Cablegate: Eu Parliamentarian Salafranca On Undp Candidacy

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS MADRID 001104

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/WE AND IO

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL SP UNDP
SUBJECT: EU PARLIAMENTARIAN SALAFRANCA ON UNDP CANDIDACY

1. (SBU) Spanish EU Parliamentarian for the Popular Party
(PP) Jose Ignacio Salafranca visited Charge on March 18 to
solicit USG support for his bid to replace Malloch Brown as
UNDP director. Salafranca said he wanted to clarify to the
USG that although he had the support of the Spanish
Government, he was not the Socialist government's candidate.
According to Salafranca, his name was first put forward by
high-level friends in the EU and UN systems (including Javier
Ruperez, Executive Director of the UN's Counter-Terrorism
Secretariat) and he only approached the GOS for support after

SIPDIS
having gained the backing of EU Commission President Durao
Barroso and the French government. Salafranca then went to
Spanish Foreign Minister Moratinos in early March to request
that the Spanish MFA indicate its support for his candidacy
(despite the fact that he represents the opposition PP) via a
note verbale circulated to the diplomatic community in
Madrid. Moratinos agreed to do so, which Salafranca said led
to an internal dispute within the ruling Socialist Party
(PSOE), many of whose members resented the government's
backing of a PP candidate to an important UN position. This
internal PSOE debate delayed the release of the note verbale
supporting Salafranca's candidacy by over two weeks, but the
note was eventually circulated in Madrid (copy of diplomatic
note was faxed to EUR/WE on March 21 along with a letter from
Salafranca requesting USG support for his candidacy.)

2. (SBU) Salafranca said that although the UNDP director is
appointed by the UNSYG and not elected by UN members, he
understood that the USG's view would have great bearing on
UNSYG Annan's decision. He wanted to request the USG's
support, or at least head off USG hostility to his candidacy
just because it had been sanctioned by the Zapatero
government. He asked whether the USG had given its backing
to the UK candidate or any other nominee. Charge explained
that the USG had taken no position on any of the UNDP
candidates. Salafranca said he had the support of several
Latin American countries (Chile, Mexico, Panama, Ecuador,
Peru, Guatemala, and Costa Rica) and several North African
countries (Algeria, Turkey, Tunisia). He implied that
high-level figures such as Durao Barroso and former Spanish
President Jose Maria Aznar may contact the USG to lobby on
his behalf.

3. (SBU) Salafranca approached USINT Havana and USEU on his
candidacy before visiting Embassy Madrid, evidently because
of his frequent interaction/cooperation with the USG in
Brussels on Cuba issues. He thought that USINT and USEU
would be better placed than Embassy Madrid to relay his bona
fides to Washington since after nearly 15 years in Brussels
he had few dealings with USG officials in Madrid.
MANZANARES

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