ID:200357
Date:2009-04-02 13:02:00
Origin:09MADRID351
Source:Embassy Madrid
Classification:SECRET//NOFORN

Dunno:06MADRID2657 09SECSTATE31088 09STATE20757
Destination:VZCZCXRO7633
PP RUEHBC RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHDH RUEHFL RUEHKUK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLH
RUEHNP RUEHPW RUEHROV RUEHTRO
DE RUEHMD #0351/01 0921302
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 021302Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY MADRID

TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0472
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNISL/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHLA/AMCONSUL BARCELONA PRIORITY 3932
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 0894
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY


S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 MADRID 000351 

NOFORN 
SIPDIS 

FOR EUR/WE, NEA, S/WCI, INR 
PASS TO NSC FOR RASMUSSEN, BRADLEY 

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/20/2034 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PTER, PHUM, MOPS, KAWK, KISL, KPAO, SP 

SUBJECT: SPAIN: S/WCI ENGAGES GOS ON ACCEPTING GTMO 
DETAINEES 

REF: A. STATE 20757 
B. SECSTATE 31088 
C. 06 MADRID 2657 

MADRID 00000351  001.2 OF 003 


Classified By: ADCM William H. Duncan for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 


1. (S//NF) SUMMARY: As part of a 10-nation visit through the 
Middle East and Europe, S/WCI Ambassador-at-Large Clint 
Williamson on March 23 met an inter-ministerial group of 
Spanish officials for discussions on the status of Guantanamo 
Bay (GTMO) detainees and the prospect of the GOS accepting 
some of them for resettlement.  The meeting was the first 
in-depth bilateral discussion on the issue and took place 
after Secretary Clinton's February 24 meeting in Washington 
with Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos (See REFTEL A), 
in which he confirmed GOS openness to accepting GTMO 
detainees.  END SUMMARY. 

2. (C//NF) The GOS delegation was led by four Directors 
General (DGs) - Assistant Secretary equivalent - from three 
ministries:  Luis Felipe Fernandez de la Pena, MFA DG for 
non-EU Europe and North America; Miguel Angel de Frutos, MFA 
DG for Consular Affairs and Assistance; Arturo Avello, the 
Ministry of Interior's DG for International Relations and 
Immigration; and Aurora Mejia, the Ministry of Justice's DG 
for International Judicial Cooperation.  Fernandez de la Pena 
will accompany Deputy Foreign Minister Angel Lossada to 
Washington April 6-7. 

//Efforts to Close Guantanamo and the Possible Role of the 
GOS// 

3. (S//F)  Ambassador Williamson noted the high priority 
placed by the new Administration on closing Guantanamo within 
one year, and explained the January 22 Executive Order signed 
by President Obama on his second day in office.  The order 
called for a DOJ-led review process, currently underway, to 
reevaluate all 241 GTMO detainees.  Each individual will be 
categorized as cleared for transfer, cleared for release, or 
able to be prosecuted.  Of those cleared for transfer or 
release, an estimated 50-60, from countries such as China, 
Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Syria and Uzbekistan, will not be 
transferred home due to humane treatment concerns.  It is 
detainees from within this group, representing the lowest 
threat level, that the USG hopes to resettle in Europe. 
Williamson noted that this was critical if the USG was to be 
successful in closing GTMO, in that it would need the help of 
friends and allies who would be willing to accept some of the 
detainees.  He added that the GOS would be able to review 
files on any detainees it considers for resettlement, and 
could also visit Guantanamo to conduct interviews.  In 
response to a question from Avello, Williamson said that the 
USG will not provide legal documents for detainees, allowing 
countries to confer status (i.e., citizenship, asylum, legal 
residency with work permit) as they deem appropriate under 
their own laws. 

4. (S//NF) The Ambassador also detailed security concerns 
regarding the 99 Yemeni detainees in custody whom the USG 
hoped to transfer to Saudi Arabia's rehabilitation program. 
GOS officials agreed that Sanaa is not in a position to 
guarantee security, but did not suggest a possible role for 
Spain in solving the Yemen issue. 

