VZCZCXRO0402
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHTU #0732/01 2751610
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 021610Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY TUNIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6841
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TUNIS 000732 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR S/SEMEP AND NEA/MAG 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/02/2019 
TAGS: PREL MEPP TS XF
SUBJECT: TUNISIA AND THE MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROCESS 
 
Classified by Ambassador Gordon Gray for reasons 1.4 (b) and 
(d). 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  Tunisia has an historically strong track 
record of constructive contributions to the Middle East peace 
process.  Unfortunately, like other Arab states, Tunisia's 
engagement has been largely dormant since the eruption of the 
second Intifada in 2000.  Like other Arab governments, 
Tunisian leaders' wariness of public opinion toward the peace 
process comes even as their domestic media, tightly 
controlled by the state, are complicit in fanning the flames. 
 Nonetheless, Tunisia remains firmly placed in the "moderate" 
camp.  The Tunisian government is a strong supporter of Abu 
Mazen's government and is very wary of Hamas.   We believe 
the Tunisians are approachable with our ideas for 
constructive steps and confidence building measures, although 
they will not want to be seen to be leaning too far forward 
of the Arab League consensus.  High-level engagement from the 
USG, ideally back-stopped by the EU, will be key to 
persuading the Tunisians to act.  End summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Tunisia's historically constructive approach to 
Middle East peace dates back to at least 1965, when President 
Bourguiba was the first Arab leader to publicly advocate 
normalization with Israel.  Agreeing to host the retreating 
PLO, Tunisia was key to defusing the siege of Beirut in 1982, 
and later played a key facilitative role in initial 
diplomatic contacts between the USG and the PLO. 
 
¶3. (SBU) In the wake of the Madrid conference in 1990, 
Tunisia was the first Maghreb country to agree to participate 
in the peace process multilateral group meetings, and Tunisia 
was the first Arab country to host a multilateral group 
meeting, concerning refugees, in 1993.  Tunisia went on to 
host several other multilateral group meetings in 1994, 1995, 
and 1996.  Tunisia allowed Israel to open a Trade Office in 
Tunis in April 1996, and then opened its own Trade Office in 
Tel Aviv in May 1996.  These offices continued to function 
until the eruption of the second Intifada in the fall of 
¶2000. 
 
¶4.  (C) Since 2000, Tunisia has largely stayed with the Arab 
League consensus, usually eschewing direct bilateral 
diplomatic contacts with Israel.  However, Israeli Foreign 
Minister Shalom participated in the UN World Summit on the 
Information Society staged in Tunisia in November 2005.  At 
the time, Shalom, born in Gabes, southern Tunisia, visited 
several Tunisian cities and was received by President Ben 
Ali.  At the non-official level, Israelis can and do visit 
Tunisia, entering on their Israeli passports without 
restrictions or difficulty.  Hundreds of Israeli citizens, 
mainly of Tunisian ancestry, attend an annual Jewish festival 
on the southern island of Djerba. 
 
¶5. (C) Like other moderate Arab states, Tunisia has clearly 
been wary of public opinion, which has been enflamed by 
images of violence from Israeli-Arab conflicts, particularly 
the fighting in Lebanon in the summer of 2006 and in Gaza in 
early 2009.  Tunisian leaders occasionally complain to us 
that Al-Jazeera's coverage of these conflicts has riled 
Tunisian public opinion, limiting the Government of Tunisia 
(GOT)'s perceived range of policy options.  Ironically, 
Tunisian media, tightly controlled by the state, actively 
fans the flames of public anger regarding the conflict.  The 
Tunisian tabloid press in particular, while slavishly 
obsequious in its coverage of President Ben Ali, has a free 
hand to publish as fact outrageous conspiracy theories 
involving Israel and Jews, and generally imbalanced coverage 
of events in the Israel-Palestine theatre.  (Comment: 
Obviously, the Tunisians are more concerned about 
Al-Jazeera's frank and unflattering coverage of domestic 
repression in Tunisia than its inflammatory coverage of 
Arab-Israeli conflict.  End comment.) 
 
¶6. (C) The GOT nonetheless remains firmly in the moderate 
camp of Arab states.  The Tunisians regularly offer public 
support for Abu Mazen's government, and are cool to Hamas, 
which they certainly view with discomfort as an ideological 
analogue to Tunisia's domestic Islamic opposition.  Senior 
Tunisians regularly profess their desire to see the peace 
process revived, and to play a helpful (if vaguely defined) 
role, as Foreign Minister Abdallah did during his initial 
meeting with the Ambassador on September 17, and during his 
meeting on with Senator Mitchell on the margins of UNGA. 
 
¶7. (C) We believe Tunisia will be willing to re-engage in 
multilateral Arab-Israeli working groups and would be willing 
to consider participating in other confidence building 
measures the U.S. might wish to propose.  The reopening of 
bilateral trade offices will be viewed by the Tunisians as a 
risky move that would require a significant gesture in 
 
TUNIS 00000732  002 OF 002 
 
 
advance from the Israeli side.  Foreign Minister Abdallah 
tells us he is deeply skeptical of Israeli good will on core 
issues such as settlement expansion.  The Tunisians (and, we 
suspect, fellow Arab moderates), would likely insist on an 
unambiguous settlement freeze as a prerequisite to reopening 
trade offices. 
 
¶8. (C) The Tunisian government places a premium on 
interaction with senior-level USG officials, and such high 
level engagement will be required to persuade them to take 
steps they will view as domestically risky.  Actions 
coordinated with the EU, with whom Tunisia has extremely deep 
and broad relations, will have a greater likelihood of 
success.  While we believe the Tunisians can and will play a 
constructive role, we should not count on them to blaze 
paths.  They will certainly want diplomatic cover, acting in 
concert with other moderate Arab states in every step 
forward. 
GRAY