

Currently released so far... 51122 / 251,287
Articles
Brazil
Sri Lanka
United Kingdom
Sweden
00. Editorial
United States
Latin America
Egypt
Jordan
Yemen
Thailand
Browse latest releases
2010/12/01
2010/12/02
2010/12/03
2010/12/04
2010/12/05
2010/12/06
2010/12/07
2010/12/08
2010/12/09
2010/12/10
2010/12/11
2010/12/12
2010/12/13
2010/12/14
2010/12/15
2010/12/16
2010/12/17
2010/12/18
2010/12/19
2010/12/20
2010/12/21
2010/12/22
2010/12/23
2010/12/24
2010/12/25
2010/12/26
2010/12/27
2010/12/28
2010/12/29
2010/12/30
2011/01/01
2011/01/02
2011/01/04
2011/01/05
2011/01/07
2011/01/09
2011/01/11
2011/01/12
2011/01/13
2011/01/14
2011/01/15
2011/01/16
2011/01/17
2011/01/18
2011/01/19
2011/01/20
2011/01/21
2011/01/22
2011/01/23
2011/01/24
2011/01/25
2011/01/26
2011/01/27
2011/01/28
2011/01/29
2011/01/30
2011/01/31
2011/02/01
2011/02/02
2011/02/03
2011/02/04
2011/02/05
2011/02/06
2011/02/07
2011/02/08
2011/02/09
2011/02/10
2011/02/11
2011/02/12
2011/02/13
2011/02/14
2011/02/15
2011/02/16
2011/02/17
2011/02/18
2011/02/19
2011/02/20
2011/02/21
2011/02/22
2011/02/23
2011/02/24
2011/02/25
2011/02/26
2011/02/27
2011/02/28
2011/03/01
2011/03/02
2011/03/03
2011/03/04
2011/03/05
2011/03/06
2011/03/07
2011/03/08
2011/03/09
2011/03/10
2011/03/11
2011/03/13
2011/03/14
2011/03/15
2011/03/16
2011/03/17
2011/03/18
2011/03/19
2011/03/20
2011/03/21
2011/03/22
2011/03/23
2011/03/24
2011/03/25
2011/03/26
2011/03/27
2011/03/28
2011/03/29
2011/03/30
2011/03/31
2011/04/01
2011/04/02
2011/04/03
2011/04/04
2011/04/05
2011/04/06
2011/04/07
2011/04/08
2011/04/09
2011/04/10
2011/04/11
2011/04/12
2011/04/13
2011/04/14
2011/04/15
2011/04/16
2011/04/17
2011/04/18
2011/04/19
2011/04/20
2011/04/21
2011/04/22
2011/04/23
2011/04/24
2011/04/25
2011/04/26
2011/04/27
2011/04/28
2011/04/29
2011/04/30
2011/05/01
2011/05/02
2011/05/03
2011/05/04
2011/05/05
2011/05/06
2011/05/07
2011/05/08
2011/05/09
2011/05/10
2011/05/11
2011/05/12
2011/05/13
2011/05/14
2011/05/15
2011/05/16
2011/05/17
2011/05/18
2011/05/19
2011/05/20
2011/05/21
2011/05/22
2011/05/23
2011/05/24
2011/05/25
2011/05/26
2011/05/27
2011/05/28
2011/05/29
2011/05/30
2011/05/31
2011/06/01
2011/06/02
2011/06/03
2011/06/04
2011/06/05
2011/06/06
2011/06/07
2011/06/08
2011/06/09
2011/06/10
2011/06/11
2011/06/12
2011/06/13
2011/06/14
2011/06/15
2011/06/16
2011/06/17
2011/06/18
2011/06/19
2011/06/20
2011/06/21
2011/06/22
2011/06/23
2011/06/24
2011/06/25
2011/06/26
2011/06/27
2011/06/28
2011/06/29
2011/06/30
2011/07/01
2011/07/02
2011/07/04
2011/07/05
2011/07/06
2011/07/07
2011/07/08
2011/07/10
2011/07/11
2011/07/12
2011/07/13
2011/07/14
2011/07/15
2011/07/16
2011/07/17
2011/07/18
2011/07/19
2011/07/20
2011/07/21
2011/07/22
2011/07/23
2011/07/25
2011/07/27
2011/07/28
2011/07/29
2011/07/31
2011/08/01
2011/08/02
2011/08/03
2011/08/05
2011/08/06
2011/08/07
2011/08/08
2011/08/09
2011/08/10
2011/08/11
2011/08/12
2011/08/13
2011/08/15
2011/08/16
2011/08/17
2011/08/18
2011/08/19
2011/08/21
2011/08/22
2011/08/23
2011/08/24
Browse by creation date
Browse by origin
Embassy Athens
Embassy Asuncion
Embassy Astana
Embassy Asmara
Embassy Ashgabat
Embassy Apia
Embassy Antananarivo
Embassy Ankara
Embassy Amman
Embassy Algiers
Embassy Addis Ababa
Embassy Accra
Embassy Abuja
Embassy Abu Dhabi
Embassy Abidjan
Consulate Auckland
Consulate Amsterdam
Consulate Alexandria
Consulate Adana
American Institute Taiwan, Taipei
Embasy Bonn
Embassy Bujumbura
Embassy Buenos Aires
Embassy Budapest
Embassy Bucharest
Embassy Brussels
Embassy Bridgetown
Embassy Brazzaville
Embassy Bratislava
Embassy Brasilia
Embassy Bogota
Embassy Bishkek
Embassy Bern
Embassy Berlin
Embassy Belmopan
Embassy Belgrade
Embassy Beirut
Embassy Beijing
Embassy Banjul
Embassy Bangui
Embassy Bangkok
Embassy Bandar Seri Begawan
Embassy Bamako
Embassy Baku
Embassy Baghdad
Consulate Belfast
Consulate Barcelona
Embassy Cotonou
Embassy Copenhagen
Embassy Conakry
Embassy Colombo
Embassy Chisinau
Embassy Caracas
Embassy Canberra
Embassy Cairo
Consulate Curacao
