TURKEY AND IRAQ WILL MEET TO DISCUSS TRUCKER

UNCLAS ANKARA 003329 SIPDIS SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECIN IZ MARR PREL TU SUBJECT: TURKEY AND IRAQ WILL MEET TO DISCUSS TRUCKER SECURITY, BORDER ISSUES AND CONSULATES Sensitive But Unclassified. ¶1. (U) The press reported June 10 that bilateral working group meetings on transportation security and consular affairs agreed to during the Ankara visit of PM Jafari will be held at a technical level on June 13 (transportation) and June 16 (consular). MFA Chief of Section for Iraq Economic Relations Sedef Yavuzalp confirmed that the two sides had agreed to the meetings. However, the transportation security meeting would not take place on June 16 because preparations had not yet been made. MFA Iraq Desk Officer Hasan Sekizkok, however, confirmed to PolMilOff that Iraq and Turkey will hold bilateral talks on consular matters in Ankara on June ¶16. MFA DG for Consular Affairs Amb. Murat Ersavci will lead the Turkish delegation; the Iraqi HOD will be the MFA Undersecretary responsible for administrative and consular affairs. Sekizkok said he expected visa matters to dominate the discussion. ¶2. (SBU) Yavuzalp explained that Turkey's agreement to hold a second bilateral transportation security meeting with the Iraqis did not mean that Turkey did not want to hold another trilateral (U.S.-Turkey-Iraq) trucker security meeting. (Note: The first bilateral meeting was held in December 2004 following the November trilateral.) She said the bilateral with the Iraqis would be a working group meeting. Econoff offered that the U.S. was pleased that Turkey and Iraq were working bilaterally to address transportation and border issues. Yavuzalp said the Turks and Iraqis would discuss the U.S. role at the working group meeting on transportation. MOORE