5. (S//NF) Fernandez de la Pena stated that the GOS welcomed 
USG efforts to close the GTMO detention facility, which the 
GOS views as a "black hole" contrary to international law, 
and looked forward to responses to the questions posed by the 
recent EU delegation to Washington (REFTEL B).  The 
Ambassador indicated that these were being addressed by a US 
interagency group and that written responses would soon be 
forwarded to Brussels.  At the urging of the GOS 
representatives, Williamson provided generalized oral 
responses to the most pertinent questions affecting GOS 
decision-making, but noted again that definitive answers 
would be forthcoming.  Fernandez de la Pena said the GOS 
"position of principle" is to take a "positive, constructive 
approach to the issue."  However, he cited a number of legal 
and security-related concerns.  The Spanish Supreme Court in 
2006 overturned a six-year sentence by Spain's National Court 

MADRID 00000351  002.2 OF 003 


against former GTMO detainee Hamed Abderrahaman Ahmed, 
claiming that evidence collected during his interrogation at 
GTMO was inadmissible.  The ruling later became a precedent 
which prevented another former detainee, Lahcen Ikassrien, 
from being prosecuted in Spanish courts (REFTEL C).  Citing 
reports from GOS security services, Fernandez de la Pena 
said, these same individuals are "not resting quietly at 
home."  In addition, he expressed concern that civil lawsuits 
and criminal investigations could be initiated pursuant to 
the country's universal jurisdiction laws.  The free movement 
afforded by the Schengen Zone also posed a problem. 
Fernandez de la Pena noted that the mitigating domestic 
security risks would be less challenging given the robust 
intelligence capacity developed by Spain over 40 years 
combating Basque terrorism and, more recently, radical 
Islamic terrorism.  This same experience though, makes the 
GOS very cautious about incurring the extra security risks 
inherent in accepting GTMO detainees for resettlement. 

6. (S//NF) Williamson acknowledged GOS security concerns, but 
noted that the group of detainees now being discussed were at 
a lower threat level.  The USG was not requesting that 
countries detain or prosecute these detainees, nor were we 
suggesting the imposition of robust security measures.  It 
would be up to each country to take whatever steps, if any, 
it felt necessary to mitigate risks.  With respect to 
Schengen concerns, the Ambassador highlighted that both EU 
officials and lawyers for the detainees agreed that voluntary 
restrictions could be used to limit movement of transferees 
to within the Schengen country accepting them, and he noted 
that the EU was looking at other measures to assuage concerns 
about unfettered movement. 

//Timeframe and U.S. Detainee Acceptance// 

7. (S//NF) Regarding timeframe, Williamson indicated that the 
USG hoped an EU framework facilitating member state 
acceptance of detainees would be completed during the Czech 
Presidency of the EU.  On U.S. acceptance of detainees, 
Williamson said it was one of many policy decisions under 
consideration.  He elaborated that the USG will end up taking 
the most dangerous detainees and would likely bear 
responsibility for them for years to come, since many in this 
group would ultimately be prosecuted and imprisoned.  Friends 
and allies were being approached to resettle those who pose 
less of a threat.  Positive signals had been received from 
France, Hungary, Ireland, Lithuania, Portugal, Switzerland, 
Belgium and Italy.  Upon hearing that USG negotiations with 
some of these European countries were much further advanced, 
Fernandez de la Pena seemed slightly concerned that Spain was 
behind the curve in engaging the USG on negotiations on this 
issue. 

//Home Countries' Responses to Detainees' Resettlement 
Elsewhere// 

8. (S//NF) Fernandez de la Pena inquired whether any 
countries of origin had protested their citizens being 
resettled elsewhere.  Williamson acknowledged this was an 
issue with the Chinese Uighers.  At the same time, Beijing 
did not downgrade relations nor recall its Ambassador when 
Albania took 5 Uigher detainees and there were no serious 
trade ramifications.  Nevertheless, Williamson pointed out 
that the USG could not predict future reactions.  Fernandez 
de la Pena voiced concern that by taking another country's 
nationals the GOS was implicitly calling the home country a 
human rights violator, which could have diplomatic 
ramifications.  The Ambassador said that so far this had not 
been the case, and he pointed out that most of the countries 
involved had raised no objections to their nationals being 
re-settled elsewhere. 

//Comment// 

9. (S//NF) The Embassy was pleased to see that that the MFA 
arranged an interagency discussion on the detainee issue. 
While Foreign Minister Moratinos has publicly voiced GOS 
support for accepting GTMO detainees, the issue is far from 
unanimous in Spain.  Several opposition parties in parliament 

- where Zapatero's Socialists have an increasingly fragile 

MADRID 00000351  003.2 OF 003 


minority government - have expressed concerns about how a 
prospective resettlement might take place, while there are 
also judicial questions about how this might occur within 
Spanish law and reservations by some on security implications 
for Spain.  Nevertheless, the GOS representatives expressed 
appreciation for the explanations provided by Ambassador 
Williamson and indicated that these were extremely helpful 
for GOS decision-making.  Going forward, it may be possible 
to take advantage of possible GOS concerns that it is at the 
rear of the pack in terms of EU countries engaging with the 
U.S. on detainee issues. 

10. (SBU) Ambassador Williamson did not discuss ways in which 
Spain could support development of an EU framework, but will 
soon meet with the Spanish Ambassador to Washington to 
follow-up. 

11. (U) This cable was cleared by Ambassador Williamson. 
CHACON