Consulate Ciudad Juarez
Consulate Chiang Mai
Consulate Chennai
Consulate Chengdu
Consulate Casablanca
Consulate Cape Town
Consulate Calgary
Embassy Dushanbe
Embassy Dublin
Embassy Doha
Embassy Djibouti
Embassy Dili
Embassy Dhaka
Embassy Dar Es Salaam
Embassy Damascus
Embassy Dakar
DIR FSINFATC
Consulate Dusseldorf
Consulate Durban
Consulate Dubai
Consulate Dhahran
Embassy Guatemala
Embassy Grenada
Embassy Georgetown
Embassy Gaborone
Consulate Guayaquil
Consulate Guangzhou
Consulate Guadalajara
Embassy Helsinki
Embassy Harare
Embassy Hanoi
Consulate Hong Kong
Consulate Ho Chi Minh City
Consulate Hermosillo
Consulate Hamilton
Consulate Hamburg
Consulate Halifax
Embassy Kyiv
Embassy Kuwait
Embassy Kuala Lumpur
Embassy Kolonia
Embassy Kinshasa
Embassy Kingston
Embassy Kigali
Embassy Khartoum
Embassy Kathmandu
Embassy Kampala
Embassy Kabul
Consulate Krakow
Consulate Kolkata
Consulate Karachi
Embassy Luxembourg
Embassy Lusaka
Embassy Luanda
Embassy London
Embassy Lome
Embassy Ljubljana
Embassy Lisbon
Embassy Lima
Embassy Lilongwe
Embassy Libreville
Embassy La Paz
Consulate Leipzig
Consulate Lahore
Consulate Lagos
Mission USOSCE
Mission USNATO
Mission UNESCO
Mission Geneva
Embassy Muscat
Embassy Moscow
Embassy Montevideo
Embassy Monrovia
Embassy Mogadishu
Embassy Minsk
Embassy Mexico
Embassy Mbabane
Embassy Maseru
Embassy Maputo
Embassy Manila
Embassy Manama
Embassy Managua
Embassy Malabo
Embassy Madrid
Consulate Munich
Consulate Mumbai
Consulate Montreal
Consulate Monterrey
Consulate Milan
Consulate Merida
Consulate Melbourne
Consulate Matamoros
Consulate Marseille
Embassy Nouakchott
Embassy Nicosia
Embassy Niamey
Embassy New Delhi
Embassy Ndjamena
Embassy Nassau
Embassy Nairobi
Consulate Nuevo Laredo
Consulate Naples
Consulate Naha
Consulate Nagoya
Embassy Pristina
Embassy Pretoria
Embassy Praia
Embassy Prague
Embassy Port Of Spain
Embassy Port Moresby
Embassy Port Louis
Embassy Port Au Prince
Embassy Podgorica
Embassy Phnom Penh
Embassy Paris
Embassy Paramaribo
Embassy Panama
Consulate Peshawar
REO Hillah
REO Basrah
Embassy Rome
Embassy Riyadh
Embassy Riga
Embassy Reykjavik
Embassy Rangoon
Embassy Rabat
Consulate Rio De Janeiro
Consulate Recife
Secretary of State
Embassy Suva
Embassy Stockholm
Embassy Sofia
Embassy Skopje
Embassy Singapore
Embassy Seoul
Embassy Sarajevo
Embassy Santo Domingo
Embassy Santiago
Embassy Sanaa
Embassy San Salvador
Embassy San Jose
Consulate Surabaya
Consulate Strasbourg
Consulate St Petersburg
Consulate Shenyang
Consulate Shanghai
Consulate Sapporo
Consulate Sao Paulo
Embassy Tunis
Embassy Tripoli
Embassy Tokyo
Embassy Tirana
Embassy The Hague
Embassy Tel Aviv
Embassy Tehran
Embassy Tegucigalpa
Embassy Tbilisi
Embassy Tashkent
Embassy Tallinn
Consulate Toronto
Consulate Tijuana
Consulate Thessaloniki
USUN New York
USMISSION USTR GENEVA
USEU Brussels
US Office Almaty
US Mission Geneva
US Mission CD Geneva
US Interests Section Havana
US Delegation, Secretary
UNVIE
UN Rome
Embassy Ulaanbaatar
Embassy Vilnius
Embassy Vientiane
Embassy Vienna
Embassy Vatican
Embassy Valletta
Consulate Vladivostok
Consulate Vancouver
Browse by tag
AMGT
ASEC
AEMR
AR
APECO
AU
AORC
ADANA
AJ
AF
AFIN
AMED
AS
AM
ABLD
AFFAIRS
AMB
APER
ACOA
AND
AA
AE
AADP
AID
AO
AL
AG
AORD
ADM
AINF
AINT
ASEAN
AORG
ABT
APEC
AY
ASUP
ARF
AGOA
AVIAN
ATRN
ANET
AGIT
ASECVE
ABUD
AODE
ALOW
ADB
AN
ADPM
ASPA
ARABL
AFSN
AZ
AC
AIAG
AFSI
ASCE
ASIG
ACABQ
ADIP
AFGHANISTAN
AROC
ADCO
ACOTA
ANARCHISTS
AMEDCASCKFLO
AK
ARABBL
ASCH
ANTITERRORISM
AGRICULTURE
AOCR
ARR
ASSEMBLY
AORCYM
AFPK
ACKM
AGMT
AEC
APRC
AIN
AFPREL
ASFC
ASECTH
AFSA
AINR
AOPC
AFAF
AFARI
AX
ASECAF
ASECAFIN
AT
AFZAL
APCS
AGAO
AIT
ARCH
AEMRASECCASCKFLOMARRPRELPINRAMGTJMXL
AMEX
ARM
AQ
ATFN
AMBASSADOR
AORCD
AVIATION
ARAS
AINFCY
ACBAQ
AOPR
AREP
AOIC
ASEX
ASEK
AER
AGR
AMCT
AVERY
APR
AEMRS
AFU
AMG
ATPDEA
ASECKFRDCVISKIRFPHUMSMIGEG
AORL
ACS
AMCHAMS
AECL
AUC
ACAO
BA
BR
BB
BG
BEXP
BY
BRUSSELS
BU
BD
BTIO
BK
BL
BE
BMGT
BO
BM
BX
BN
BWC
BBSR
BTT
BC
BH
BILAT
BUSH
BHUM
BT
BTC
BMENA
BOND
BAIO
BP
BF
BRPA
