GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER REJECTS LINK BETWEEN

UNCLAS ATHENS 001528

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: GR TU PREL TURKEY
SUBJECT: GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER REJECTS LINK BETWEEN
REFERENDA AND TURKEY'S EU ACCESSION

REF: STATE 99740


1. (SBU) In advance of Greek FM Molyviatis' June 2 press
conference with the Foreign Press Association in Athens,
Ambassador drew on reftel points to suggest to Molyviatis,
chief of staff Constantinos Rallis that the FM use the
occasion to emphasize that the French referendum outcome
should have no impact on the launch of the Turkey-EU
accession negotiations process. Rallis said Molyviatis would
make the case that the two issues -- French referendum and
Turkish process -- were not connected and shouldn,t be.
Rallis added that FM Molyviatis conducted a closed door
briefing of the all-party foreign policy consultative council
including PASOK and Synapismos (but not KKE) June 1 on
Turkey-Greece and other issues. All parties, he said,
reaffirmed their strong support for a start to EU accession
talks on October 3 as planned.


2. (U) In the press event June 2, Molyviatis did use the
occasion to express Greece's continuing support for Turkey/EU
despite the outcome of the French and Dutch referenda.
Excerpts from the transcript follow:

..."I think that obviously the results from France and from
the Netherlands, which were both negative, are a very
important event, indeed, which we have to take very
seriously; all of us have to do this. And we should all try
to study and properly interpret the messages which are being
sent to us by the peoples who voted in these two referenda.
These are messages to their own countries, but also in a
wider sense to the whole of Europe....I believe that
enlargement must continue, just as it has been envisaged to
date. You were talking about two countries which have already
signed their accession treaties, Romania and Bulgaria, and
obviously our position here is that we must continue in the
direction of complete accession of these two countries, and
we here in Greece are obviously very actively supporting
Bulgaria and Romania in this procedure of accession."

"But obviously you were also referring to Turkey, I assume,
with your question. Now, I believe, or actually it's a fact,
that the movement of Turkey in the direction of Europe was
decided on by the European Council of the 17th of December.
In the conclusions of this European Council, we have a
detailed description and a clear description of the
conditions, criteria and prerequisites that have to be
fulfilled by Turkey in its European development, in order for
it to become a member of the European Union. And it is also
said in these conclusions that the accession negotiations for
Turkey shall begin on the 3rd of October. Nobody has asked
for an amendment or an overturning of these decisions."

"Thus our position is very clearly that Turkey must continue
its development in the direction of Europe, just as this is
described in the conditions and criteria stipulated in the
decision of the 17th of December of the European Council.
Now, as to Greece's general position vis-a-vis Turkey and its
development in the direction of Europe, obviously Greece's
positions have no influence whatsoever on the referendum
results in France and the Netherlands."
RIES