, a meeting 
on the subject at the National Treasury could only be 
arranged for April 5.  (The Ambassador and Econ M-C delivered 
U.S. views on debt relief to Chief Director Davies and other 
Foreign Affairs officials during a March 2 discussion on the 
G-8 Summit, as reported in Ref B.)  Also attending the 
meeting were Director for NEPAD and African Programs Kamilla 
Gumede and Economists Marlon Gescoint and Christian Green. 
Van Rensburg and Gumede said that South Africa was supportive 
of the general effort to increase flows of official 
development assistance, but realized that the specific 
vehicles for doing so would ultimately depend on decisions 
that donor countries had to make.  The National Treasury 
welcomed the International Financing Facility as an 
innovative proposal and was engaged with the U.K. to better 
understand how it would work.  Whatever the plan, South 
Africa wanted to assure greater flows of development 
assistance to developing countries and supported any effort 
to identify viable options.  Van Rensburg said that South 
Africa was generally supportive of using IMF gold to reduce 
developing country debt, as long as the process was well 
managed, i.e., through selective sales of gold reserves or 
some revaluation buy-back scheme as before.  South Africa was 
waiting for the IMF paper on the subject promised for the 
spring meeting of G-7 Finance Ministers. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Gumede added that in considering new financing 
mechanisms, the implications for existing international 
financial institutions also needed to be considered.  Gumede 
said that the National Treasury agreed with the U.S. that 
development policy should be based on thorough analysis, and 
was appreciative of the work that the United States had done 
in this regard.  South Africa was supportive of the 
conclusions reached by the International Development 
Association and African Development Fund on debt 
sustainability.  South Africa agreed with the United States 
that the balance of new international development financing 
should be tipped toward grants rather than new lending. 
Gumede commented that whatever transpired, it was South 
Africa's hope that developed countries could agree on more 
ambitious financing of official development assistance. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Van Rensburg told Econoff that he would travel to 
the United States with Finance Minister Trevor Manuel to 
participate in annual IMF and World Bank meetings in 
Washington April 16-17.  Van Rensburg thought that Manuel 
would be interested in attending a roundtable hosted by 
Secretary Snow, but that the Minister's office would require 
 
SIPDIS 
some sort of formal invitation before Manuel could commit 
(Ref C).  Van Rensburg told us that Manuel would be departing 
Pretoria on April 8 for Europe before flying onto Washington 
and that he was scheduling bilateral meetings in Washington 
on April 15.  On April 6, Manuel's Personal Assistant 
confirmed to us that, in anticipation of an invitation, 
Manuel was open to attending a roundtable hosted by Secretary 
Snow on April 15. 
FRAZER