BURNS
BUT
BBG
BCW
BOEHNER
BOL
BASHAR
BIDEN
BFIN
BZ
BEXPC
BTIU
CPAS
CA
CASC
CS
CBW
CIDA
CO
CODEL
CI
CROS
CU
CH
CWC
CMGT
CVIS
CDG
CTR
CG
CF
CHIEF
CJAN
CBSA
CE
CY
CB
CW
CM
CHR
CD
COE
CV
COUNTER
CT
CN
CPUOS
CTERR
CVR
CVPR
CDC
COUNTRY
CLEARANCE
CONS
COM
CACS
CR
CONTROLS
CAN
CACM
COMMERCE
CAMBODIA
CFIS
COUNTERTERRORISM
CITES
CONDOLEEZZA
CZ
CTBT
CEN
CLINTON
CFED
CARC
CTM
CARICOM
CSW
CICTE
CYPRUS
CBE
CMGMT
CARSON
CWCM
CIVS
COUNTRYCLEARANCE
CENTCOM
CAPC
COPUOS
CKGR
CITEL
CQ
CITT
CIC
CARIB
CVIC
CAFTA
CVISU
CDB
CEDAW
CNC
CJUS
COMMAND
CENTER
COL
CAJC
CONSULAR
CLMT
CBC
CIA
CNARC
CIS
CEUDA
CHINA
CAC
CL
DR
DJ
DEMOCRATIC
DEMARCHE
DOMESTIC
DISENGAGEMENT
DB
DA
DHS
DAO
DCM
DAVID
DO
DEAX
DEFENSE
DEA
DTRO
DPRK
DOC
DTRA
DK
DAC
DOD
DRL
DRC
DCG
DE
DOT
DEPT
DOE
DS
DKEM
ECON
ETTC
EFIS
ETRD
EC
EMIN
EAGR
EAID
EFIN
EUN
ECIN
EG
EWWT
EINV
ENRG
ELAB
EPET
EIND
EN
EAIR
EUMEM
ECPS
ES
EI
ELTN
ET
EZ
EU
ER
EINT
ENGR
ECONOMIC
ENIV
EFTA
ETRN
EMS
EUREM
EPA
ESTH
EEB
EET
ENV
EAG
EXIM
ECTRD
ELNT
ENVIRONMENT
ECA
EAP
EINDIR
ETR
ECONOMY
ETRC
ELECTIONS
EICN
EXPORT
EARG
EGHG
EID
ETRO
EINF
EAIDHO
ECIP
EENV
EURM
EPEC
ERNG
ENERG
EIAD
EXBS
ED
EREL
ELAM
EK
EWT
ENGRD
EDEV
ECE
ENGY
EXIMOPIC
ETRDEC
ECCT
EUR
ENRGPARMOTRASENVKGHGPGOVECONTSPLEAID
EFI
ECOSOC
EXTERNAL
ESCAP
ETCC
EENG
ERA
ENRD
ECLAC
ETRAD
EBRD
ENVR
ECONENRG
ELTNSNAR
ELAP
EPIT
EDUC
EAIDXMXAXBXFFR
EETC
EIVN
EDRC
EGOV
ETRA
EAIDRW
ETRDEINVECINPGOVCS
ESA
ETRDGK
ENVI
ELN
EPRT
EPTED
ERTD
EUM
EAIDS
EFINECONEAIDUNGAGM
EDU
EV
EAIDAF
EDA
EPREL
EINVEFIN
EAGER
ETMIN
EUCOM
ECCP
EIDN
EINVKSCA
ENNP
EFINECONCS
ETC
EAIRASECCASCID
EINN
ETRP
ECONOMICS
ENERGY
EIAR
EINDETRD
ECONEFIN
EURN
ETRDEINVTINTCS
EFIM
ETIO
EATO
EIPR
EINVETC
ETTD
ETDR
EIQ
ECONCS
ENRGIZ
EAIG
ENTG
EUC
ERD
EINVECONSENVCSJA
EEPET
EUNCH
ESENV
ECINECONCS
ETRDECONWTOCS
ECUN
FR
FI
FOREIGN
FARM
FIR
FAO
FK
FARC
FAS
FJ
FREEDOM
FAC
FINANCE
FBI
FTAA
FM
FCS
FAA
FORCE
FDA
FTA
FT
FCSC
FMGT
FINR
FIN
FDIC
FOR
FOI
FO
FMLN
FISO
GM
GERARD
GT
GA
GG
GR
GTIP
GH
GZ
GE
GB
GY
GAZA
GJ
GEORGE
GOI
GCC
GMUS
GI
GLOBAL
GV
GC
GL
GOV
GKGIC
GF
GWI
GIPNC
GUTIERREZ
GTMO
GANGS
GAERC
GUILLERMO
GASPAR
HR
HA
HYMPSK
HO
HK
HUMAN
HU
HN
HHS
HURI
HUD
HUMRIT
HUMANITARIAN
HUMANR
HL
HSTC
HILLARY
HCOPIL
HADLEY
HOURANI
HI
HUM
HEBRON
HUMOR
IZ
IN
IAEA
IS
IMO
ILO
IR
IC
IT
ITU
ID
IV
IMF
IBRD
IWC
ICAO
ICRC
INF
IO
IPR
ISO
IK
ISRAELI
IQ
ICES
IDB
INFLUENZA
IRAQI
ISCON
IGAD
IRAN
ITALY
IRAQ
ICTY
ICTR
ITPGOV
ITALIAN
IQNV
IADB
INTERNAL
INMARSAT
IRDB
ILC
INCB
INRB
ICJ
ISRAEL
INR
IEA
ISPA
ICCAT
IOM
ITRD
IHO
IL
IFAD
ITRA
IDLI
ISCA
INL
INRA
INTELSAT
ISAF
ISPL
IRS
IEF
ITER
INDO
IIP
IND
IEFIN
IACI
IAHRC
INNP
IA
INTERPOL
IFIN
ISSUES
IZPREL
IRAJ
IF
ITPHUM
ITA
IP
IRPE
IDA
ISLAMISTS
ITF
INRO
IBET
IDP
IRC
KMDR
KPAO
KOMC
KNNP
KFLO
KDEM
KSUM
KIPR
KFLU
KE
KCRM
KJUS
KAWC
KZ
KSCA
KDRG
KCOR
KGHG
KPAL
KTIP
KMCA
KCRS
KPKO
KOLY
KRVC
KVPR
KG
KWBG
KTER
KS
KN
KSPR
KWMN
KV
KTFN
KFRD
KU
KSTC
KSTH
KISL
KGIC
KSEP
KFIN
KTEX
KTIA
KUNR
KCMR
KCIP
KMOC
KTDB
KBIO
KBCT
KMPI
KSAF
KACT
KFEM
KPRV
KPWR
KIRC
KCFE
KRIM
KHIV
KHLS
KVIR
KNNNP
KCEM
KLIG
KIRF
KNUP
KSAC
KNUC
KPGOV
KTDD
KIDE
KOMS
KLFU
KNNC
KMFO
KSEO
KJRE
KJUST
KMRS
KSRE
KGIT
KPIR
KPOA
KUWAIT
KIVP
KICC
KSCS
KPOL
KSEAO
KRCM
KSCI
KNAP
KGLB
KICA
KCUL
KPRM
KFSC
KQ
KPOP
KPFO
KPALAOIS
KREC
KBWG
KR
KTTB
KNAR
KCOM
KESS
KINR
KOCI
KWN
KCSY
KREL
KTBT
KFTN
KW
KRFD
KFLOA
KHDP
KNEP
KIND
KHUM
KSKN
KOMO
KDRL
KTFIN
KSOC
KPO
KGIV
KSTCPL
KSI
KPRP
KFPC
KNNB
KNDP
KICCPUR
KFRDCVISCMGTCASCKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG
KDMR
KFCE
KIMMITT
KMCC
KMNP
KSEC
KOMCSG
KGCC
KRAD
KCRP
KAUST
KWAWC
KCHG
KRDP
KPAS
KTIAPARM
KPAOPREL
KWGB
KIRP
KMIG
KLAB
KSEI
KHSA
KNPP
KPAONZ
KWWW
KGHA
KY
KCRIM
KCRCM
KGCN
KPLS
KIIP
KPAOY
KTRD
KTAO
KJU
KBTS
KWAC
KFIU
KNNO
KPAI
KILS
KPA
KRCS
KWBGSY
KNPPIS
KNNPMNUC
KNPT
KERG
KLTN
KPREL
KTLA
KO
KAWK
KVRP
KAID
KX
KENV
KWCI
KNPR
KCFC
KNEI
KFTFN
KTFM
KCERS
KDEMAF
KMEPI
KEMS
KBTR
KEDU
KIRL
KNNR
KMPT
KPDD
KPIN
KDEV
KFRP
KTBD
KMSG
KWWMN
KWBC
KA
KOM
KWNM
KFRDKIRFCVISCMGTKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG
KRGY
KNNF
KICR
KIFR
KWMNCS
KPAK
KDDG
KCGC
KID
KNSD
KMPF
