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ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 291343Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY RABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0785
INFO RUCNISL/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUCNMGH/MAGHREB COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PRIORITY 0457
RUEHSM/AMEMBASSY STOCKHOLM PRIORITY 0238
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV PRIORITY 3582
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 RABAT 000879 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL KPAL IS MO
SUBJECT: DAY ONE OF RABAT INTERNATIONAL FORUM ON 
JERUSALLEM HIGHLIGHTS FRUSTRATION WITH THE NETANYAHU 
GOVERNMENT 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY:  The October 28 and 29 Rabat 
International Forum on Jerusalem brought together 
senior Quartet and Muslim representatives.  Moroccan 
Foreign Minister Fassi Fihri opened the conference 
with a message from King Mohammed VI, calling on the 
international community to pressure Israel to end 
oppression.  Palestinian Authority President Abbas 
excluded any meeting with Israeli Prime Minister 
Netanyahu "for the moment."  Characterizing the 
morning as having been dominated by "fear," Fassi 
Fihri subsequently chaired a spirited two-hour 
meeting with Ministers, Ambassadors and other senior 
representatives of the Palestinian Authority, Egypt, 
Jordan, Russia, Senegal, Sweden, Turkey, the 
European Union, and the United States.  UN Envoy 
Serry and the Palestinian top diplomat warned that 
continuing evictions and demolitions were making 
matters worse.  Eloquent Jordanian Foreign Minister 
Judeh emphasized that the Arab Peace Initiative 
remained on the table.  Participants generally 
praised President Obama's efforts and universally 
decried Israeli demolitions, building and "non- 
negotiation."  The Ambassador urged that the parties 
give the U.S. time to conduct quiet negotiations. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (U) On October 28, Moroccan Minister of Foreign 
Affairs and Cooperation Taieb Fassi Fihri opened the 
two-day International Forum on Jerusalem by reading 
a message from King Mohammed VI, the Chairman of the 
Organization of the Islamic Conference's (OIC's) Al 
Qods or Jerusalem Committee.  The king's message 
called on the international community to pressure 
Israel to stop oppressing Palestinians, return to 
the negotiating table, comply with United Nations 
Security Council resolutions, respect previous 
agreements, and find a just, final and lasting 
solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  The 
King also decried Israel's settlement and demolition 
policies.  He also reiterated Morocco's support for 
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who also spoke. 
Fassi Fihri urged Palestinians to work together. 
 
¶3.  (U) In his address and comments to the media, 
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas 
excluded any meeting with Israeli Prime Minister 
Netanyahu "for the moment."  Abbas insisted on 
negotiations based on the 1967 borders; a settlement 
freeze; and, for a final settlement, agreement on 
Jerusalem, settlements, refugees, borders, water, 
security and detainees. 
 
¶4.  (U) Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa, 
UNSYG Envoy Robert Serry, and Yasser Arafat 
Foundation President Nasser Al-Qudwa also spoke at 
the opening session of the conference jointly 
organized by the Institute and the Bayt Mal Al Qods 
Agency.  Serry delivered remarks on behalf of UNSYG 
Ban ki-Moon. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) In the afternoon, Minister Fassi Fihri 
chaired a two-hour meeting with the Foreign 
Ministers of Jordan and Senegal, the Palestinian 
Authority's chief diplomat, Turkish Deputy Prime 
Minister Bulent Arinc, and representatives of Egypt, 
Russia, Sweden, the European Union, and the United 
States, with most of the ambassadors of those 
entities present.  Fassi Fihri explained that what 
had once been a concern of just the Arab League had 
become the Organization of the Islamic Conference's 
issue.  He stressed that the conference was designed 
to assess the situation in the Middle East.  Fassi 
Fihri emphasized that "fear" had been the common 
denominator in the morning session.  He stressed 
that the issue facing the international community is 
stopping the settlements in Jerusalem and the West 
Bank.  The Minister also underscored that East 
Jerusalem must be the capital of an independent, 
viable and sovereign Palestinian state.  He noted 
that many countries stood ready to recognize the 
independence of such a state, but they were waiting 
for a signal from the Quartet. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) UN Envoy Serry characterized the present 
 
RABAT 00000879  002 OF 003 
 
 
situation as "serious."  He warned that continuing 
evictions and demolitions were making matters worse. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh 
said that in spite of Israeli provocations, the Arab 
Peace Initiative remained on the table.  He noted 
that Jordan's peace agreement with Israel was 15 
years and two days old, but today there was too much 
"process" and not enough "peace."  Praising the 
Quartet's New York and Trieste statement and 
President Obama's UN General Assembly address, the 
Minister said the speech offered clear terms of 
reference. 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Russian First Vice Minister Alexander 
Saltanov was the next to highlight the sensitivity 
of issues related to Jerusalem.  He said that the 
Russian Orthodox Church's decision to reunify led 
many Russians to visit East Jerusalem, and many 
Russian Muslims also go there seeking access to 
Muslim holy sites.  Speaking personally, Saltonov 
said that the real questions was how the 
international community could help Prime Minister 
Netanyahu to help himself and Senator Mitchell. 
Saltanov also called on the Quartet to meet more 
regularly and at all levels.  The Jordanian 
summarized the Russian intervention as asking, "How 
does one bypass the impasse?" 
 
