Cara. Posted February 15, 2011 The Telegraph received this cable sent by the US embassy in Cairo: Passed to the Telegraph by WikiLeaks 8:21PM GMT 15 Feb 2011 Ref ID: 10CAIRO171 Date: 2/8/2010 14:39 Origin: Embassy Cairo Classification: CONFIDENTIAL Destination: 10CAIRO137 1.© Key Points: -- According to Zeid Al Sabban, African Affairs advisor to Arab League (AL) SYG Amr Moussa, the AL entered into an agreement with the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG) to share information to combat Al Shibaab. -- Sabban said the AL is working with the Italian Government to formalize a plan to provide Somalia with security, humanitarian aid and reconstruction assistance. -- Radicals in Somalia, according to Sabban, are connected to those in Afghanistan and Yemen and the international approach on these three countries should be coordinated. -- Sabban said the AL is working to improve the situation in Sudan. SYG Moussa will discuss Sudan with Sudanese Vice President Ali Osman Taha and AU Representative Thabo Mbeki during the week of February 7.The AL will hold a meeting of its permanent representatives in Darfur on February 13-14 and an Arab Investment Conference in Juba on February 23. -- Sabban praised USG efforts on Sudan-Chad rapprochement and Fur reconciliation, but criticized recent statements blaming Khartoum for the lack of progress in South Sudan and Darfur as counterproductive. -------------------------------- Information Sharing with the TFG -------------------------------- 2.© Zeid Al Sabban, African Affairs advisor to Arab League (AL) SYG Amr Moussa told us on February 4 that the AL has entered into an agreement with the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG) to share information in order to combat Al Shibaab. ------------------------------------------ AL Working with Italy to Stabilize Somalia ------------------------------------------ 3.© Sabban said that the Arab League was working with the Italian Government to formalize a plan to provide security and humanitarian aid in Somalia. (Note: AF SYG and Italian FM Frattini co-authored an article on "An International Conference to Launch the Pact for Somalia," which was published on January 31. End Note). According to Sabban, the joint plan calls for cooperation between the AL, EU, UN, African Union (AU) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) to take immediate action to support TFG and AMISOM forces so they can provide security to allow the World Food Program (WFP) to restart the distribution of humanitarian aid. He stated that the AL was mulling over the idea of asking its member states to provide troops to aid in AMISOM's mission. Sabban said the two parties also discussed holding an international conference this year to address the reconstruction and development of Somalia. He told us that reconstruction would start in the near future in Puntland, Somaliland and other stable areas. Sabban said Spain has also expressed interest in working with the AL on Somalia. CAIRO 00000171 002 OF 003 --------------------------------------------- ------ Radicals in Somalia Linked to Afghanistan and Yemen --------------------------------------------- ------ 4.© Sabban expressed disappointment that the London conferences on Afghanistan and Yemen did not address the situation in Somalia. He said that Somalia, Afghanistan and Yemen comprised an "axis of crisis" where many radicals in Somalia came from Afghanistan and had close ties with groups in Yemen. Due to the "close relationships between radicals in Yemen and Somalia," Sabban believes there is a need to coordinate the strategies. He said that the AL was "shocked" not to be invited to the London meeetings on Yemen as it is a "core Arab League state" (reftel). Sabban urged not taking a "NATO-style" approach to address the crisis in Yemen, but to involve Arab countries and the Arab League. ------------ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cara. Posted February 15, 2011 Here's an interactive map from The Telegraph of cables in which Somalia is mentioned, spanning October 2007 to January 2010. Quite interesting! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