KWMM
MARR
MX
MASS
MOPS
MNUC
MCAP
MTCRE
MRCRE
MTRE
MASC
MY
MK
MG
MU
MILI
MO
MZ
MEPP
MCC
MEDIA
MOPPS
MI
MAS
MW
MP
MEPN
MV
MD
MR
MC
MCA
MT
MIL
MARITIME
MOPSGRPARM
MAAR
MOOPS
ML
MA
MN
MNUCPTEREZ
MTCR
MUNC
MPOS
MONUC
MGMT
MURRAY
MACP
MINUSTAH
MCCONNELL
MGT
MNUR
MF
MEPI
MOHAMMAD
MAR
MAPP
MNU
MFA
MTS
MLS
MEETINGS
MERCOSUR
MED
MNVC
MIK
MBM
MILITARY
MAPS
MARAD
MDC
MACEDONIA
MASSMNUC
MUCN
MQADHAFI
MPS
NZ
NATO
NI
NO
NU
NG
NL
NPT
NS
NA
NP
NASA
NSF
NEA
NANCY
NSG
NRR
NATIONAL
NMNUC
NC
NSC
NAS
NARC
NELSON
NATEU
NDP
NIH
NK
NIPP
NR
NERG
NSSP
NE
NTDB
NT
NEGROPONTE
NGO
NATOIRAQ
NAR
NZUS
NCCC
NH
NAFTA
NEW
NRG
NUIN
NOVO
NATOPREL
NV
NICHOLAS
NPA
NSFO
NW
NORAD
NPG
NOAA
OPRC
OPDC
OTRA
OECD
OVIP
OREP
ODC
OIIP
OAS
OSCE
OPIC
OMS
OFDP
OFDA
OEXC
OPCW
OIE
OSCI
OM
OPAD
ODPC
OIC
ODIP
OPPI
ORA
OCEA
OREG
OMIG
OFFICIALS
OSAC
OEXP
OPEC
OFPD
OAU
OCII
OIL
OVIPPRELUNGANU
OSHA
OPCD
OPCR
OF
OFDPQIS
OSIC
OHUM
OTR
OBSP
OGAC
OESC
OVP
ON
OES
OTAR
OCS
PREL
PGOV
PARM
PINR
PHUM
PM
PREF
PTER
PK
PINS
PBIO
PHSA
PE
PBTS
PA
PL
POL
PAK
POV
POLITICS
POLICY
PO
PRELTBIOBA
PKO
PIN
PNAT
PU
PGOVPREL
PALESTINIAN
PTERPGOV
PELOSI
PAS
PP
PTEL
PROP
PRELAF
PRHUM
PRE
PUNE
PIRF
PVOV
PROG
PERSONS
PROV
PKK
PRGOV
PH
PLAB
PDEM
PCI
PRL
PRM
PINSO
PERM
PETR
PPAO
PERL
PBS
PETERS
PRELBR
PCON
POLITICAL
PMIL
POLM
PKPA
PNUM
PLO
PTERM
PJUS
PARMP
PNIR
PHUMKPAL
PG
PREZ
PGIC
PAO
PROTECTION
PRELPK
PGOVENRG
PATTY
PSOC
PARTIES
PGOVEAIDUKNOSWGMHUCANLLHFRSPITNZ
PMIG
PAIGH
PARK
PETER
PHUS
PKPO
PGOVECON
POUS
PMAR
PWBG
PAR
PGOVGM
PHUH
PTE
PY
POLUN
PDOV
PGOVSOCI
PGOVPM
PRELEVU
PGOR
PBTSRU
PHUMA
PHUMR
PPD
PGV
PRAM
PARMS
PINL
PSI
PKPAL
PPA
PTERE
PGOF
PINO
PREO
PHAS
PAC
PRESL
PORG
PS
PGVO
PKFK
PSOE
PEPR
PINT
PRELP
PREFA
PNG
PTBS
PFOR
PGOVLO
PHUMBA
PREK
PHJM
POLINT
PGOVE
PHALANAGE
PARTY
PECON
PEACE
PROCESS
PLN
PEDRO
PF
PGPV
PCUL
PGGV
PSA
PGOVSMIGKCRMKWMNPHUMCVISKFRDCA
PGIV
PHUMPREL
POGOV
PEL
PBT
PAMQ
PINF
PSEPC
POSTS
PAHO
PHUMPGOV
PGOC
PNR
RS
RP
RU
RW
RFE
RCMP
RIGHTSPOLMIL
REFORM
RO
ROW
ROBERT
REACTION
REPORT
REGION
RELATIONS
RAY
ROBERTG
RIGHTS
RM
RATIFICATION
RREL
RBI
RICE
ROOD
REL
RODHAM
RGY
RUEHZO
RELIGIOUS
RELFREE
RUEUN
RELAM
RSP
RF
REO
REGIONAL
RUPREL
RI
REMON
RPEL
RSO
SCUL
SENV
SOCI
SZ
SNAR
SO
SP
SU
SY
SI
SMIG
SYR
SA
SW
SF
SR
SYRIA
SNARM
START
SPECIALIST
SG
SNIG
SCI
SGWI
SE
SIPDIS
SANC
SELAB
SN
SETTLEMENTS
SCIENCE
SENVENV
SENS
SPCE
SPAS
SECURITY
SENC
SOCIETY
SOSI
SENVEAGREAIDTBIOECONSOCIXR
SEN
SPECI
ST
SL
SENVCASCEAIDID
SC
SECRETARY
STR
SNA
SOCIS
SADC
SEP
SK
SHUM
SYAI
SMIL
STEPHEN
SNRV
SKCA
SENSITIVE
SECI
SCUD
SCRM
SGNV
SECTOR
SAARC
SENVSXE
SWMN
STEINBERG
SOPN
SOCR
SCRS
SWE
SARS
SNARIZ
SUDAN
SENVQGR
SAN
SM
SFNV
SSA
SPCVIS
SOFA
SCULKPAOECONTU
SENVKGHG
SHI
SEVN
SH
SNARCS
SNARN
SIPRS
TBIO
TW
TRGY
TSPA
TU
TPHY
TI
TX
TH
TIP
TSPL
TNGD
TZ
TS
TC
TK
TURKEY
TERRORISM
TPSL
TINT
TRSY
TERFIN
TPP
TT
TECHNOLOGY
TE
TAGS
TRAFFICKING
TJ
TN
TO
TD
TP
TREATY
TR
TA
TIO
TECH
TF
TRAD
TNDG
TWI
TPSA
TWL
TAUSCHER
TRBY
TL
TV
THPY
TSPAM
TREL
TRT
TNAR
TFIN
TWCH
THOMMA
THOMAS
TERROR
TRY
TBID
UK
UNESCO
UNSC
UNGA
UN
US
UZ
USEU
UG
UP
UNAUS
UNMIK
USTR
UY
USUN
UNEP
UNDC
UV
UNPUOS
UNSCR
USAID
UNODC
UNRCR
UNHCR
UNDP
UNCRIME
UA
UNHRC
UNRWA
UNO
UNCND
UNCHR
USAU
UNICEF
USPS
UNOMIG
UNESCOSCULPRELPHUMKPALCUIRXFVEKV
UR
UNFICYP
UNCITRAL
UNAMA
UNVIE
USTDA
USNC
UNCSD
USCC
UNEF
UNGAPL
USSC
UNMIC
UNTAC
UNCLASSIFIED
USDA
UNCTAD
USGS
UNFPA
UNSE
USOAS
UE
UAE
UNCHS
UNDESCO
UNC
UNSCS
UKXG
UNGACG
UNHR
UNBRO
UNCHC
UNFCYP
UNIDROIT
WHTI
WIPO
WTRO
WHO
WTO
WMO
WFP
WEET
WS
WE
WA
WHA
WBG
WILLIAM
WI
WSIS
WCL
WEBZ
WZ
WW
WWBG
WMD
WWT
WMN
WWARD
WITH
WTRQ
WCO
WEU
WB
WBEG
Browse by classification
Community resources
courage is contagious
Viewing cable 07PARIS3402, MUSLIM OUTREACH -- SENIOR ADVISOR FARAH PANDITH'S
If you are new to these pages, please read an introduction on the structure of a cable as well as how to discuss them with others. See also the FAQs
Understanding cables
Every cable message consists of three parts:
- The top box shows each cables unique reference number, when and by whom it originally was sent, and what its initial classification was.
