VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUCNDT #0599/01 0832232
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 242232Z MAR 06
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8459
INFO RUEHXX/GENEVA IO MISSIONS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000599 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: AORC KUNR UNGA
SUBJECT: UN REFORM: AMBASSADOR BOLTON MEETS WITH JAPAN'S 
SPECIAL AMBASSADOR FOR UN REFORM 
 
REF: A. USUN 442 
     ¶B. USUN 461 USUN 481 
     ¶C. USUN 527 
     ¶D. USUN 561 
 
¶1.  SUMMARY: Ambassador Bolton met with Ambassador Takasu, 
GOJ Special Ambassador for UN Reform, on March 23 to review 
the state-of-play on UN reform.  Ambassador Takasu said the 
management reform report (A/60/692) is problematic because it 
will cost several hundred million dollars to implement its 
major proposals.  He said the immediate focus should be on 
the mandate review process (the report is scheduled to be 
introduced in GA Plenary on March 30) since it may be 
possible to reach some significant agreements by June, when 
the $950 million spending authority is expected to run out. 
Ambassador Takasu remarked that if we did not achieve 
significant results on the mandate review list we have 
jointly agreed on (circulated during the meeting) by June 30, 
the GOJ will not agree to lifting the UN budget spending cap. 
Ambassador Bolton said the members of JUSCANZ (Japan, U.S., 
Canada, Australia and New Zealand) and others should agree on 
which issues can be implemented under the Secretary-General's 
own authority and ask him to take action on them by June 30. 
Ambassador Bolton told Takasu that the U.S. would keep the 
Palestinian mandates on its list for early action.  While not 
ruling out using savings for new management reform 
initiatives, Amb. Bolton said the U.S. would not agree that 
all savings would be automatically used for such purposes, 
noting that some of the savings must be given back to the 
taxpayer.  He reiterated the U.S. position that there must be 
visible progress on UN reform as well as an agreed roadmap to 
continue the process by June 30  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  Ambassador Bolton met with Ambassador Takasu, the GOJ's 
Special Ambassador for UN Reform, on March 23.  Ambassador 
Ozawa and other members of Japan's UN Mission attended, as 
well as Ambassador Wolff and other mission and department 
officers.  Ambassador Takasu suggested that while Japan and 
the U.S. should enthusiastically react to the management 
reform report, our strategy should be to concentrate on the 
mandate review process (the report is scheduled to be 
introduced in GA Plenary on March 30).  He said that the 
management reform report presented problems for Japan, 
particularly since implementation of several of its major 
proposals would cost several hundred million dollars. 
Notwithstanding these reservations, Ambassador Takasu said 
that the management reform initiatives would be considered 
seriously.  He circulated the following list of Japan's 5 
priorities for management reform action, but said that he 
would "not cry" if none of them were implemented by this 
June. 
 
-- redeployment of staff and resources to meet new 
requirements; 
-- staff mobility (proposal 2); 
-- outsourcing (proposals 11-12); 
-- procurement reform (proposals 13-15); and 
-- improvement in program planning, including termination of 
the Committee for Program and Coordination (CPC) (proposals 
18 and 21). 
 
¶3.  Ambassador Takasu said he expected substantive 
negotiations on mandate review to start at the end of April 
and that it might be possible to reach some significant 
agreements by the June 30 budget deadline.  He circulated the 
following list of 20 items, agreed to by Japan and the U.S., 
that should be pursued for early decision.  Takasu said the 
Security Council should begin reviewing mandates immediately 
upon issuance of the mandate review report without GA 
involvement. 
 
-- SC MANDATES 
 
UN Political Office in Somalia 
UN Office in Guinea-Bissau 
UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus 
Office of the Special Represenative of the SYG in the Great 
Lakes Regios of Africa 
 
-- GA Mandates 
Standing Advisory Committee on Security Questions on Central 
Africa 
Ad Hoc Committee on the Indian Ocean 
Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the 
Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of 
Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples 
Special Committee on the Charter of the UN and on the 
Strengthening of the Role of the 
   Organization 
Group of Governmental Experts Meetings on Disarmament 
Regular program of technical cooperation 
Subvention to UNITAR, INSTRAW, UNIDIR 
 
 
Follow up to Durban Declaration on Racism, Racial 
Discrimination, Xenophobia, etc. 
Committee on Information 
Mandate Authorizing payment of premium subsistence allowances 
Committee on Program and Coordination 
 
-- GA/ECOSOC MANDATES 
Committee of Experts on Public Administration 
UNCTAD 
DESA 
Regional Commissions 
Working Group on Indigenous Populations 
 
¶4.  Ambassador Bolton said the members of JUSCANZ (Japan, 
U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand) and others should 
agree on which issues can be implemented under the 
Secretary-General's own authority and ask him to take action 
 
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on them by June 30.  He also said the U.S. would not exclude 
the Palestinian mandates from early consideration, adding 
that it was also important that the U.S. Congress see that 
savings have been achieved.  Ambassador Bolton did not rule 
out using savings for new management reform initiatives but 
did not agree that all savings would automatically be used 
for such purposes.  Ambassador Takasu cautioned that the 
mandate review exercise should not be perceived as a 
budget-cutting exercise.  While he did not agree with 
"compartmentalizing" (or "enveloping") - using savings 
derived from the elimination of mandates to automatically 
fund activities in the same thematic area (e.g., development) 
- he said we should signal that any such savings would be 
used for other UN activities.  He also said we should somehow 
"build confidence" on development.  He also noted that 
Canada, Australia and New Zealand believed that savings 
should go into an account for future expenditures. 
 
¶5.  In testimony next week, Amb. Bolton said he would tell 
the House International Affairs Committee that he anticipated 
early savings from the UN reform process.  Two other critical 
achievements by June would be to implement significant 
management reforms and to agree on a roadmap to continue the 
reform process.   Ambassador Takasu remarked that if we did 
not achieve significant results on the mutually agreed list 
of mandates by June 30, the GOJ would not agree to lift the 
UN budget spending cap. 
BOLTON