VZCZCXRO9012
OO RUEHROV
DE RUEHJM #1607 2471419
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 041419Z SEP 09
FM AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5981
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 0184
RUEKJCS/JCS WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS JERUSALEM 001607 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE AND IPA; EEB FOR EEB/TPP; NSC FOR 
SHAPIRO/KUMAR; DEPT PASS TO USTR, JOINT STAFF FOR LTGEN 
SELVA, TREASURY FOR KNOWLES 
USMISSION GENEVA FOR USTR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETRD EAID KWBG PREL IS OVIP
SUBJECT: PA SEEKS US SUPPORT FOR WTO OBSERVERSHIP 
 
¶1. (U) This is an action request.   Please see para 6. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Summary:  The PA will seek full WTO Observer status 
prior to the WTO's October Ministerial, according to 
officials at the Ministry of National Economy (MoNE).  The 
PA's decision to pursue observer status has been taken at the 
ministerial level, they said, and reflected the PA's desire 
to build the institutions of statehood and to force needed 
reforms at home.  PA officials plan to announce the request 
formally to the diplomatic community in Ramallah on September 
15 and to travel to Geneva on September 21 to present their 
case to WTO missions.  Minister Khoury requested active US 
support for the PA's request.  End summary. 
 
PA Seeks WTO Observer Status, Followed by Membership 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) In a meeting on September 3, PA Minister of National 
Economy Bassim Khoury and MoNE Senior Advisor Saad Khatib 
told EconOffs the PA will seek full WTO observer status, "as 
part of the process of accession," prior to the October 
meeting of the WTO.  Khoury said this decision was taken by 
the Council of Ministers, with the support of PA President 
Mahmud Abbas (Abu Mazen).  Khoury said that the MoNE and the 
Ministry of Foreign Affairs will invite diplomatic 
representatives to Ramallah on September 15 to announce 
formally the PA's intention and to request international 
support.  He will then travel to Geneva on September 21 to 
meet with WTO officials and missions. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Khatib said Palestine is legally eligible to join 
the WTO, as the Paris Protocol recognized it as a separate 
customs territory, and established a customs union between 
the PA and GOI.  He pointed to the PA's observer status at 
the 2005 Ministerial in Hong Kong as an indicator that the PA 
meets the definition of a separate customs territory, and 
noted the purpose of observer status is to help prepare a 
government for eventual membership.  (Khatib passed EconOffs 
a background paper developed by the PA to promote their 
candidacy for observer status.   A copy can be found on the 
ConGen's unclassified intelink site: 
http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/pal econ/.) 
 
"WTO Accession is the Best Reform Strategy" 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Khatib said the PA's commitment to prepare for 
statehood is a strong motivating factor for this request.  He 
noted that the discipline imposed by the WTO process will 
help drive and streamline the PA's own legal, regulatory, and 
institutional reform efforts.  Furthermore, he noted, 
Palestinian economic development hinges largely on its 
successful integration into the world trading system. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Action request:  Post requests Department guidance 
on how to respond to the PA's request for support.  The PA's 
request appears to complement USG support for Palestinian 
institution-building and for the PA's economic reform agenda. 
 Within the legal requirements of the WTO, ConGen recommends 
the fullest possible support for the PA's request. 
MARCHESE