- The middle box contains the header information that is associated with the cable. It includes information about the receiver(s) as well as a general subject.
- The bottom box presents the body of the cable. The opening can contain a more specific subject, references to other cables (browse by origin to find them) or additional comment. This is followed by the main contents of the cable: a summary, a collection of specific topics and a comment section.
Discussing cables
If you find meaningful or important information in a cable, please link directly to its unique reference number. Linking to a specific paragraph in the body of a cable is also possible by copying the appropriate link (to be found at theparagraph symbol). Please mark messages for social networking services like Twitter with the hash tags #cablegate and a hash containing the reference ID e.g. #07PARIS3402.
Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin |
---|---|---|---|---|
07PARIS3402 | 2007-08-14 07:03 | 2011-08-24 00:00 | UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY | Embassy Paris |
VZCZCXRO9366
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHFR #3402/01 2260703
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 140703Z AUG 07
FM AMEMBASSY PARIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9477
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHMRE/AMCONSUL MARSEILLE 1867
RUEHSR/AMCONSUL STRASBOURG 0468
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WASHDC
RUCPDOC/DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RUEATRS/DEPARTMENT OF TREASURY WASHDC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 08 PARIS 003402
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
DEPT ALSO FOR EUR/WE, DRL/IL, INR/EUC, EUR/ERA, EUR/PPD, EB
DEPT OF COMMERCE FOR ITA
DEPT OF LABOR FOR ILAB
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SOCI PTER PGOV EUN FR PINR ECON
SUBJECT: MUSLIM OUTREACH -- SENIOR ADVISOR FARAH PANDITH'S
MEETINGS IN PARIS JULY 25 - 26
PARIS 00003402 001.2 OF 008
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. Please handle accordingly.
¶1. (SBU) In meetings in Paris July 25 - 26 with a wide range
of figures from France's large and diverse Muslim community
and France,s new government, EUR Senior Advisor Farah
Pandith underlined U.S. interest in respectful dialogue and
exchange of ideas with France's Muslim population, the
largest in Europe. In their meetings with her, civil
servants, elected officials, ordinary citizens, community
activists, religious leaders and intellectuals focused on the
French "Republican model" for immigrant minority integration,
whether or not this model can work to solve the social
problems of France's immigrant-origin (largely Muslim)
underclass, and whether or not President Sarkozy's proposed
reforms to state-religion relations in France are likely to
make any difference in the economic prospects of the
country's largely Arab and Black Muslim minority.
Interlocutors all cited the potential for radicalization of a
small, but potentially dangerous, fraction of Muslim youth.
Some of S/A Pandith's civil society interlocutors were
concerned about the lack of any authoritative "voice of
moderation" able to counsel ordinary, middle-class Europeans
(who happen to be Muslim) on matters of religious practice
and cultural identity in their new social environment. Asked
if they had considered the possibility of a "learning center"
for reformed, European, contemporary Islam, most of S/A
Pandith's civil society interlocutors responded
enthusiastically, while others (and in particular some
government officials) worried that it would soon fall prey to
factionalism among "national communities" or infiltration by
radicals. Nonetheless, as it has for many years, discussion
of such a center continues, and post will continue to follow
the issue. Muslim outreach is an MSP priority for post; S/A
Pandith's round of meetings greatly advanced post's Muslim
engagement efforts. Targeted program funding -- in the
tradition of SEED programs -- for grants of various kinds
would be a welcome addition to post's efforts to complement
Washington-based outreach in this critical field of public
opinion. END SUMMARY.
FRANCE'S MUSLIM COMMUNITY
-------------------------
¶2. (SBU) There are about five million ethnically Muslim
people in France (out of a total population of nearly 64
million.) Both in absolute size and in proportion to the
total population (between 8 and 9 percent), France has the
largest Muslim population of any country in Europe. Over 70
percent of the Muslims in France have their roots in the
Maghreb, primarily Algeria, but also Morocco, reflecting the
dominant pattern of migration to France in recent decades --
from colonies/former colonies to the mother country. More
recently, a steady stream of immigrants, also Muslim, have
come from the countries of sub-Saharan Africa, such as
Senegal and Mali. France is also home to relatively small
communities of Muslims from Turkey and Iran, and communities
from countries in the sub-continent and the far east. Some
of Paris' predominantly Muslim neighborhoods are microcosms
of the Muslim world's diversity.
¶3. (U) Given that the French "Republican model," with its
constitutional injunction against distinguishing among
citizens on the basis of race or religion, precludes the
state from collecting census data on religious affiliation,
there are no truly accurate statistics on the size of
France's Muslim population. Some estimates put France's
Muslim population at 6 or 7 million, and beyond. Vast
diversity prevails among France's Muslims with regard to
inward religiosity, outward piety and the extent to which a
social and cultural identity as "a Muslim" is central to
their self-conception. "French first" is the general rule,
and French Muslims often express frustration at the
mainstream community's persistent identification of them as
"immigrants," "foreigners," "Arabs," "Muslims," etc. About 3
million of France's Muslims are French citizens. Though
two-thirds observe Ramadan, only about one fifth are
considered continuously observant.
GOALS AND PARTICIPANTS
----------------------
¶4. (SBU) In her July 25 - 26 meetings with officials from
PARIS 00003402 002.2 OF 008
the Prime Minister's office, Foreign Ministry, and Interior
Ministry, and with politicians, religious leaders, academics,
businessmen and community activists, S/A Pandith outlined the
two overarching goals of U.S. engagement with Europe's
Muslims: countering the widespread conviction that the U.S.
is somehow "at war" with Islam, and initiating a constructive
dialogue about Muslim integration in European societies aimed
at sharing America's best practices with regard to providing
equal opportunity to disadvantaged, racially distinct
minorities.
