VZCZCXRO9976
RR RUEHPA RUEHROV
DE RUEHFR #1011/01 0471803
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 161803Z FEB 06
FM AMEMBASSY PARIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4339
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RUEHYD/AMEMBASSY YAOUNDE 0806
RUEHTRO/USLO TRIPOLI 0036

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 001011 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/17/2016 
TAGS: PREL PHUM CT FR
SUBJECT: FRANCE/C.A.R.:  MFA ENCOURAGED BUT CONCERNS REMAIN 
 
REF: PARIS 598 
 
PARIS 00001011  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
Classified By: Acting Polcouns Bruce Turner, reasons 1.4 (b/d). 
 
¶1.  (C)  SUMMARY:  French MFA officials on February 15 
stressed continuing GOF interest in the Central African 
Republic (C.A.R.), based on its strategic location, role in 
regional crises, and precarious status as an impoverished 
state that could become a failed state.  The MFA officials 
claimed President Bozize played a useful role in the 
Chad-Sudan talks in Tripoli.  The French were encouraged by 
C.A.R.'s hosting a ministerial meeting in Bangui (February 
20-23) to prepare for the next Great Lakes Summit, to take 
place later this year in Kenya.  Cameroon has signaled its 
willingness to contribute troops to the FOMUC peacekeeping 
mission in C.A.R., which would allow Gabon to withdraw some 
of its FOMUC contingent.  The MFA defended the legitimacy of 
Bozize's temporary period of "rule by decree" and asserted 
that the C.A.R. president remained subject to constitutional 
controls;  Bozize does not have a "blank check."  However, 
the French remained concerned about the actions of the 
C.A.R.'s security forces (especially the presidential guard 
units) and Bozize's apparent unwillingness to acknowledge 
that their conduct was a problem.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (C)  FRENCH INTERESTS:  MFA officials Isabelle Guisnel 
(deputy to DAS-equivalent Foucher) and Charlotte Montel 
(C.A.R. deskoff) discussed C.A.R. developments on February 
¶15.  Guisnel provided an overview of France's interests. 
C.A.R. was becoming more important because of its geographic 
location and thus its proximity to several countries plagued 
by instability, ethnic conflict, and humanitarian and human 
rights concerns.  These included Sudan and Chad to the north 
and east, and problems associated with the Great Lakes to the 
South.  C.A.R. was perforce part of the equation in French 
evaluations of these different problems.  Moreover, Guisnel 
emphasized that C.A.R.'s extreme poverty, if not addressed by 
the international community, risked allowing C.A.R. to become 
a "failed state," which would add yet another negative 
element to the region.  Guisnel said that France was thus 
paying more attention to C.A.R. in an effort to ensure that 
it could, to the extent possible, be part of regional 
solutions and not an additional regional problem.  She hoped 
that the U.S. also viewed C.A.R. in this light. 
 
¶3.  (C)  TRIPOLI:  Montel said that C.A.R. President Bozize 
played a useful role at the February 8-9 Tripoli Summit 
focused on Sudan and Chad.  Bozize's presence was warranted 
because of the common borders shared by C.A.R., Sudan, and 
Chad, the very porous nature of those borders, and the effect 
that any settlement or cease-fire would have on C.A.R.'s own 
security posture.  Montel explained that Bozize's presence 
was useful in facilitating discussion among Deby, Bashir, and 
Qadhafi.  She asserted that Bozize enjoyed far better 
personal relations with the other leaders than had his 
predecessor, President Patasse.  Bozize was close to Deby and 
had a "decent" relationship with Bashir and Qadhafi, whereas 
Patasse was often feuding with one or the others.  Although 
Montel indicated that Bozize did not have much of a role in 
crafting the eventual Sudan-Chad agreement in Tripoli, she 
said that his personal presence helped smooth interaction 
among the others. 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  C.A.R. ENGAGEMENT:  France is supportive of 
increased C.A.R. participation in regional issues, Montel 
said.  She cited Bangui's hosting a ministerial meeting on 
the Great Lakes (February 20-23) to prepare for the Great 
Lakes Summit to take place in Kenya later in 2006. 
 
