[WSIS CS-Plenary] Updates from subcom A

[Vittorio Bertola]

This is a summary of where we are with subcom A (speaking in totally
personal capacity).

There now are on the table the following proposals:
- the EU proposal that was made on Wednesday evening;
- the Like-Minded-Group (China, India, Iran, Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia,
Cuba, Saudi Arabia, South Africa...) that originally supported the Iranian
proposal, but that, after meeting the EU, circulated a new proposal that
takes the EU language and adds some extra points for deeper governmental
involvement, and asked the EU to take them on board;
- the "Western paper", released yesterday evening by a group of western
and Latin American countries (Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Argentina,
Uruguay, Mexico...), and which apparently would be acceptable to the US.

Everybody is waiting for the Chair to make a compromise proposal, but it
is obvious that the Chair will not make it unless it would be accepted,
and at this stage, it is clear that there is no proposal acceptable to
all. So, at the present stage, it is unlikely that he will make his move.

It is clear that if the EU decides to move and accept the Western paper as
the basis for negotiation, maybe asking for stronger commitments to
change, then a deal is possible by tonight. If the EU does not move, then
the PrepCom will fail, and we will meet again in Tunis for final
negotiation, three days before the Summit.

The private sector apparently has orchestrated a press campaign against
the EU proposal on the Financial Times, the International Herald Tribune,
the New York Times etc. Everybody is pushing the EU. By the way, Italy
likes a lot the Western paper and, if it was not a member of the EU, it
would sign it as is, immediately.

However, there are other EU countries whose strategy, apparently, is to
make the PrepCom fail so to become the leaders of a group containing the
EU, China, Brazil, Iran and other developing countries, to isolate the
United States as much as possible, at the cost of making any deal
impossible. It is unclear whether these countries only aim at making the
PrepCom fail, or aim at the failure of the entire Summit for what regards
Internet Governance.

A higher level meeting of Ambassadors of the EU will take place later in
the day. Stay tuned for updates.
-- 
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