¶5. (SBU) During her two days of meetings in Paris S/A
Pandith met with:
French government officials:
-- Prime Minister's Office: Laurence Marion, Civil Rights and
Public Liberties Advisor to the Prime Minister
-- Foreign Ministry: Justin Vaisse, Special Advisor for
Transatlantic Relations; Yves Oudin, Deputy Director for
North America; Denis Fromaget, Special Assistant for
Religious Affairs
-- Interior Ministry: Christophe Chaboud, Director,
Coordination Unit for the Fight Against Terrorism; Anthony
Bernardi, Chief of the Foreigners and Minorities Section of
France's Internal Intelligence Services (RG), Fabienne Duthe,
Extremism and Counter-Terrorism specialist of France,s
Intelligence Service (DST)
Politicians:
-- Najat Azmy, political activist and official of the
National Agency for Social Cohesion and Equal Opportunity.
(Azmy has led numerous campaigns against discrimination in
her home area of Pas-de-Calais.)
-- Chafia Mentalecheta, one of the EU delegates to the
European Agency of Fundamental Rights in Vienna. (She aimed
to run in the last legislative elections under the Socialist
Party (PS) banner, but resigned from the Party in frustration
at the short shrift given to minorities in the PS, and ran as
an independent.)
-- Faycal Douhane, former IV grantee, a PS spokesperson, and
General Secretary of the Association of Mayors of the Paris
Region. (In 1997 Douhane founded the Club Averroes, an
association dedicated to promoting diversity in the French
media and to fight discrimination.)
-- Ali Zahi, City Councilman in Paris suburb of Bondy and the
International Relations and Communications Director for the
Mayor of nearby Clichy-sous-Bois. (Clichy-sous-Bois is the
suburb where the urban unrest of November 2005 began.)
Academics and Journalists:
-- Said Branine, Chief Editor of France's leading,
mainstream, Muslim website www.Oumma.com (http://oumma.com/)
-- Omero Marongiu, sociologist, specialist on "Muslim
Brotherhood" in France. (Marongiu, a convert to Islam, is
employed by a number of mosques as their legal counselor; he
is also a consultant for social projects for the city of
Roubaix, where Muslims may soon be a majority of the
population.)
-- Moussa Khedimellah, sociologist, specialist on Tabligh and
Salafism in France (Kedimellah, with Marongiu, worked for the
Ministry of the Interior on sensitivity-building training
modules for police and prison guards.)
-- Nourdin Mabil, Antione Menuisier, and Chou Sin, all
journalists and all leading lights of Bondyblog, a news and
commentary website from the viewpoint of suburban youth.
(Menuisier, who works for the Swiss news weekly L'Hebdo,
during the unrest of November 2005, pioneered, through
Bondyblog, coverage of the events through cell phone video
clips and other reports "from the street," as opposed to
PARIS 00003402 003.2 OF 008
"from the mainstream media behind the police.")
-- Aziz Zemouri, journalist at Le Figaro. (Zemouri is the
author of Marianne and Allah, a book that explores the birth
of the French Council of Muslim Faith (CFCM), a
government-sponsored representative committee of Muslim
institutions in light of France's much vaunted separation of
church and state and integration of Muslims into French
society according to the "Republican model."
-- Hassina Ambolet, Deputy Mayor, Bondy
Community and Business Leaders:
-- Adda Bekkouch, chairman of the Movement for Active
Citizenship (MCA). (Bekkouch, known as a gadfly in his
political opinions, regularly excoriates the left for failing
to act on discrimination and minority issues. According to
Bekkouch, though the left "initiates the debate," it has been
the right that "takes the plunge," for example, giving the
vote to women, independence to Algeria, and, now, greater
minority representation in government.)
--Eduardo Rihan Cypel, Chief of Staff to Mayor of Bondy
-- Said Hammouche, CEO of APC recruitment, the first minority
placement agency in France (Hammouche was born in Bondy, and
created his agency, which is quite successful, to offer the
French minorities an opportunity to hone job-landing skills
and facilitate their recruitment by employers)
Leaders of Religious and Representative Institutions:
-- Abderahmane Kebir, Director for International Relations of
the Great Mosque of Paris
-- Mohamed Timol, chief administrator of the CFCM
-- Haydar Demiryurek, Secretary General of the CFCM and
President of the French-Turkish Community's Representative
Committee (CCFTM)
GOVERNMENT STANDS BY THE "REPUBLICAN MODEL"
-------------------------------------------
¶6. (SBU) Hardly surprisingly, the government officials that
met with S/A Pandith defended France's "Republican model" of
minority integration. The "Republican model" of integration
posits that equal opportunity and integration will ensue if
the state remains assiduously blind to race, creed and
national origin as it strives to secure individual rights.
The "Republican model's" emphasis on individual citizens and
their equality flies in the face of the social reality of
group identities and the economic inequality of, for example,
much higher school dropout and unemployment rates among
immigrant, mostly Muslim, youth. Because the bulk of
France's urban underclass poor are Muslims, discussion of the
integration of this disadvantaged minority invariably brings
up France's way of separating church and state. President
Sarkozy has suggested modifying the relationship between
state and religion to harness the community-building capacity
of faith-based organizations, while also -- in connection
with Islam -- reducing the potential spread of political
fundamentalism.
WHILE FLOATING REFORM PROPOSALS
-------------------------------
¶7. (SBU) Laurence Marion of the Prime Minister's office
focused on two key government initiatives: modifying the laws
that define religious organizations so as to "expand their
presence in the community" and provide for
government-subsidized training of Imams. Both of these
initiatives have been championed by President Sarkozy and are
part of his effort to engender "debate without taboos" about
the place of religion in a France that Sarkozy sees as
leaving behind a long history of antagonism between the
Republic and the Catholic church. Marion discussed, at
length, the 1905 law that is the cornerstone of the legal
status of religious organizations in France; she said that
that law relegated religion to the personal, private sphere.
Marion said the government was considering proposals to
PARIS 00003402 004.2 OF 008
loosen the law's limitation of "religious associations"
(associations cultuelles) to worship activities only. This
would allow religious associations (such as mosques) to
expand their social and charitable community-building
activities. In addition, Marion said the government was
considering modifications to the law that would allow local
associations (as opposed to recognized, organized religions)
to build places of worship. The runaway growth of
unregulated prayer-rooms and "basement mosques" is part of
what Sarkozy would like to see reined in by what he has
called a "public" (that is, officially recognized and
supported) French Islam.
¶8. (SBU) Marion went on to detail another key pillar of,
possible, Sarkozy administration reform of France's current
framework for state-religion relations: government-funded
training of religious leaders, possibly even the
establishment of a study center for that purpose. The first
option would involve providing curriculum materials and
subsidies to ensure that foreign-born Imams were familiar
with "Republican values," French government institutions and
the French language. This training would be mandatory. and
there would be some sort of state-administered verification
that Imams had assimilated the training to passing standards.
A second, more ambitious -- though still highly notional --
option, according to Marion, would include facilitating the
creation of a state-sponsored theological institute of sorts,
that would be capable of offering courses on Muslim theology,
non-fundamentalist in outlook, and compatible with "liberal,"
Western values, among them religious pluralism.
