TURKEY/ARMENIA: STALEMATE STRANGLING GOODWILL

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 002522 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/05/2014 TAGS: AJ AM PREL TU SUBJECT: TURKEY/ARMENIA: STALEMATE STRANGLING GOODWILL MEASURES REF: A. ANKARA 2457 ¶B. 9 APRIL 2004 DOELL-BLAHA E-MAIL ¶C. 23 APRIL 2004 BLAHA-DOELL E-MAIL (U) Classified by Ambassador Eric Edelman, E.O. 12958, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Following Ambassador Edelman's April 30 meeting with FM Gul (ref A) we re-raised with Caucasus Department Head Adali Embassy Yerevan's proposal to open the border to participants in the upcoming Kars-Gyumri Symposium (ref B). (Ankara Polcouns raised this on April 22 with Adali's boss, DDG Tezgor (ref C)). Adali rejected the idea. He asked rhetorically why the GOT should reach out to the GOAM after Armenian diplomats (he claimed) had pushed the Canadian Parliament to pass an Armenian genocide resolution. This, he continued, broke a promise the Armenians made to the Turks. ¶2. (C) Noting that Gul told the Ambassador April 30 he would think about further gestures toward Armenia, we asked Adali to re-raise the Symposium proposal. Adali replied that "it is impossible for the Minister to say yes if I say no. Our system is rigid." Adali claimed the MFA is still considering the proposal to open the border to diplomatic passport holders. He added that, in principle, the Turkish, Azeri and Armenian FMs have agreed to meet on the margins of the June NATO Summit in Istanbul; he predicted the meeting will be only symbolic and will not touch substance. ¶3. (C) We asked for details about the April 23 Youth Day crossing by Armenian children into Turkey. Contrary to Gul's assertion, after a call to the Culture Ministry, Adali said this did not take place. He blamed the Armenian side for canceling the event because it fell the day before April 24 Armenian Remembrance Day. ¶4. (C) According to Adali, the EU is not pressuring the GOT to take steps on relations with Armenia as a condition to receiving a date to begin accession talks in December. Adali said the Armenian strategy is to wait for Turkey to receive a date and then use the accession process as leverage. ¶5. (C) Comment: In the wake of Azeri President Aliyev's April visit to Turkey, the GOT is more dug in than ever to linking a full border opening and re-establishing diplomatic relations to progress on Nagorno-Karabakh and the occupied territories. This spirit of stalemate helps mid-level diplomats strangle more modest measures. End Comment. EDELMAN