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FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
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INFO RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L USUN NEW YORK 000379 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/27/2011 
TAGS: PREL UNSC UNGA
SUBJECT: SYG SELECTION: FEBRUARY 24 P-5 CONSULTATIONS 
 
REF: STATE 30367 
 
Classified By: Ambassador John R. Bolton, Permanent Representative, for 
 reasons 1.4 b,d. 
 
¶1. (C) Summary.  The Permanent Representatives of the P-5 met 
Friday, February 24 to continue their private consultations 
on the selection of the next Secretary General (SYG).  They 
agreed it was useful that the full membership of the Council 
was already engaged in informal discussions on the subject 
and that the Council should maintain momentum under future 
Presidencies.  The PRs agreed to suggest ideas for bilateral 
consultations on the SYG selection to Argentine Ambassador 
Mayoral (the Council President in March) and to encourage him 
to hold an informal session in the Council during his 
Presidency.  There was agreement that a new SYG should be 
elected, in the GA upon the recommendation of the Council, no 
later than September or October.  They opposed the idea of 
electing a "ticket" of SYG and D/SYG, and noted that the 
Council would have to ensure that efforts to engage the 
General Assembly in the process did not deviate from the 
Charter or undermine the prerogatives of the Council. 
Ambassador Bolton emphasized the importance of a process that 
generated a sufficient pool of candidates and allowed the P-5 
to come to agreement prior to voting in the Council. End 
Summary. 
 
¶2. (C) P-5 Permanent Representatives (PRs) met February 24 to 
continue their discussion on the SYG selection process, 
following the full Security Council's "informal informals" on 
the same subject earlier in the morning.  French PR de La 
Sabliere opened the discussion by noting that the U.S. 
Presidency's efforts to conduct consultations on the issue 
and involve the full membership of the Council "gave everyone 
a sense of ownership" and was of "fundamental importance" in 
the current atmosphere of distrust between the General 
Assembly (GA) and the UNSC.  "If we want the Charter 
respected," he said, "then we must have the process on track 
in the Council." 
 
¶3. (U) De La Sabliere proposed three topics for discussion: 
the timing of the selection; the idea of selecting a SYG and 
D/SYG together; and the appropriate role for the GA. 
 
Timing 
------ 
 
¶4. (C) The PRs of France, Russia, China and the UK all 
expressed support for finishing the selection process (GA 
action on a UNSC recommendation) by late September or 
October.  De La Sabliere noted it would be impossible to know 
how long the process would take, but suggested that "June or 
July" would be an appropriate time to begin.  Chinese PR Wang 
noted that the Council's informal discussion on the issue was 
already underway, and the Council needed to "keep up the 
momentum" in the coming months.  The UK's Jones Parry said 
that "the show has already started" and needs to continue. 
 
A ticket to nowhere 
------------------- 
 
¶5. (C) The idea of having the Council select a D/SYG or Chief 
Operating Officer as part of a "ticket" with a new SYG was 
rejected.  Russian PR Denisov noted that any formal Council 
action or discussion on the D/SYG would alienate the wider GA 
membership.  The UK's Jones Parry said, while he was 
extremely unhappy with the "haphazard, non-transparent" 
process by which the SYG currently selected his Deputy and 
Under Secretaries-General, that there was no reference in the 
Charter to a role for the Council in the D/SYG selection.  He 
noted that it was the GA that created the D/SYG position 
through a resolution (A/RES/52/12B).  Wang said the Council 
should "concentrate on selecting a SYG."  De La Sabliere said 
that he did not want the overall selection process to deviate 
from the Charter "by a single comma" and he could therefore 
not support the ticket approach.  He did note, however, that 
he saw "merit" in the idea of a deputy with management 
authority and a clear delegation of responsibility from the 
SYG. 
 
GA Role 
------- 
 
¶6. (C) In discussing the role of the General Assembly in the 
selection process, de La Sabliere emphasized the importance 
of staying within the bounds of the Charter and suggested 
that the P-5 find a way to increase the Council's informal 
contact with the President of the GA.  He suggested that 
formal efforts to provide opportunities for member states to 
meet potential candidates, as has been suggested by some, 
would be unwise, but he was prepared to consider informal 
sessions "off the UN premises".  Wang said that the Charter 
was clear on the primary role of the UNSC, but the Council 
 
would need to handle the issue with "particular care" or risk 
damaging the broader reform discussion.  He suggested that 
candidates might approach GA members, including through the 
regional groups, to present their candidacies, and he 
repeated his call to "maintain the primary role of the 
Council, while allowing others to feel part of the process." 
 
¶7. (C) Jones Parry agreed with Wang, noting the need to give 
member states "a sense of ownership" in the process.  The P-5 
would need to balance the "reality" of decision-making in the 
P-5 with the needs of the rest of the Council and the "other 
176" member states.  Denisov stressed the importance of 
transparency within the Council but said that he did not 
think the ideas floated by the Canadian PR for greater GA 
involvement would be problematic for the Council or infringe 
on Council prerogatives.  He also noted that the role for the 
President of the GA called for by Resolution 51/241, which 
was adopted by consensus in the GA, would similarly not 
interfere with the Council's Charter obligations. 
 
Next Steps 
---------- 
 
¶8. (C) PRs agreed that the process of consultation among all 
fifteen Security Council members should consider under 
Argentina's Presidency in March.  The P-5 would continue to 
consult and would offer suggestions to PR Mayoral next week, 
including that he continue private discussions with members 
on the issue and report informally to the Council before the 
end of March.  P-5 PRs plan to meet again on the issue next 
month. 
 
¶9. (C) Ambassador Bolton noted that the P-5 would have to 
make certain that the process generated a sufficient pool of 
candidates to ensure that the best possible candidate - from 
whatever region - was eventually elected.  He also noted that 
the P-5 needs to come to consensus on a candidate before the 
Council begins voting.  All P-5 PRs agreed that an election 
in the Council marked by repeated vetoes would be bad for the 
Council and the organization as a whole. 
 
¶10. (C) There was a brief discussion on regional rotation, 
with everyone's positions well established, and brief 
comments on the subject of "criteria".  Chinese PR Wang 
downplayed the importance of managerial ability, calling it 
"important at the moment" but not as vital over the 
long-term.  Wang emphasized the need for a candidate of 
sufficient "international stature." 
BOLTON