¶9.  (SBU) The passionate Palestinian chief 
negotiator then produced a map of Jerusalem and 
explained that Netanhayu is implementing a plan to 
reduce the Arab population in East Jerusalem from 
the current 32 percent to 12 percent by 2020. 
Stressing Netanyahu's plan to build 610 houses in 
East Jerusalem in 2009, 623 in 2010, and 643 in 
2011, he said that the settlement freeze failed to 
include East Jerusalem or public buildings.  He 
asserted that 37 percent of all Israeli building is 
in East Jerusalem and that East Jerusalem's Jewish 
population has increased by 26 percent.  What is 
left for a Palestinian state?  Phase One of the Road 
Map has been effectively cancelled, and incursions 
continued.  Labeling Netanyahu "honest, decisive and 
to-the-point," he said negotiations could not resume 
under these conditions.  He added that Palestinians 
are in East Jerusalem to stay, but their only avenue 
might be to abandon the two-state solution in favor 
of a one-state solution.  He condemned the practice 
of protecting Israel in the Security Council.  He 
called the conference a defining moment as the 
situation was "very critical."  He warned that the 
path ahead was dark and that Marines could not 
change that, nor could they keep people from 
becoming suicide bombers or from supporting Usama 
bin Laden.  He closed by asking those present to be 
truly pro-peace and to promote a fair agreement. 
 
¶10.  (SBU) The EU Special Envoy for the Middle East 
said he had not come to Rabat to admit defeat. 
Moral and political clarity were needed. 
International law must be the guiding principle. 
The Israeli settlements were illegal.  Acknowledging 
the [Palestinian] right to housing, he appealed for 
tolerance and rationality. 
 
¶11.  (SBU) Declaring that Jerusalem was an extremely 
sensitive and difficult issue, Swedish Deputy 
Foreign Minister Robert Rydberg expressed 
appreciation for Morocco's organization of this 
timely gathering.  He called for a genuine freeze on 
settlements.  He said the political and humanitarian 
situations in Gaza remained unacceptable.  He warned 
of the risk that the final settlement negotiations 
were being pre-empted. 
 
¶12.  (SBU) The Egyptian Vice Minister was brief.  He 
said Egypt supported U.S. efforts.  He emphasized 
that Egypt was concerned about Israeli pre- 
conditions and about human rights. 
 
¶13.  (SBU) The Ambassador was the last scheduled 
speaker.  He acknowledged the sincere pain, despair 
and anguish he had heard.  He underscored that he 
 
RABAT 00000879  003 OF 003 
 
 
agreed with President Obama, and he assured his 
listeners of the president's sincere commitment to 
Middle East peace.  The Ambassador noted that 
Secretary Clinton and Special Envoy Mitchell brought 
great experience to the peace process and completed 
a team that was perhaps unmatched in history.  He 
emphasized the shortness of time which President 
Obama's Administration has had to address an issue 
that was decades old.  Citing his own experience as 
a negotiator, he appealed for patience as quiet 
negotiations were conducted. 
 
¶14.  (SBU) The Jordanian and the Palestinian then 
piped up again.  The Jordanian praised the 
president's sincerity and engagement.  He argued 
that Mitchell's mission was to create a conducive 
environment for negotiations.  However, when one 
talked about no pre-conditions, that did not mean 
that Israel had a license to keep building. 
"Settlements are illegal and illegitimate.  Both 
sides must refrain from actions that prejudice final 
status negotiations." 
 
¶15.  (SBU) The Palestinian opined that there was a 
difference between a tough negotiator and a non- 
negotiator.  "Palestinians have no quarrel with 
President Obama.  The time has come to move from 
"What is possible?" to "What is needed?"  He 
appealed to the international community to stand 
shoulder to shoulder with the Palestinians, who were 
now suffering indignities that Black South Africans 
never suffered under apartheid.  "Nothing is more 
difficult than being Palestinian."  One is not even 
allowed to use certain roads if one is not Jewish. 
"Fences make good neighbors."  The international 
community must now make the right choices. 
 
¶16.  (SBU) Minister Fassi Fihri closed the meeting 
by saying that he was unhappy with the unbalanced 
draft declaration.  He urged all participants to 
work on the draft and to study the issue of pre- 
conditions in particular. 
 
KAPLAN