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

S E C R E T ANKARA 000625 SIPDIS DEPT. FOR P, EUR, EUR/SE, NEA AND NEA/NGA; NSC FOR AMB. KHALILZAD E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/23/2013 TAGS: PREL MARR PREF PHUM TU IZ SUBJECT: NORTHERN IRAQ: PAVING THE WAY FOR US-TURKEY-KURD TRILATS (II) REF: A. STATE 18029 ¶B. ANKARA 539 ¶C. ANKARA 283 ¶D. ANKARA 278 Classified by Ambassador W. Robert Pearson. Reasons 1.5 b and d. ¶1. (U) This is an action request. See Para 4. ¶2. (S) TGS DCHOD Buyukanit told Ambassador Jan. 24 that the MFA had reported to him that the US in Ref B discussion with MFA U/S Ziyal said it did not want 5-way talks. Ambassador told Buyukanit that was not true, that he had told Ziyal he needed to ask Washington for instructions, and that it was Turkey that told us it only wanted US-Turkey bilats and we had been proceeding on that basis until the Ref B conversation. Ambassador emphasized that we told MFA we were ready for talks. Buyukanit indicated that now was better than later and that he would be discussing this with the MFA. ¶3. (S) KDP and PUK Ankara reps Safeen Dizayee and Bahros Galali told ONW POLAD Jan. 24 they had heard from their respective headquarters about the idea and were instructed to tell the MFA they were prepared to enter "US-Turkey-Iraqi Kurd" talks. KDP rep Dizayee told us a TGS rep subsequently called on him to say if Barzani and Talabani participated, Iraqi Turkmen Front Chairman Sanan Aga must participate as well. Dizayee said he passed that message back to Barzani, who replied that ITF participation was not acceptable, as this discussion was not about the Turkmen. Dizayee added that the KDP did not want to "confuse these meetings with the Ankara Process (which included the ITF as observers),as that process had been superceded by the Washington Agreement and overcome by events. The KDP did not want to create the impression that there were problems between the KDP and the PUK," which was what the Ankara Process was designed to resolve. ¶4. (S) Action Request and Recommendation: We propose the Department send us points for the Ambassador's use soonest to open subject bilats with Turkey. We also suggest that Amb. Khalilzad open subject talks ASAP either via STU III or face-to-face in Washington or some other location before his upcoming travel with the KDP and the PUK. We believe we need to use these bilats to prepare the way for multi-party face-to-face talks when Amb. Khalilzad is here in early February and to sort out the issue of ITF participation. To insist on ITF participation risks losing the KDP from the process. To reject it risks losing the Turks. We need to use the bilats to finesse this issue, possibly by including the ITF as observers, as was done in the Ankara Process, while making clear that this is not/not a continuation of that process. End Action Request and Recommendation. PEARSON