VZCZCXRO1296
OO RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSK RUEHSR RUEHTRO RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUCNDT #0077 0340223
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 030223Z FEB 09
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5743
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000077 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV UNSC HR
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR RICE'S INTRODUCTORY CALL ON THE 
CROATIAN PERMREP 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY. Croatian PermRep Neven Jurica told 
Ambassador Rice during a January 29 introductory meeting, 
that Croatia considered the United States to be a strong ally 
and friend, and that he would continue his practice of 
closely coordinating Croatia's Security Council positions 
with the United States.  In the Council, Jurica said Croatia 
is interested in ensuring stability in Southeastern Europe, 
including Bosnia and Kosovo; is participating in discussions 
with the Georgia Group of Friends over the new mandate for 
UNOMIG; and is eager to work toward a final two-state 
solution for the Middle East.  He said he thought there 
needed to be a new approach to the Kyoto agreements, and 
mentioned Croatia's efforts to combat proliferation along the 
Adriatic coast.  On Georgia, Jurica asked Rice about the U.S. 
position on an Arria-format meeting as a way to hear from 
Abkhaz de facto authorities.  Rice said the U.S. had not yet 
taken a final position.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Ambassador Rice paid an introductory call on 
Croatian PermRep Neven Jurica on January 29.  Jurica set the 
context for the meeting by describing Croatia as a small 
country which had recently passed a painful process of 
gaining independence.  Croatia hoped to accomplish its 
internal tasks as soon as possible, according to Jurica, and 
had already become an established and full democracy. 
Croatia was now focused on NATO and EU accession.  He said 
over half of the Croats in the world live outside Croatia, 
including 2.5 million in the United States. Croatians see the 
United States as the promised land, he said, and consider the 
U.S. to be among its strongest allies and friends-- a fact 
which he believed was visible in Croatia's actions in the 
Security Council.  Ambassador Jurica praised Ambassador 
Rice's first statement in the Council, which she had given 
earlier in the day on the topic of International Humanitarian 
Law. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Ambassador Rice reviewed her priorities at the UN, 
including addressing climate change, non-proliferation, and 
renewing the U.S. lead role on development and combating 
disease.  She added that the U.S. wanted to extend an 
outstretched hand to others to make progress on issues such 
as non-proliferation, and hoped others would reciprocate. 
Rice invited Jurica to provide his thoughts on the dynamics 
of the Council and on how best to advance our shared agenda. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Ambassador Jurica said Croatia's main area of 
interest as a member of the Security Council was to ensure 
the stability of Southeastern Europe. He said the U.S. 
efforts to bring about Kosovo's independence was an excellent 
move, because it narrowed the area for instability. Croatia 
is also interested in Bosnia and Herzegovina, he said, as 
Croats are one of the constituent peoples.  He said that 
Croatia was concerned about climate change and had signed the 
Kyoto protocol.  He believed a new approach to Kyoto should 
be attempted in the near future, but did not go into 
specifics. Croatia was active in its cooperation on 
non-proliferation, and had established interdiction 
mechanisms all along the Adriatic coastline.  Turning to the 
crisis in the Middle East, Jurica said Croatia wanted to see 
a final two-state solution. He mentioned that Croatia would 
be supportive of U.S. efforts in Afghanistan, Burma and North 
Korea as well. He admitted Croatia had very little experience 
with African issues and that he had not had a good grasp of 
Africa before he joined the Council. 
 
¶5. (SBU) On Georgia, Ambassador Jurica acknowledged that 
Croatia was not a "player" in the Group of Friends, but said 
Croatia would support the consensus of the Western Friends. 
He asked Ambassador Rice for her views on the Russian threat 
to block action on a rollover resolution unless Abkhaz 
representatives were invited to participate in the session 
under Rule 39 of the Security Council's provisional rules. 
Rice said that a Rule 39 appearance would not be acceptable 
to the United States, as there were fundamental principles to 
protect.  She added that the United States did not want 
gratuitous confrontation with Russia over UNOMIG. Ambassador 
Jurica asked her if the U.S. was prepared to grant visas for 
an Arria-format meeting, and she replied that we had not yet 
taken a final position. 
Rice