TURKISH AND IRAQI OFFICIALS ACHIEVE LITTLE AT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ANKARA 000532

SIPDIS


E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/26/2013
TAGS: ECIN ETRD IZ PGOV PREL TU
SUBJECT: TURKISH AND IRAQI OFFICIALS ACHIEVE LITTLE AT
BORDER TALKS


REF: A. 2003 ANKARA 7444

B. 2004 ANKARA 112


Classified by DCM Robert Deutsch for reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).



1. (C) SUMMARY: In a follow-up to agreements reached in
Ankara in December 2003 (ref a),Iraqi and Turkish officials
met in the Turkish border town of Cizre (January 20-22) to
discuss improving border operations. However, the results
were disappointing: the Turkish side insisted that it could
only discuss the construction of a second border crossing, so
the pressing issue of improving the operation of the Habur
Gate crossing was not addressed. The delegations visited the
Habur facilities and the Turkish proposed sites (in Turkey
and Iraq) for the second crossing. The Turks forcefully
tried to persuade the Iraqis to agree to a very detailed
proposal, but the Iraqi side agreed only to respond to the
Turkish proposal in time for a meeting in Ankara in March.
Consul Adana and Embassy Econoff attended the talks. (Text of
the agreement is included in para 8.) End Summary.



2. (C) The Turkish government invited Iraqi authorities to
talks in Cizre, January 20-22, as a follow-up to agreement to
improve border operations, reached during talks in Ankara in
December. That agreement included two principle objectives:
1) improving the processing of trucks at the Habur Gate
facility from about 1,300 per day each way to 1,850; and 2)
construction of a second border crossing to the west of
Habur. In the week before the meetings, we repeatedly asked
MFA for an agenda for the talks, but we were told that an
agenda would be agreed by the two sides on the first day of
talks in Cizre. In fact, the Turkish side specifically
instructed its delegation that it was only to discuss the
second border crossing.



3. (C) The Turks opened the talks by insisting that the
Iraqis approve a detailed Turkish proposal for the
construction of the second crossing, including specific
instructions on the location of the crossing and 50 km of new
road needed in Iraq to connect to the main road to Mosul.
(This route runs west of Kurdish areas and near a
Turkmen-populated area.) The Turks' proposal also included
an offer to handle the financing of the project, which the
Turks estimate would cost $80 million. When the Turks were
pressed for details, they revealed that the financing would
come from concessional crude oil sales by Iraq to Turkey.



4. (C) CPA rep in Dohuk reported that the Turkish approach
had the effect of uniting the two elements on the Iraqi side
of the table -- the local Kurdish officials and
representatives of the IGC from Baghdad. The Iraqis kept
cool, offering a counter proposal and finally agreeing on a
much-watered-down text. The final document (see para 8)
includes most of the specific demands tabled by the Turks.
However, the Iraqi-negotiated additions to the text agree
only to respond to the Turkish proposals, with a target to
have a draft agreement ready for a bilateral meeting
scheduled for March in Ankara. Furthermore, the agreement
says that financing will require further negotiations.



5. (U) As a final point, the Iraqi side inserted its view
that development of the second border gate should not detract
from the commitment to increase traffic at Habur to 1,850 per
day. The text included the Turks' response that they were
not authorized to discuss Habur issues.



6. (U) In the background to the negotiations, operations at
the Habur Gate facility declined dramatically. Processing by
the Turks of southbound traffic declined from 1,500 trucks on
January 19th, to just 880 on January 21. The consequences of
the day's slowdown was evident when the delegations returned
from Iraq to Cizre: the line of trucks waiting to enter Iraq
grew by several kilometers, stretching double-file well
beyond the town of Silopi.



7. (C) The issues of Habur Gate were discussed frequently on
the margins of the talks. Despite assurances in Ankara that
the modernization of Habur Gate would begin soon (ref b),
local officials, including the Turkish sub-governor in charge
of the border operations, knew nothing about the specifics of
the plan or when it would begin. Turkish officials confirmed
that additional Customs personnel had been assigned to Habur
Gate but had no ideas for how to increase processing to the
agreed level of 1,850, or how to keep the processing going
during the construction phase.



