VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHSW #0470/01 3071806
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 031806Z NOV 09
FM AMEMBASSY BERN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6154
INFO RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 1145
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 2898
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 0342
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0253

C O N F I D E N T I A L BERN 000470 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR IO/HR (P.KRUCHOSKI), IO/UNP (A.MORRISON), AND 
NEA/IPA (J.GIAUQUE); USUN-NY FOR POL (E.GERMAIN) 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/03/2019 
TAGS: PREL PHUM PTER KPAL IS SZ LS
SUBJECT: UNGA DISCUSSION OF GOLDSTONE REPORT 
 
REF: STATE 112828 
 
Classified By: Acting POLE Counselor Chris Buck; reasons 1.4(b) and (d) 
. 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  The Swiss government has some understanding 
for USG concerns regarding the Goldstone Report and the 
resolution that will be discussed at the UN General Assembly 
on November 4.  The Swiss, however, do not share all of these 
concerns, and generally have a sympathetic view of the 
Goldstone Report.  According to Swiss Special Envoy for 
Middle East Affairs Jean-Daniel Ruch, Switzerland's approach 
to the Goldstone Report is predicated on a conviction that 
efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East do not 
fundamentally conflict with the pursuit of accountability and 
justice related to the fighting last winter in Gaza. 
According to Ruch, the Swiss government would be compelled to 
convene a conference of the high contracting parties of the 
Fourth Geneva Convention, if the UNGA resolution passes and 
includes a "mandate" to do so.  However, in such case, the 
Swiss would want to proceed in two-step fashion, beginning 
with consultations and a report back to the UNGA, before 
seeking to convene a conference.  Although acknowledging -- 
in careful measure -- some USG concerns, Ruch said that he 
did not expect the Swiss government would vote against the 
UNGA resolution as currently drafted.  He said that a final 
decision had not yet been made, and did not entirely rule out 
an abstention, but the tenor of his comments suggested 
considerable sympathy for the current draft.  Separately, the 
Liechtenstein Foreign Office suggested that USUN-NY contact 
counterparts at the Liechtenstein UN Mission in New York of a 
substantive response to the USG's message regarding the UNGA 
discussion and resolution.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) In a November 3 meeting, acting POLE counselor 
emphasized reftel concerns to Ambassador Jean-Daniel Ruch, 
Special Envoy for Middle East Affairs at the Swiss Federal 
Department of Foreign Affairs.  Also on November 3, A/POLE 
couns conveyed USG concerns separately to Andrea Hoch, UN 
Human Rights Affairs Officer, Foreign Office, Principality of 
Liechtenstein. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
SWISS GENERALLY SYMPATHETIC TO GOLDSTONE REPORT 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶3. (C) Ambassador Ruch expressed some understanding for USG 
concerns regarding the Goldstone Report and the resolution 
that will be discussed at the UN General Assembly on November 
¶4.  He made clear, however, that the Swiss government does 
not share all of these concerns, and generally has a 
sympathetic view of the Goldstone Report.  Ruch said that 
Judge Goldstone visited Switzerland two weeks ago, and during 
that visit challenged his critics to identify specifically 
the flaws in the report.  Ruch added that he personally would 
be interested in promoting such "dialogue" about the report, 
and inquired as to the source of the reftel point that the 
report contains allegations that the report's authors admit 
have not been fully corroborated.  Ruch said that to his 
knowledge, Goldstone had made no such concession. 
 
¶4. (C) Regarding USG concern that the Goldstone Report does 
not give sufficient weight to ongoing Israeli investigations, 
Ruch responded that it was regrettable that Israel chose not 
to cooperate with the Goldstone mission, arguing that, had 
the Israelis cooperated, they could have gotten more "credit" 
for those investigations.  He also commented that major 
international human rights NGOs had expressed skepticism 
about the willingness of Israel to conduct thorough 
investigations, and that this skepticism had been reinforced 
by recent statements by some Israeli officials. 
 
¶5. (C) Ruch underlined that the Swiss government appreciates 
the USG's efforts to promote a comprehensive peace in the 
Middle East.  He noted that the GoS, via the Geneva 
Initiative and other efforts, is attempting to support this 
goal, while respecting the leading role played by the USG. 
Ruch maintained, however, that Switzerland's approach to the 
Goldstone Report is predicated on a conviction that efforts 
to achieve peace in this case do not fundamentally conflict 
with the pursuit of accountability and justice. 
 