¶5.  (C)  CAMEROON/C.A.R.:  Cameroon recently indicated that 
it would provide troops to FOMUC, the small peacekeeping 
operation in western C.A.R. under CEMAC (Central African 
Economic and Monetary Community), Montel noted.  Cameroon's 
offer followed a request to Cameroon from Gabon, which had 
been seeking to reduce its troop contribution to FOMUC.  "A 
Biya favor to Bongo," Montel remarked on Cameroon's 
willingness to participate in FOMUC.  Nonetheless, France was 
very encouraged by this sign, which perhaps indicated a 
change in Cameroon's traditional stance of not wanting to get 
involved in regional issues.  Montel said that increased 
Cameroonian engagement in regional issues could only be a 
plus for all concerned. 
 
¶6.  (C)  FRENCH HELICOPTERS:  Montel said she was not sure 
that the two helicopters France had supplied to C.A.R. in 
January (for logistical and not combat support operations) 
had left C.A.R.  In principle, they were to be there for only 
one month (i.e., the month of January) but Montel was not 
sure they had left.  She said she would not be surprised if 
they were still in C.A.R., and would check.  (COMMENT: 
 
PARIS 00001011  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
Montel's unawareness of the status of the helicopters was 
surprising but may reflect the MFA's marginal role in a 
process directed by the French Presidency's foreign policy 
shop.  END COMMENT.) 
 
¶7.  (C)  "RULE BY DECREE:"  Bozize's three-month period of 
"ruling by decree," about half over now, seemed to be 
problem-free, Montel said.  She noted that this 
constitutionally authorized measure was not unchecked -- the 
parliament had certain powers of review.  The President did 
not have a "blank check," she observed.  Still, she said that 
France remained alert to any abuses and would be very 
concerned if Bozize tried to extend the period beyond the end 
of March. 
 
¶8.  (C)  WORRIES ABOUT RULE OF LAW PERSIST:  Despite the 
several encouraging signs, Montel said that France continued 
to be concerned about serious problems that did not seem to 
be abating in C.A.R.  There were two significant areas of 
concern -- corruption and the lawlessness of the security 
forces, especially the presidential guard.  C.A.R. was not 
doing enough to combat corruption, she said, which only 
exacerbated C.A.R.'s chronic economic problems and deep 
poverty, and the lawlessness problem seemed to receive little 
high-level attention.  She noted an incident on February 13 
involving a battle between presidential guard units and 
police forces, after the police had arrested a member of the 
presidential guard.  The arrested man's comrades then 
attacked the police station where he was held, resulting in 
several wounded, and then attacked the central police 
commissariat, causing more casualties.  Montel said that this 
incident brought to mind the Sanze case in January, which 
involved similar misconduct on the part of C.A.R. security 
forces. 
 
¶9.  (C)  BOZIZE DOESN'T GET IT?:  More troubling, Montel 
confided, was the fact that Bozize did not seem to understand 
the seriousness of the problem.  She said that a French 
journalist had recently interviewed Bozize and then related 
the conversation to the French Embassy in Bangui.  Asked by 
the journalist about the problem of the presidential guards, 
Bozize reportedly started making excuses and employing 
legalistic jargon to rationalize the behavior of the 
presidential guards.  This, Montel said, showed that he was 
either unwilling or unable to understand that rule of law 
questions and issues of good governance were very important 
to C.A.R.'s reputation and its standing in the international 
community, and could seriously influence members of the donor 
community.  Montel said that France would continue to 
emphasize to C.A.R. leaders the need to make sure that all 
elements of the C.A.R. government act within the law. 
 
 
Please visit Paris' Classified Website at: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm 
 
Stapleton