¶9. (SBU) Marion underlined that the Sarkozy administration
was keen on finding ways "to support faith-based groups,"
while at the same time, "not radically departing from the
tenets of the 1905 law." In connection with the problem of
how to pay for the proposed Imam training and theological
institute, Marion said that the government would need to
"find creative solutions." As an example of a funding
mechanism, Marion cited the Foundation for Muslim Works in
France, created in 2005, as a possible means of channeling
resources to Muslim projects in a way that could be
considered analogous to how state funds are channeled into
the historic preservation of Catholic churches.
FOREIGN MINISTRY OFFICIALS EXPRESS
UNDERSTANDING OF U.S. MUSLIM OUTREACH GOALS
-------------------------------------------
¶10. (SBU) Foreign Ministry officials Justin Vaisse, Yves
Oudin, and Denis Fromaget, in their defense of the
"Republican model," stressed that the "problems faced by
Arabs and Blacks" in France have much more to do with
ethnicity and education than with religion. Vaisse said that
the French "Republican model" did not recognize race as a
proper "political distinction," and observed that France was
more inclined to address the evident social realities of
poverty and marginalization on a "geographical basis." He
cited, as an example of that, the Priority Educational Zones
(ZEPs), that benefit from considerable special funding and
other programs, to the benefit of their predominantly
immigrant populations.
¶11. (SBU) Vaisse, Oudin and Fromaget expressed understanding
of U.S. Muslim outreach goals. Vaisse (who will be a fellow
at the Brookings Institution in Washington beginning in
September) called the goal of refuting the notion that the
U.S. is at war with Islam and of enhancing communication and
cooperation with Europe on Muslim integration an "accurate
approach." He added that outreach along those lines could be
"enlarged to reflect the reality that it's not just the U.S.,
but the West in general, that is perceived by many to be at
war with Islam." Vaisse however, then went on to emphasize
the "cultural specificity" of Islam in Europe and cautioned
against assuming that a standardized approach could be
applied across European national borders. As an example of
the cultural differences among Europe's Muslims, Vaisse
recalled a conference he recently attended in Berlin at which
French and German representatives had difficulty establishing
common ground for a discussion of how to reconcile religious
and political identity, because both are approached so
differently by French and Germans. For example, citizenship
PARIS 00003402 005.2 OF 008
and self-identification as French are, overall, much more
easily accessible to foreigners than in Germany.
¶12. (SBU) In addition, Vaisse bemoaned what he called the
"negative influence" of foreign, itinerant Imams. Alluding
to the French government's bind between keeping itself sealed
off from the religious activities of citizens and its
responsibility to monitor potential radicalization that could
lead to terrorists acts, Vaisse lamented the "negative"
influence of itinerant Imams who, he said, frequently operate
with foreign funding and tended to be fundamentalist, as
opposed to moderate, in their doctrinal outlook.
GOVERNMENT AND MUSLIM COMMUNITY
WORRIED BY RADICALIZATION
-------------------------
¶13. (SBU) All interlocutors stressed that the potential
radicals may be few in number, but that these few could still
wreak havoc by mounting terrorist attacks or fomenting
violent unrest. Violence would be bad for civil peace and
for France in general, and it would aggravate religious
prejudice against Muslims. The danger of angry, frustrated
youths turning to religion, and becoming radicalized under
the influence of fundamentalist Imams or other zealots, was
evoked by Ministry of the Interior intelligence professionals
and by sociologists and other representatives of civil
society. The Interior Ministry's Chaboud and Bernardi
stressed that fundamentalist extremism was a problem only in
a tiny fraction of France,s roughly 1,800 mosques (fewer
than 100 of which are linked to Salafist or radical Turkish
influences). However, echoing the comments of their MFA
colleagues, Interior's counter-terrorism experts also cited
itinerant, charismatic preachers as the most serious
"radicalization" threat because their constant movement makes
it difficult to monitor the effect they may have on malleable
followers. (Note: Since 2003, French security forces have
expelled 21 radical imams for preaching jihad or expressing
opinions that contravene France,s hate crime legislation.
END NOTE.) Similarly, the worry that "desperate" suburban
youth might fall prey to radicalization was specifically
mentioned by Grand Mosque official Abderahmane Kebir,
sociologist Moussa Khedimellah and web-based editorialist
Said Branine.
¶14. (SBU) The government counter-terrorism professionals and
the sociologists S/A Pandith met with both emphasized that
the radicalization process has changed recently. Contrary to
the usual pattern in the past -- radicalization beginning
with religious "conversion" -- today many "radicalization
cases" bypass religious extremism and move straight to
political extremism, ever more frequently via
"self-radicalization" through contacts made on the internet,
via networks formed among childhood friends, prison inmates,
or around charismatic, advocates of jihad who do not claim to
be religious leaders. Khedimellah observed that the motors
of radicalization among poor, suburban youths and better off,
and more well-educated, "middle-class radicals" were quite
different. "Escape to a different life" by volunteering to
go off to "resistance fighter" training camps seems to often
motivate the poor, whereas, according to Khedimellah,
middle-class radicals are more "ideologically motivated" --
by identification with the Palestinians and by anti-Semitism,
for example. Khedimellah said that, since the beginning of
the U.S.-led intervention in Iraq, about 100 individuals per
year have departed France as recruits to Jihadist ranks.
MOST FRENCH MUSLIMS ALSO SUPPORT THE "REPUBLICAN MODEL"
--------------------------------------------- ----------
¶15. (SBU) Throughout S/A Pandith's numerous exchanges with
civil society representatives and political figures, the
message came through loud and clear that French Muslims
support France's "Republican model," earnestly wishing it
would deliver on its promise of "liberty, equality and
brotherhood" for all. Equally consistently, they warned that
failure to diminish the prejudice experienced by suburban
youths and improve job opportunities for them would lead to
another round of the sort of urban unrest that shook France
in the fall of 2005. Journalist Assiz Zemouri and politician
Chafia Mentalecheta were among those who -- even as they
excoriated France and French society for "marginalizing
PARIS 00003402 006.2 OF 008
without a future" the suburban immigrant poor -- also made a
point of underlining their pride in their own achievements
and their gratitude to the "Republican model" for the
educational and professional opportunities that had been
extended to them. The power of the promise of equality under
France's "Republican model" should not be underestimated.
The controversy that continues to swirl around Sarkozy's
proposals of affirmative action and official recognition of
"communitarian" identities, among Muslims and others in
France, is evidence of the "Republican model's" deep roots in
the French character, a character aspired to and shared by
most immigrants to France, including most Muslim immigrants.
Again and again in S/A Pandith's conversations with French
Muslims, the observation recurred about how travel "back" to
Algeria, Morocco etc. made them intensely aware, in
Mentalecheta's phrase, of how "French we are."
¶16. (SBU) One odd twist in the thread of discussion about
the "Republican model" was provided by Mohamed Timol, an
official of Paris' Grand Mosque, who is a leading member of
the (tiny) Muslim community that traces its roots to 19th
century immigrants from India to the French territory of
Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean. Timol remarked that one
effect of the "Republican model" and its "refusal" of
communitarian identities was to protect communities like his
own from dominance by the much larger "national" communities
-- Algerian, Moroccan, etc. -- that are still the main
building blocks of the larger, Muslim community.
INTRIGUED BY THE IDEA OF IDENTITY
AS EUROPEAN MUSLIMS...
