USIA - State Department Report, 97-03-21

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From: The United States Information Agency (USIA) Gopher at <gopher://gopher.usia.gov>

REPORT ON STATE DEPARTMENT NOON BRIEFING, MARCH 21

(Indonesia, NATO/Lott, Israel/bombing, Cuba/pouch, Belarus, Nagorno- Karabakh) (1260)

INDONESIA -- John Shattuck, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, was in Indonesia this week and visited East Timor. The Indonesian Government gave Shattuck "a strong assurance that they will renew their dialogue on East Timor" under the auspices of the U.N. Special Envoy for Human Rights, according to Burns.

Shattuck visited jailed Muchtar Pakpahan and received assurances from the Indonesian Government that the labor leader would receive the proper medical care that he requires.

Shattuck visited as well Fernando do Araujo, an East Timorese political activist in custody since 1993, in a Jakarta jail. Shattuck received assurances from the Indonesian Foreign Ministry that Araujo will get medical help. Araujo reportedly suffers from high blood pressure and a kidney infection.

Shattuck also had a "good conversation" with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Bishop Carlos Belo.

NATO/LOTT -- Burns noted an Op-Ed column by Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (Republican-Mississippi) which was published in the March 21 edition of The Washington Post titled "The Senate's Role in NATO Enlargement".

"We welcome his support for NATO enlargement," Burns said. "And we welcome his proposal that a bipartisan group be put together that would be on a par with the Helsinki Group (and) the arms control groups in the Senate." This Senate group would work very closely with the Administration on the issue of NATO enlargement and ratification, Burns explained, and would attend the upcoming NATO summit in Madrid as well as a number of other conferences.

"It's a very cooperative gesture by Senator Lott, and we applaud his leadership at a very early point in the process," Burns said. "We plan to work quickly with him to find a way to put all this into play."

ISRAEL/BOMBING -- Burns acknowledged that Israeli Foreign Minister David Levy did have a letter delivered to the State Department March 19. Burns refused to discuss the content.

Burns reiterated U.S. longstanding efforts to insure that violence and acts of terrorism are prevented in the Middle East. He said "the Palestinian Authority must do everything it can to leave no doubt in the minds of its friends as well as its adversaries that they are committed to the peace process and committed to fighting violence. There can be no justification for an act of terror of the type that we saw this morning in Tel Aviv where people were killed, including a six-month-old baby."

Press reports say a suicide bomber blew himself up in a street cafe crowded with people celebrating the Jewish holiday of Purim. Four were killed; about 43 injured.

Burns said that reports that Palestinians are blaming the Har Homa building project for Jewish settlers in East Jerusalem is "an irrational logic."

Burns added that the United States wants "to see those who are associated with terrorism pay the price." Although Hamas, a terrorist group, has claimed responsibility, Burns said that the United States does not know which individuals may have been involved in the most recent bombing.

CUBA/POUCH -- Burns disputed an article published on the front page of The Washington Times March 21 titled "Cuba Searched Diplomatic Pouch, Won U.S. Apology: State Department Failed to Protest Violation of Protocol" written by Tom Carter.

The Cuban Government delayed distribution of several unclassified diplomatic pouches en route to the U.S. Interests Section in Havana. According to Burns, the Cuban Government claimed that one of the pouches arrived opened, and that it contained "objectionable, aggressive informational material." But U.S. officials determined that one of the pouches had been deliberately opened and inspected.

"We protested formally this fact to the Cuban Government," Burns said. "The Washington Times said we didn't; they're wrong. We protested it formally and clearly and emphatically. The Cuban Government interfered with our pouches; it's a blatant violation of international diplomatic law in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. It also violates the 1977 agreement on the establishment of interest sections. The Cuban Government has no authority to regulate the content of what's in our diplomatic pouches...."

Burns also disputed how The Washington Times reporter quoted Michael Rannenberger, the State Department's Cuba desk officer. "Michael Rannenberger was approached by the reporter -- Tom Carter -- up on Capitol Hill, and Rannenberger said he couldn't talk to him; it wasn't appropriate," Burns said.

Classified pouches, according to Burns, are accompanied by a courier, but not unclassified pouches.

BELARUS -- The United States has cut off $40 million in Nunn-Lugar assistance to Belarus due to that government's lack of respect for human rights, Burns said. Burns noted that on March 20, twenty people "were rounded up on the streets of Minsk for demonstrating against the government. There are no political freedoms present right now in Belarus."

Burns observed that "I don't believe we have any assistance anymore to Belarus for anything."

Burns noted that Congress mandated that each country receiving certain types of U.S. government assistance under the Freedom Support Act and the Cooperative Threat Reduction Acts of 1992/93 (The Nunn-Lugar Act) be certified for human rights compliance. The State Department has determined that Belarus does not meet internationally recognized standards of respect for human rights.

The U.S. Cooperative Threat Reduction program will be suspended after activities for which funds have already been obligated reach completion. Funds for the destruction of missile launch pads have already been obligated, and these activities can continue. Other work that had been planned but for which the funds had not yet been obligated will not occur, Burns said.

Burns said that all nuclear warheads that had been in Belarus have been removed to Russia.

Burns said that if human rights certification is possible in 1998 (for Belarus's human rights performance in 1997) or if Belarus's human rights performance improves enough for the United States to be able to certify it later in 1997 for the balance of the year, the United States would be able to resume funding the projects, including elimination of the infrastructure tied to nuclear weapons, disposal of rocket fuel, radiological surveys and full funding of activity to monitor the export of nuclear and other weaponry.

NAGORNO-KARABAKH -- Burns said that U.S. policy on non-recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh remains unchanged. U.S. officials have met several times in past years with Robert Kocharyan "as a representative of Nagorno- Karabakh," he said. But Burns emphasized that the United States does not recognize Nagorno-Karabakh to be an independent entity. "Nagorno-Karabakh is part of Azerbaijan," he said.

According to Burns, the United States understands that Kocharyan has resigned his position as "president" of Nagorno-Karabakh to become the Prime Minister of Armenia. "We will work with him in his capacity as Prime Minister of Armenia.... But we don't recognize, obviously, the title of 'President' which he has now given up of Nagorno-Karabakh."

Azerbaijan and Armenia have been engaged in a conflict over Nagorno- Karabakh since the late 1980s, when the Armenian enclave broke away from Azeri rule.

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