NORTHERN IRAQ: PAVING THE WAY FOR US-TURKEY-KURD

S E C R E T ANKARA 000539 SIPDIS DEPT. FOR P, EUR, EUR/SE, NEA AND NEA/NGA; NSC FOR AMB. KHALILZAD E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/21/2013 TAGS: PREL MARR PREF PHUM TU IZ SUBJECT: NORTHERN IRAQ: PAVING THE WAY FOR US-TURKEY-KURD TRILATS REF: A. STATE 18029 ¶B. ANKARA 283 ¶C. ANKARA 278 Classified by Ambassador W. Robert Pearson. Reasons 1.5 b and d. ¶1. (S) Ambassador conveyed Ref A points to MFA Undersecretary Ugur Ziyal Jan. 22. Ziyal said he had no problems with the ideas therein (with the exception of the military forces point which needs to be addressed in mil-mil channels) and added that the GOT would like to start talking with the US about the future of Iraq. He said that Turkey had serious, well-founded concerns about the future of Iraq that it wanted to discuss with us. Ziyal noted that we refer to the Iraqi Turkmen as "a minority," which he conceded it might be as no one could know Iraqi demographics with any certainty until a new, free census was held. However, he said, Turkey considered the Turkmen a "main segment of Iraqi society," and not a minority, and he hoped the US would refer to it as such. ¶2. (S) Ziyal said the point on the PKK/KADEK was important, and stated that the Turks had a convergence of views on this and other issues of cooperation with KDP leader Masoud Barzani when Barzani was here in early January. He hoped that convergence would lead to a return to the close cooperation Turkey and the KDP had in the past. ¶3. (S) On the talks themselves, Ziyal asked if the GOT should wait for Amb. Khalilzad's visit or send a team to Washington. We recommended the GOT wait unless they felt the need to do something immediately. Ziyal said he would wait. He then asked if we were interested in a 5-way discussion (US-Turkey-KDP-PUK-Iraqi Turkmen Front). Ambassador replied that we would ask Washington to review the suggestion. ¶4. (S) Comment: Based on this conversation, and assuming an outcome to the Salahadeen opposition conference with which Turkey is comfortable, and provided the KDP, PUK and we are prepared to enter joint discussions soon with the Turks and the ITF, we may need only one short round of proximity talks before moving into a face-to-face phase. End Comment. PEARSON