8. (U) Begin text of Agreed Minutes of Cizre Meeting:
Minutes of the Meeting of Regarding the Second Border Gate to
be Opened Between Turkey and Iraq


The Turkish and Iraqi Delegations, the lists of which are
annexed to this present document, met on 20-22 January, 2004
in Cizre/Turkey in order to determine the technical details
of the second border gate to be opened between Turkey and
Iraq and of connecting road network and the principles of the
agreement to be concluded between the two countries in
accordance with the provisions of Agreed Minutes signed on
November 21, 2003 and of Minutes of Meeting signed on
December 2, 2003 and after a site survey and partial route
study in the territories of respective countries, have agreed
on the following:



1. The second border gate will be located in Ovakoy, in the
regions ca. 200-300 meters east of Kirkuk-Yumurtalik
Pipeline, as stipulated in Agreed Minutes signed on November
21, 2003 and of Minutes of Meeting on December 2, 2003.



2. At the outset of the negotiations, the Turkish side made
the necessary explanations, after submitting the Project
Route Proposal, which was marked on the map of 1/50,000, to
the Iraqi side, for the second border gate and its connecting
road network within Turkish and Iraqi territories which
foresees:


a, stretching southwards through a 14 kilometres long, total
4 lane divided road which will pass parallel to the pipeline
and which will start on the departing point from the highway
of Cizre-Silopi, ca. 5 kilometres west of Silopi and ca. 250
meters east of PS-3 Silopi Pump Station on the
Kirkuk-Yumurtalik pipeline.


b. crossing Habur Stream through ca. 300 meters long two
separate bridges 4 lane in the Turkish-Iraqi border region,
in the vicinity of Ovakoy on the Turkish side and in the
vicinity of Karavala Village on the Iraqi side.


c. reaching Tigris River on the point ca. 3 kilometers
northwest of Bajd Brad Village through a divided ca. 10
kilometers long total 4 lane road which will start in the
vicinity of Karavala Village on the Iraqi side and stretch
parallel to the pipeline on its eastern side and crossing
Tigris River at the point through two separate bridges 4 lane.


d. connecting Musul-Telgocek highway on the point ca. 2
kilometers west of Teluwainat Village through a ca. 40
kilometers long, 4 lane divided road southwards starting from
these bridges.



3. The Iraqi side requested a period of three weeks in order
that the Iraqi relevant authorities could examine the Turkish
Project Route Proposal and this request has been accepted by
the Turkish side. After the examinations and evaluations to
be completed within at most three weeks, the Iraqi side will
convey, through diplomatic channels, to the Turkish side its
views regarding the Turkish project proposal and any
alternative proposal should there be any.



4. The two sides conducted pre-examination and made
observations on the Turkish side on January 20, 2004 and on
the Iraqi side at the vicinity of Karavala Village alongside
the border line and in the region stretching to Derabun
Village on January 21, 2004 in the context of the Turkish
project proposal.



5. Following the receipt of the detailed views of the Iraqi
side regarding the project, the issue will be evaluated as
soon as possible by the Turkish side, and provided that there
is a mutual understanding, the both sides will form a
technical team through diplomatic channels at their earliest
convenience which will specify the technical standards of the
project and examine the parts of the project within Iraqi
territory.


Iraqi and Turkish Authorities will take necessary measures
including those related to security of technical teams to
facilitate the joint survey in both countries' territories.



6. Following the mutual understanding on project details
resulting from the joint studies to be conducted by technical
teams in the Iraqi territory, the text of the agreement will
be drafted by the delegations of the two countries during
negotiations to be held in Ankara in the second half of March

2004.

7. The modalities of financing of the project will be
clarified through the negotiations between the delegations
from the Undersecretariat of Foreign Trade of the Republic of
Turkey and the appropriate authorities of the Republic of
Iraq to be held within the context of aforementioned meeting
in Ankara.



8. The Iraqi side stated that any proposed development of
this second border gate should not detract from agreed joint
efforts from the Turkish and Iraqi sides to increase the flow
of trucks across the current Habour Border Gate bridges to an
average of 1850 trucks per day in each direction as mentioned
in article 9 of the Agreed Minutes of December 2, 2003
meeting in Ankara.


The Turkish side stated that it is not authorized concerning
the works to be done in Habour Gate.


Done in Cizre on January 22, 2004 in two originals in
English, both being equally authentic.


End Text.


Baghdad minimize considered.
DEUTSCH