VZCZCXYZ0000
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHAC #0259 1192111
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
O 292111Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY ASUNCION
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7792
INFO RUCNMER/MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHSP/AMEMBASSY PORT OF SPAIN PRIORITY 0016
RUEHUB/USINT HAVANA PRIORITY 0186
RHMFISS/USSOCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL PRIORITY

id: 204754
date: 4/29/2009 21:11
refid: 09ASUNCION259
origin: Embassy Asuncion
classification: SECRET
destination:
header:
VZCZCXYZ0000
OO RUEHWEB
DE RUEHAC #0259 1192111
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
O 292111Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY ASUNCION
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7792
INFO RUCNMER/MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHSP/AMEMBASSY PORT OF SPAIN PRIORITY 0016
RUEHUB/USINT HAVANA PRIORITY 0186
RHMFISS/USSOCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL PRIORITY
----------------- header ends ----------------
S E C R E T ASUNCION 000259
SIPDIS
STATE FOR WHA/BSC MDASCHBACH
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/30/2029
TAGS: PREL PGOV PA
SUBJECT: LUGO REPLACES FOREIGN MINISTER
Classified By: DCM Michael J. Fitzpatrick for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
¶1. (C) SUMMARY: President Fernando Lugo named MERCOSUR
Parliament (Parlasur) Representative Hector Lacognata Foreign
Minister April 28. The announcement follows Lacognata's
April 7 resignation from the moderate Beloved Fatherland
Party and political realignment with the leftist Paraguayan
Movement Toward Socialism (P-MAS). Lacognata, who served in
the Chamber of Deputies from 2003 to 2008, leans left
politically and has an affinity for Cuba and Venezuela. He
is also an opportunist who changes political affiliations to
further his own interests. We expect our relationship with
Lugo's new Foreign Minister to be somewhat distant, at best.
END SUMMARY.
¶2. (U) President Fernando Lugo named MERCOSUR Parliament
Representative Hector Ricardo Lacognata Zaragoza Foreign
Minister April 28, replacing Alejandro Hamed Franco. Lugo's
announcement follows Lacognata's April 7 resignation from the
moderate, pro-business Beloved Fatherland Party (PPQ) and
political realignment with P-MAS, a leftist party in Lugo's
Patriotic Alliance for Change (APC) coalition.
¶3. (C) Lugo's new Foreign Minister is an opportunist who
changes political affiliations to further his own interests.
He began his career in politics in 2001 as a campaign manager
for the left-leaning National Encounter Party (PEN) but
switched his political affiliation to the PPQ in 2003,
realizing he had better chances for gaining seats in Congress
with the PPQ. Shortly after entering office, Lacognata
distanced himself from the PPQ over ideology and conflict
with Pedro Fadul, PPQ's president. Lacognata stopped
attending PPQ meetings years ago, but resigned the party only
April 7, when his name began to surface as a possible
candidate for Foreign Minister or Ambassador to Venezuela.
Lacognata accompanied Lugo to Venezuela immediately before
the Summit of the Americas April 17-19, fueling speculation
that he would replace Hamed as Foreign Minister.
¶4. (S) Lacognata is a controversial figure with clear
leftist leanings, as well as an affinity for Cuba and
Venezuela. In 1985, he participated in the Medical Students
Center, a radical student group. A former secretary general
of the Paraguayan-Cuban Society "Jose Marti," Lacognata has
made several visits to Cuba under the pretense of learning
more about its medical programs. More recently, sensitive
reporting indicates that Lacognata has developed a close
relationship with Venezuela. Lacognata's views of the U.S.
are unknown. However, in 2006, he publicly criticized the
visit by then-Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and
objected to joint U.S.-Paraguayan military exercises.
¶5. (U) Lacognata was born September 6, 1962, in Asuncion.
He graduated with a degree in Medicine and Surgery with a
specialty in pediatrics from the National University of
Asuncion in 1987. He performed his residency in Pediatric
Intensive Care and Neonatology at the Escola Paulista
Hospital in Sao Paulo. He is a founding member of the
Paraguayan Society of Children's Intensive Care, and is
accredited by the Paraguayan Society of Pedriatrics.
Lacognata entered politics in 2001. He served as a campaign
manager for PEN in 2001 and PPQ in 2003, and was elected to
the Chamber of Deputies representing Asuncion in 2003. He
was Vice President of the Chamber of Deputies during 2004-05,
and PPQ leader during 2003-04. He is married and speaks
Spanish and Portuguese.
¶6. (C) COMMENT: We expect our relationship with Foreign
Minister Lacognata, who will be sworn in on April 30, to be
somewhat distant, at best. Once Lacognata officially greets
the diplomatic corps the week of May 4, Ambassador will seek
a courtesy call, which should give us some additional insight
regarding his goals. With any luck, Lacognata's ideological
leanings will take a back seat to Lugo's pragmatism. But luck
may be in short supply. END COMMENT.
Please visit us at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/asuncion
AYALDE