C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 001561 SIPDIS E.O. 
12958: DECL: 07/02/2017 TAGS: UNSC, PGOV, PREL, PBTS, EUN, FR, GE, RU, 
GG SUBJECT: WORKING WITH FRANCE TO ADVANCE A SOLUTION TO THE CONFLICT IN
GEORGIA (UNSCR AND GAERC) REF: A. SECSTATE 86108 B. SECSTATE 86130 
PARIS 00001561 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Political Minister Counselor 
Kathleen H. Allegrone. Rea sons 1.4b,d 

1. (C) Summary: Embassy Paris 
raised Reftels UNSCR points (State 86130) and points for the August 12 
GAERC (State 86108) with multiple counterparts at the Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs after Russia declared it would stop hostilities, but 
before the Sarkozy/Medvedev meeting concluded. France welcomed the close
coordination with the USG on a Security Council resolution and 
expressed optimism that a favorable outcome could be achieved. On the 
GAERC points, the French were largely in agreement with U.S. objectives 
while noting a strong desire to secure EU unity early in the process so 
as to support the effort to broker a settlement led by the French 
President and Foreign Minister in tandem with the OSCE. We noted the 
need to combat a Russian public diplomacy effort to minimize Russian 
violations of Georgian sovereignty and reiterated the need for European 
and U.S. unity in the face of Russia's disproportionate response to 
Georgian actions. End Summary. 

2. (C) Post raised Georgia demarche 
points (Ref A State 86108) on the afternoon of August 12 with MFA 
DAS-equivalent for Eurasia Alexandre Vulic, who said that France's goal 
for the August 13 extraordinary GAERC meeting is a demonstration of EU 
unity. Regarding the U.S. hopes for an EU statement, as expressed in 
State 86108, Vulic expressed broad agreement on the five points. He 
described the first two points, on Georgia's sovereignty and 
humanitarian concerns, as non-controversial. He said the third point, 
regarding withdrawal of Russian military personnel, needed to be 
clarified as applying to forces entered since the beginning of 
hostilities, not prior peacekeeping forces. On the fourth point, a call 
for immediate negotiations, he said that there could be nuances 
depending on how much success FM Kouchner has to report at the GAERC 
from French diplomatic efforts thus far. Vulic identified the final 
point as most controversial within the EU, since there is not internal 
consensus about what the crisis means for EU-Russia relations, let alone
how much to say publicly. Vulic agreed to provide a readout following 
tomorrow's meeting. 

3. (C) Vulic said not much information was available
yet in Paris about today's ongoing discussions in Moscow and Tbilisi, 
but that they were not necessarily going well due in part to Russian 
demands related to questions like Georgia's renunciation of the use of 
force. He said that the GAERC should produce an expression of support 
for either an agreement, if one has been reached before the August 13 
GAERC, or if not, for the mediation effort. He asked for our assessment 
of whether fighting is ongoing since Medvedev's declaration of the end 
of hostilities, about the current presence of Russian forces in Georgia 
beyond South Ossetia, and what we think Russia's final goal is (what are
they buying time for; how could they force the departure of 
Saakashvili). Vulic agreed on the importance of U.S.-EU coherence, 
thanked us for our support of French mediation efforts, and said the 
French looked forward to our continued cooperation for a UNSC 
resolution, if the current French mediation is unsuccessful. Vulic 
expressed interest in how long DAS Bryza will remain in Georgia, the 
state of U.S. humanitarian efforts and what steps the USG was 
contemplating to follow on President's August 11 statement regarding 
Russian relations with the United States. 

4. (C) We also raised reftel 
points with Nicole Michelangeli, Deputy Director for European 
Cooperation. With the situation fluid, Michelangeli was cautious about 
French plans/expectations for the Wednesday GAERC. She described some 
Europeans as being more "en point" than others and noted

PARIS 00001561 002.2 OF 002

"certain nuances" that seemed to correspond to previous 
history with Russia or sharing a long border. Hence some countries -- 
Poland and the Baltic states -- were more "anti-Russian" than "others" 
(she specifically mentioned Portugal, Italy, and Germany, which she 
described as more cautious). Michelangeli was unsure whether the 
Ministers would issue a concluding statement, or whether the meeting 
would primarily be used by Kouchner to brief on his and Sarkozy's visits
to Moscow and Tbilisi, others to discuss what they have been doing, and
have a general exchange of views including a discussion of next steps, 
including in the humanitarian domain. However, she said almost all of 
the EU partners (Luxembourg and Portugal still haven,t commented) had 
responded positively to Sarkozy,s initiative and travel to Moscow and 
Tbilisi. 

5. (C) Post raised Georgia UNSCR points (Ref B State 86130) 
with PDAS equivalent for International Organizations Marc Giacomini on 
the afternoon on August 12. Giacomini expressed optimism that passage of
a resolution was possible. He confirmed the French Mission is working 
closely with the U.S. and UK missions in New York to refine the text of 
the draft UNSCR towards this end. In terms of Council votes, the French 
believed nine favorable votes are not out of reach: Costa Rica supports 
while Panama, and Burkina Faso show positive signs of being open to US 
arguments; They count on China abstain; South Africa is being discrete. 
The French consider Indonesia, Libya, and Vietnam, as has been the case 
in the past would be harder to convince. France is currently seeking 
support of other UNSC members in New York but intends to demarche 
Capitals beginning on August 13. The French welcomed our outreach to 
these capitals and noted they judged individual demarches rather than 
joint P3 demarched as the potentially most effective tactic. Discussing 
potential next steps, Giacomini described Russian impediments to a 
resolution would likely center on the nature of engagement and non-use 
of force guarantees, and probably will not founder on talks of an 
international tribunal. In terms of operative mechanisms in the 
post-conflict situation, he said the French would be looking first at 
the UN, OSCE, and possibly the EU*although at this point they concede it
is too early for EU consensus and involvement*and cautioning against a 
NATO role, given Russian concerns. 

6. (C) In all these meetings we 
stressed the need for France and the EU work closely with us in this 
matter, and particularly to avoid comments that would show disunity of 
views or that would seem to throw responsibility wrongly on us for any 
of the recent events. Referring to a comment to a reporter by FM 
Kouchner on August 11 suggesting the U.S. was a party to the conflict in
Georgia, PolCounselor noted that while Russia was clearly a party to 
the conflict, the USG should not itself a party to the conflict. 
Giacomini observed FM Kouchner made this remark in the context of 
underscoring the European role in brokering a ceasefire and reiterated 
French appreciation for U.S. support. Giacomini added the situation was 
fluid on the ground in Georgia, in Moscow and in New York. 

7. (C) 
Comment: We were struck by the French view that the UNSCR resolution 
could avoid a Russian veto. Please visit Paris' Classified Website at: 
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Fran ce STAPLETON