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Viewing cable 06DUBLIN134, IRELAND TACITLY FAVORS VOSS FOR ICAO SECRETARY

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
06DUBLIN134 2006-02-07 17:14 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Embassy Dublin
VZCZCXYZ0008
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHDL #0134 0381714
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 071714Z FEB 06
FM AMEMBASSY DUBLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6475
INFO RUEHAS/AMEMBASSY ALGIERS PRIORITY 0033
RUEHSW/AMEMBASSY BERN PRIORITY 0097
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS PRIORITY 0277
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 0206
RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE PRIORITY 0244
RUEHVI/AMEMBASSY VIENNA PRIORITY 0103
RUEHMT/AMCONSUL MONTREAL PRIORITY 0049
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0121
UNCLAS DUBLIN 000134 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL EAIR ICAO AU BE NL SZ IR EI
SUBJECT: IRELAND TACITLY FAVORS VOSS FOR ICAO SECRETARY 
GENERAL 
 
REF: A. STATE 12863 
     B. YOUNG-BARKS E-MAIL OF 2/3/06 
 
1.  (SBU) Ireland supports U.S. candidate Bill Voss' bid for 
the post of ICAO Secretary General, according to Robin McKay, 
Department of Transport Principal Officer for Aviation 
Regulation and International Relations, to whom Post 
delivered ref A demarche on February 2.  Ongoing discussions 
among ABIS countries on the impending ICAO elections, 
however, make it difficult for Ireland to express support for 
Voss publicly. 
 
2.  (SBU) An additional complicating factor, said McKay, was 
the dual-ticket dynamic of the elections for ICAO Secretary 
General and President.  He explained that when French 
candidate Raymond Benjamin was pursuing the Secretary 
General's post, the "shoe-in" ticket was Benjamin and Mexican 
candidate Roberto Kobeh for ICAO President.  Since Benjamin's 
election as Secretary General would have preceded the 
presidential vote, the Swiss were prepared to withdraw their 
presidential candidate, Philippe Rochat, on the understanding 
that Europeans could not occupy both posts.  McKay pointed 
out that Benjamin's withdrawal from the race had led the 
Swiss to see renewed hope in Algerian Taieb Cherif's 
candidacy for Secretary General, giving the Swiss, in turn, 
more hope for Rochat as President.  ABIS countries besides 
Switzerland, however, recognized that a Cherif-Rochat ticket 
would be the worst electoral outcome, since neither candidate 
would push ICAO reform and, moreover, ABIS countries would 
alienate the developing countries supporting Kobeh's 
candidacy for President.  The key, observed McKay, would be 
perceptions of Voss's strength in the lead-up to the 
Secretary General's election, which might lead the Swiss to 
 
SIPDIS 
"ease back" on Rochat's candidacy on the premise that an 
American and a European could not hold ICAO's top posts. 
McKay added that if, in the scenario of Voss' election, 
Rochat remained in the President's race, Austria would have 
to vote for him to avoid the embarrassing possibility that he 
would receive no votes at all. 
 
3.  (SBU) Post also discussed ref A demarche with Department 
of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Deputy Director for United Nations 
Affairs, Brian Cahalane, who noted that the DFA would defer 
to the Department of Transport as the lead agency on the ICAO 
elections.  According to Cahalane, the DFA was prepared to 
defer to Transport mostly because Ireland, as an ABIS country 
represented by Austria, would not be casting its own vote in 
the ICAO elections.  He added that he was in touch with McKay 
about the elections, and he promised to pass ref A points to 
other DFA offices with interests in international 
organizations. 
KENNY