VZCZCXRO2382
OO RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHPG #0508/01 1320841
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 120841Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY PRAGUE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7329
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHBM/AMEMBASSY BUCHAREST 7240
RUEHSF/AMEMBASSY SOFIA 0481
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 1737
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0142

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PRAGUE 000508 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
EUR/NCE FOR SONYA TSIROS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/11/2016 
TAGS: PREL PARM UN EUN MW SR BO IR IZ CG SU LI
EZ 
SUBJECT: CZECHS ON MAY 15 GAERC 
 
REF: A. STATE 74555 
 
     ¶B. STATE 74589 
 
Classified By: Acting Political-Economic Counselor 
Karen C. Reider for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
¶1. (C) Summary. At the May 15 GAERC, Czechs expect the focus 
will be on the Balkans, the Middle East, and Africa. On 
Serbia, the Czechs agree with the EU decision to suspend 
accession talks for failure to comply fully with ICTY. They 
urge Montenegro to use the Czech-Slovak "Velvet Divorce" as a 
model if voters choose independence. On Iran, Czechs urge the 
international community to achieve consensus on further 
action on Iran. However, if consensus cannot be reached, the 
Czechs would consider the possibility of "unilateral action" 
carried out by a coalition of the willing, including the U.S. 
and the EU. The Czechs are undecided on the question of 
providing humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine. On 
Sudan, the Czechs urge pressure to bring all parties to the 
table to sign the Sudanese peace agreement. Czechs would 
consider visa restrictions for those who fail to support the 
peace process. End summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Poloff met May 11 with Miroslav Kolalek, Deputy 
Director of the MFA's Common Foreign and Security Policy 
Department, to discuss the May 15 GAERC and reftel B demarche 
on Sudan visa restrictions. The discussion focused on the 
Balkans, Middle East, and Africa. 
 
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Balkans 
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¶3. (C) Kolatek said the Czechs generally support the European 
Council's draft conclusions on the Balkans. On Bosnia, the 
Czechs regret that the Bosnian Parliament was unable to pass 
the necessary constitutional reform legislation. The Czechs 
regard the strengthening of state structures as a 
precondition to EU accession. 
 
¶4. (C) On Serbia, Kolatek said the Czechs agree Serbia has 
failed to fully comply with ICTY. Therefore, the Czechs 
support the EU decision to suspend Stabilization and 
Association (SSA) talks. However, should a break-through 
occur in coming days, the Czechs would support continuation 
of the SSA talks with a view toward completing them by the 
end of the year. 
 
¶5. (C) On Montenegro, the Czechs hope the referendum will be 
conducted as democratically as possible. If the voters choose 
independence, the Czechs will urge both republics to look at 
the Czech-Slovak model of division. The goal of division 
should be to provide maximum freedom of movement for the 
people of both republics, and to foster stability in the 
region. 
 
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Middle East 
----------- 
 
¶6. (C) On Iraq, the Czechs support the Council's draft 
conclusions, which call on Iraqi political parties to form a 
new government by May 27. The Czechs regard a government with 
the broad support of the Iraqi people as a precondition to 
any discussion about withdrawal of coalition forces. To 
prevent further destabilization, any decision to withdraw 
must be the result of an agreement between the Iraqi 
government and coalition forces. 
 
¶7. (C) Turning to Iran, the Czechs hope for a diplomatic 
solution as a matter of principle. At the same time, they 
understand that Iran's actions have made a diplomatic 
solution difficult to achieve. The Czechs support a UNSC 
resolution under Article 7. Kolalek said the Czechs urge the 
international community to try to achieve consensus on 
further action on Iran. However, if consensus cannot be 
achieved, the Czechs think the possibility of "unilateral 
action" carried out by a coalition of the willing, comprised 
of U.S., the EU, and like-minded countries, cannot be 
overlooked. 
 
¶6. (C) On Palestine, Kolatek said the EU plans to provide 
humanitarian aid directly to the Palestinian people, and the 
European Commission is currently considering the type of 
 
PRAGUE 00000508  002 OF 002 
 
 
mechanism that can be employed to deliver this aid. The Czech 
position on the EU plan to provide aid is not fully defined. 
 
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Africa 
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¶7. (C) On Sudan, the Czechs urge the use of pressure to bring 
all parties to the table to sign the Sudanese peace 
agreement. The Czechs also support a UN operation, and would 
consider NATO logistical support of such an operation. 
Regarding humanitarian assistance, the Czechs support EU 
plans to provide assistance, and believe the Sudanese 
government should remove all obstacles to receiving such 
assistance. On the question of visa restrictions for members 
of the Justice and Equality movement (ref B), Kolatek said 
the Czechs would likely be supportive if the movement fails 
to support the peace agreement. 
 
¶8. (C) Uganda and Cote d'Ivoire are on the GAERC agenda, and 
Kolatek said the Czechs support the draft conclusions on 
these countries. He was not able to comment on the Czech 
position on the Democratic Republic of Congo or Liberia. 
 
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Cuba 
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¶9. (C) Kolatek said the Czechs do not plan to raise Cuba, 
informally or otherwise, at the May 15 GAERC. 
CABANISS