VZCZCXRO1684
OO RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSK RUEHSR RUEHTRO RUEHVK
RUEHYG
DE RUCNDT #0483 1320116
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 120116Z MAY 09 ZDK
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6522
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000483 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM UNSC EUN
SUBJECT: SWEDISH POLITICAL DIRECTOR DISCUSSES UPCOMING EU 
PRESIDENCY WITH AMBASSADOR RICE 
 
¶1. (SBU) Swedish Political Director Bjorn Lyrvall told 
Ambassador Rice on May 6 that Sweden's priority during its 
upcoming EU presidency would be to prepare to address EU 
institutional issues under the assumption  that the Lisbon 
Treaty would be fully ratified by the end of the year. 
Lyrvall thought there were still hurdles to overcome with 
Ireland, the Czech Republic and Germany, but he believed the 
EU needed to prepare for implementation.  Lyrvall said 
progress in negotiations over Cyprus reunification would be 
an important factor in the EUs consideration in December 2009 
on opening up additional chapters in Turkey's EU accession 
process.  Ambassador Rice said the U.S. was looking forward 
to close transatlantic cooperation during Sweden's presidency 
and emphasized the need for the international community to 
maintain leverage with the government of Sudan.  Rice also 
said the U.S. was considering how to help strengthen 
governments in Zimbabwe and Somalia, and that she hopes a 
Security Council trip to Liberia would spur France and the 
U.K. to take another look at whether now is the right time to 
downsize the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Swedish Director-General for Political Affairs, 
Bjorn Lyrvall, told Ambassador Rice on May 6 that the main 
priority of the upcoming Swedish EU Presidency (July through 
December 2009) would be to prepare the EU institutionally for 
implementation of the Lisbon Treaty.  Lyrvall acknowledged 
that it was not certain whether Ireland, the Czech Republic 
and Germany would all ratify the Lisbon Treaty before the end 
of the year, but that Sweden needed to plan as if it would 
happen. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Lyrvall identified the Cyprus reunification talks as 
a key foreign policy issue for Sweden's presidency, since 
progress between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot sides 
would also impact the EU's negotiations with Turkey over its 
EU accession.  Sweden believed that the talks were 
progressing at an appropriate pace, but that Special Advisor 
Alexander Downer would need to become more engaged during the 
upcoming give-and-take phase.  During the final stages of 
negotiations, the EU would prepare to lift trade and travel 
restrictions on the northern part of the island.  Lyrvall 
said that if the Cyprus negotiations were to succeed, then 
the EU's December progress review of Turkey's acquis would go 
well, but he added, "If Cyprus fails, there is a real risk 
that Turkey will fail." 
 
¶4. (SBU) Lyrvall asked Rice how the EU could be helpful on 
African issues.  In Sudan particularly, Rice said, the 
international community needs to find the right measure of 
pressures and incentives to spur the government in a 
different direction on Darfur to implement the CPA. 
Otherwise, it would continue to act with impunity.  Rice was 
hopeful that an arrangement elicited in April from the 
Sudanese by the President's Special Envoy, Scott Gration, 
would provide at least partial relief from adverse 
humanitarian impacts of the NGO expulsions.  Under the 
arrangement, some NGOs that been expelled had been permitted 
to return by reregistering under different names.  The UN was 
filling some of the remaining gaps in humanitarian 
assistance, but they had not been able to mitigate all of the 
damage.  Rice commented that NGOs are beholden to the 
government under the current arrangements, making it 
difficult for the international community to exert leverage. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Rice said she hoped that a Security Council stop in 
Liberia during its upcoming visit to Africa would convince 
France and the United Kingdom to reconsider whether now is 
the appropriate time to downsize the UN Mission in Liberia. 
In Zimbabwe, she said the U.S. is considering how it will 
approach the unity government, and may consider trying to 
strengthen the role of the social ministries controlled by 
opposition leader Tsvangirai.  Rice also said that piracy off 
the coast of Somalia continued to be a concern.  Lyrvall said 
that the EU naval mission would continue, and that the EU had 
made an effort to generate funds to assist the government at 
the April 23 donors conference, but Lyrvall and Rice agreed 
that more needed to be done to stabilize the government. 
Rice