-------------------------- 
ELEMENTS OF THE RESOLUTION 
-------------------------- 
¶6. (SBU) Ruch had a copy (dated November 2, 2009) of a draft 
UNGA resolution on the Goldstone Report; he provided A/POLE 
couns a copy of the draft, which post e-mailed to reftel 
POCs.  The draft resolution that the Swiss are reviewing: 
 
-- endorses the report of the UNHRC Special Session on the 
Goldstone Report; 
 
-- calls on Israel and the "Palestinian side" to investigate 
the allegations in the Goldstone report within three months; 
 
-- recommends that the Swiss government, in its capacity as 
depositary of the Fourth Geneva Convention, "undertake the 
necessary steps as soon as possible to reconvene a Conference 
of the High Contracting Parties to the Geneva Convention on 
measures to enforce the Convention in the Occupied 
Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and to 
ensure its respect in accordance with common article 1"; 
 
-- "requests the Secretary-General to report to the General 
Assembly, within a period of three months, on the 
implementation of the present resolution, with a view to 
considering further action." 
 
¶7. (C) Referring to the draft, Ruch assessed that the text 
was more balanced than the resolution passed on October 16 in 
the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).  He added that he 
expected that the sponsors of the resolution would respond 
very rigidly to any suggestions to edit the text, which he 
surmised already was the product of much "backroom" 
wrangling. Ruch had the following comments on the individual 
operative elements in the draft: 
 
-- Endorsement of Goldstone Report:  Seems difficult to 
avoid, as the UNHRC resolution endorsed the report with less 
balanced language.  (Note:  Ruch added that, although 
Switzerland is not currently on the UNHRC, Ruch personally 
worked very hard behind the scenes to try to promote a more 
balanced resolution text in October.  End Note) 
 
-- Call for Investigations:  Switzerland would support, 
although the GoS agrees with USG concern that investigations 
cannot be time-bound.  The GoS would like to see pressure put 
on the parties, however, to commence investigations. 
Switzerland also strictly supports the principle of 
complementarity, and does not believe that allegations should 
be referred to other forums as long as the relevant national 
governments are conducting credible investigations.  (Note: 
Ruch said that he had visited Gaza in October, and had the 
impression from his meetings there that Palestinians in Gaza 
could be convinced by international pressure to conduct 
investigations into the Goldstone allegations regarding them. 
 End Note) 
 
-- Fourth Geneva Convention:  The Swiss government would be 
compelled to convene a conference of the high contracting 
parties, if the UNGA resolution passes and includes a 
"mandate" to do so.  However, in such case, the Swiss would 
want to proceed in two-step fashion, beginning with 
consultations and a report back to the UNGA, before seeking 
to convene a conference.  (Note:  Ruch said that Switzerland 
was working to try to alter the draft resolution language, to 
clearly reflect a two-step process, having assessed that 
seeking to remove the operative paragraph entirely would be a 
non-starter with the resolution sponsors.  He said that the 
GoS, in any case, would start with consultations, and 
emphasized that Switzerland would seek to consult early and 
intensively with the USG, if the resolution passes with this 
element in it.  End Note) (Comment:  Switzerland and the ICRC 
are co-hosting a conference in Geneva November 9-10 to mark 
the 60th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions.  This raises 
the current profile of Convention issues in Switzerland, and 
will increase the scrutiny of the public and media regarding 
Swiss government decisions on Convention related issues.  End 
Comment) 
 
-- Report of the Secretary-General:  Switzerland believes 
that having some form of ongoing UN monitoring of Israeli and 
Palestinian investigations into allegations of violations of 
human rights and international humanitarian law would be 
beneficial to all parties, arguing that it would increase the 
legitimacy of their efforts in the eyes of skeptics. 
Ensuring that the entity tasked with this monitoring is 
unbiased, however, would be essential.  (Note:  Ruch said 
that placing the UN Secretary General in this role offered a 
good option for obtaining an unbiased monitoring body.  End 
Note) 
 
------- 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶8. (C) The Swiss have been sympathetic to the Goldstone 
mission since its inception, acknowledging imbalance in 
Goldstone's mandate, but willing to overlook that on the 
precarious assumption that the final product would overcome 
the cynical country group politics that gave rise to that 
unbalanced mandate.  Since the Goldstone Report was released 
in September, Swiss officials tend to ascribe its principal 
flaws to Israel's refusal to cooperate with the mission. 
 
¶9. (C) Although acknowledging -- in careful measure -- some 
USG concerns, Ruch said that he did not expect the Swiss 
government would vote against the UNGA resolution as 
currently drafted.  He said that a final decision had not yet 
been made, and did not entirely rule out an abstention, but 
the tenor of his comments suggested considerable sympathy for 
the draft. 
 
----------------------------------- 
LIECHTENSTEIN'S UN MISSION HAS LEAD 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) Hoch informed acting POLE couns that 
Liechtenstein's UN Mission has the lead in determining 
Vaduz's position on the UNGA resolution on the Goldstone 
Report.  She therefore had not comment in substance, and 
suggested that U.S. colleagues in New York contact 
Liechtenstein counterparts directly for their reaction.  Post 
will report any substantive information on this issue that we 
might yet obtain from Vaduz. 
BEYER