----------------------
¶17. (SBU) The primary focus of the range of interlocutors
canvassed during the visit was the pros and cons of the
"Republican model," whether or not the model is part of the
solution for the social problems of France's immigrant
(largely Muslim) underclass, and whether or not Sarkozy's
proposed reforms to state-religion relations are likely to
make any difference in the lives of those who, above all,
need jobs. However, when the subject of Europe and a broader
identity as European Muslims came up, S/A Pandith's civil
society interlocutors found the idea intriguing, though
somewhat novel to them. Europe's Muslims share a common
experience, both as immigrants and as the first, large Muslim
population to live in modern Europe. Awareness of that could
be gathering currency among Europe's Muslims, possibly
generating a broader identity as European Muslims. Civil
society interlocutors greeted this as something that could be
very positive, even though it was still quite an unfamiliar
notion. Haydar Demiryurek, for example, an official of the
CFCM and leading member of the France's Turkish Muslim
community said that he hoped a European Muslim identity could
overcome the country-of-origin national divisions that, he
said, still deeply divide Europe's Muslims.
¶18. (SBU) Another approach to the question of a growing
Muslim identity came up in the meeting with sociologists
Marongiu and Khedimellah. They said they had observed a new
"dynamic" in social identity -- growing self-identification
as "Muslims" going hand-in-hand with growing use of the
religious identifier, "the Muslims" by the mainstream
majority (as opposed to the heretofore more common ethnic and
racial terms of "the Arabs and the Blacks"). Marongiu and
Khedimellah also remarked that there is a resurgence of
interest in Muslim heritage and "cultural" Muslim identity
among France's immigrants of Muslim extraction. The net
result of this could be a growing self-awareness as members
of a Muslim minority in France, and beyond France, in Europe.
...AND THE IDEA OF A "EUROPEAN MUSLIM LEARNING CENTER"
--------------------------------------------- ---------
¶20. (SBU) Discussion of the possibility of an identity
common to European Muslims led to inquiring if there was a
need for a Europe-wide, authoritative "voice of moderation"
able to provide information to ordinary, middle-class
Europeans (who happen to be Muslim) on matters of religious
practice and Muslim history, science, art, culture and
identity. S/A Pandith's suggestion of a "learning center" in
the heart of Europe for modern, European, contemporary Islam
was enthusiastically greeted by many of her civil society
PARIS 00003402 007.2 OF 008
interlocutors. The imperative to insure transparency within
the organization to prevent its radicalization was discussed.
Some stated their worry that it would soon fall prey to
factionalism among "national communities" or infiltration by
radicals. Additional concerns included potential dismissal
of the center by Muslims as yet another state-sponsored
attempt to guide their religion and criticism that such a
center was superfluous because it would have no impact on the
Muslim community's social ad economic problems. There was
general agreement, however, that if the experience of
immigration to Europe and the experience of being a minority
religious community were to engender a version of Islam
suited to contemporary, decidedly secular, Europe, then some
sort of center for religious studies that could
authoritatively propose interpretations of the Koran and
modes of religious observance might find constructive,
widespread use among moderate European Muslims. The need for
instruction in local languages was also mentioned as a
critical component. As Said Branine, who heads up the
website Oumma.com, observed about the queries about
religiously correct behavior and ritual practice that users
post to the site, "a lot of these questions just don't come
up" in traditional Muslim countries. Thus, there is a need
to fill the vacuum so radical ideology does not.
FRENCH-LANGUAGE WEBSITES REFLECT EVOLUTION OF
FRENCH MUSLIM COMMUNITY
-----------------------
¶21. (SBU) "Muslim websites" -- ranging from the obscurantist
and hate-mongering to the rational and conciliating -- abound
in France. Websites are among the most influential resources
used by French Muslims, especially youth, in search of
guidance "balancing their identities" as Muslims (religious
and/or cultural) and patriotic French citizens and
contemporary kids shaped by popular mass culture, etc.
Oumma.com (http://www.oumma.com) is probably the most widely
used, and reform-oriented in its religious outlook. As
Branine put it (quoting from his website's own homepage)
"France's Muslims need a rational perspective -- that is both
appreciative and critical -- of their religion and their
culture." Oumma.com claims about six million hits per month,
and a big spike in users during Ramadan, showing that its
guidance with regard to religious practice is heeded as
authoritative by many. Oumma.com reflects the outlook of the
professional elite of immigrant Muslim background that was
educated in France's public school system -- and speaks and
thinks -- in French. Oumma.com's Francophone, indeed,
Cartesian, outlook testifies to the truth of that commonplace
about the immigrant experience everywhere that full
assimilation of the new country's language is the most
powerful engine of integration.
¶22. (SBU) A/S Pandith's visit to Bondyblog -- to which the
site gave considerable coverage
(http://yahoo.bondyblog.fr/news/
sommet-usa-bondy-blog-a-la-sabliere) -- provided insight into
a more youth-oriented use of the internet. Bondyblog does
provide news and commentary tuned to the sensibility of
youthful members of France's immigrant community. The
anti-American, chip-on-the-shoulder attitude so common among
immigrant youth was very much in evidence in the -- otherwise
fulsomely laudatory -- coverage of S/A Pandith's visit in its
evocation of disagreement with key aspects of U.S. foreign
policy. The Bondybloggers were clearly thrilled to receive a
U.S. representative concerned about Muslim issues, and also
conflicted by their reprobation of many U.S. policies. As
one poignantly put it, "Look at us -- our dress our habits
our music. We are American. If you put us in America no one
would know we were French. But we have fallen out of love
with America" -- over Iraq, Guantanamo/Abu Ghraib, and what
is felt as different standards applied Israelis and
Palestinians. In France, among young French Muslims in
particular, the depth of the anti-Americanism generated by
distorted perceptions about the U.S. and the U.S. role in the
world should not be underestimated. These misperceptions are
insistently fueled by widely-watched French-language, "Arab"
television stations.
SUPPORTING MUSLIM OUTREACH
--------------------------
PARIS 00003402 008.2 OF 008
¶23. (SBU) Anti-Americanism in France, particularly with
regard to U.S. foreign policies, and especially among
France's Muslims, persists. As came through loud and clear
in S/A Pandith's exchanges in Paris, France abounds with
thoughtful, articulate voices -- of individuals who happen to
be Muslim -- willing to question distortions about America's
role in the world. Particularly during the past two years,
outreach to France's Muslims has been the unifying theme of
post's minority/diversity/women's issues Public Diplomacy
programming. The impact of France's predominantly Muslim
underclass on social peace, and government efforts to better
the situation of this population, have been a reporting
priority of the Political Section, as has continuous advocacy
of U.S. policies in the Middle East about which, French
Muslims in particular, harbor such suspicions. Some
SEED-style funding for post's outreach programs would allow
for grants aimed at amplifying voices of moderation and for
creating an action network of like-minded Europeans. Indeed,
a relatively small investment in France of between $100,000 -
$200,000 directed to minority youth NGOs could have a highly
positive impact on youth opinion in the immigrant community.
¶24. (U) Senior Advisor Pandith cleared this message.
Please visit Paris' Classified Website at:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm
PEKALA