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C O N F I D E N T I A L BRASILIA 000670 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR WHA, USOAS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/26/2019 
TAGS: BR PREL OAS
SUBJECT: BRAZILIAN VIEWS ON UPCOMING OASGA: ALL ABOUT CUBA 
 
REF: BRASILIA 582 
 
Classified By: DCM Lisa Kubiske.  Reason: 1.4(d) 
 
¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Brazilian Ministry for External Relations 
(MRE) Director for International Organizations Carlos Duarte 
characterized Cuba as the dominant issue for the upcoming OAS 
General Assembly (OASGA).  Brazil sees a resolution on Cuba 
as inevitable, he said, but will try to play a moderating 
role on the issue. Duarte confirmed that FM Celso Amorim 
plans to attend the OASGA.  End summary. 
 
¶2. (C) Duarte and OAS chief Luciano Rego, both of whome will 
attend the OASGA, told Poloffs May 26 that, with almost all 
other resolutions finished, Cuba was the focus of the final 
week of preparation.  Duarte hoped that some sort of Cuba 
resolution could be agreed prior to the OASGA start on June 
2, so as to "avoid polarization."  He said that Brazil was 
working in the Latin American Association for Integration 
(ALADI) to achieve a common position on language for a 
resolution regarding the lifting of the 1962 suspension of 
Cuba from the OAS, but he noted that  some states wanted to 
be "more aggressive than others," and no consensus had been 
achieved yet within ALADI. 
 
¶3. (C) According to Duarte, U.S. ideas presented to OAS 
Ambassadors over thee past weekend allowed "scope for 
agreement" on a text before the OASGA.  Duarte added that a 
recent letter from former President Carter and the  Friends 
of the Inter-American Democratic Charter, had provided 
significant support to the views expressed by USG officials 
regarding the importance of respecting the IADC. 
 
¶4. (C) Noting the June 1 inauguration of new Salvadoran 
President Funes that will bring together a number of key 
regional leaders, including President Lula, Duarte said he 
understood that Paraguayan President Lugo and Nicaraguan 
President Ortega planned to attend the OASGA, as well.  As a 
result, even agreement of a draft document this week would 
not guarantee the Cuba issue would not be reopened at the 
OASGA.  Duarte said that Brazil will continue to try to play 
a moderating role in the discussions. 
 
¶5. (C)  Duarte admitted that the GOB has received "unclear 
signs" from Cuba on the issue, with the  formal government, 
often at odds with former President Fidel Castro. 
Nonetheless, it was clear that Cuba's entire focus was on 
ending the U.S. embargo, and that everything else was 
secondary.  Despite the lack of 
enthusiasm from Havana, Duarte indicated that Brazil supports 
a resolution pointing toward Cuba's reintegration with the 
OAS. 
 
¶6. (C)  When asked what issues from the recent Summit of the 
Americas (SOA) would be important for the OASGA, Duarte said 
that in the GOB's view, the two main issues from the SOA were 
not on the agenda: Cuba and the economic crisis.  All other 
specific SOA issues were being worked out in their 
appropriate ways, although he noted that the Bolivarian 
Alternative (ALBA) countries were insisting on footnoting 
their disagreement with any resolution that mentioned the SOA 
declaration.  In Duarte's view, the key objective for the 
OASGA was to "preserve the spirit and positive momentum" from 
the Summit, which he attributed to President Obama's 
positions and participation.  Key to accomplishing this would 
be further symbolic progress on Cuba, rather than concrete 
steps on any of the concrete elements of the hemispheric 
agenda. 
 
¶7. (C) Comment: Brazil has made clear that it believes Cuba 
should be re-integrated into the inter-American system, but 
is genuinely committed to ensuring the issue does not become 
polemical at the OASGA.  In discussing the Administration,s 
efforts to move forward on Cuba, it appeared that Duarte, 
like many of our Brazilian contacts, was unaware of the 
complex U.S. domestic dynamic that must be addressed.  It 
will be important for GOB interlocutors to understand this 
dynamic as Brazil seeks to play a moderating role on Cuba. 
KUBISKE