Belarusian TV Accuses U.S. Diplomats of Revolutionary

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MINSK 001384

SIPDIS

DEPT ALSO FOR INR
KIEV ALSO FOR USAID

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SENSITIVE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PINR PREL BO
SUBJECT: Belarusian TV Accuses U.S. Diplomats of Revolutionary
Activities

Refs: A) Minsk 1352, B) Minsk 1006, C) Minsk 1327


1. (U) Summary: Belarus' national television channel aired
exposes on November 4 and 13 accusing U.S. intelligence
agencies of using NGOs and the human rights/democracy
campaign as covers for spreading revolutions around the
world. The hosts of the two programs proposed that Emboffs
were participants in the campaign, which is the purpose of
their trips to the outlying regions in Belarus. One expose
showed footage of Emboffs at their Grodno meetings allegedly
giving instructions to the opposition on how propaganda and
money should be used to remove the regime. The host then
accused Emboffs of violating diplomatic courtesy for failing
to inform or meet with Grodno authorities and the press,
although the program did show Pol Chief speaking to cameras
in the mayor's office. The second expose attacked all
current and former Poloff staff with the same allegations,
provided their names and pictures, and showed additional
footage of Emboffs' in-country trips and events at the DCM's
residence. End Summary.

Human Rights and Democracy: Covers For U.S. Spying
-------------- --------------


2. (U) On November 4, Belarus' state-controlled national
television channel BT aired its daily program Post Scriptum,
in which host Yuri Lednik accused U.S. intelligence agencies
of supporting revolutions under the pretext of human rights
and democratic development. Lednik cited an October
conference in Prague on human rights and insinuated that the
conference's keynote speaker, former CIA Director James
Woolsey, was a leader of this campaign and still working as
an active CIA administrator. Lednik accused the NGO Freedom
House of being a cover for a U.S. operative group that is
spreading the "ORANGE Plague" (revolution) around the world.
According to Lednik, every alleged human rights allegation
made by Americans must first be approved by U.S. "chekists"
(Old Soviet term for operatives in Lenin's NKVD).
Throughout Lednik's monologue, BT broadcasted photos of the
Pentagon, the Statue of Liberty, and demonstrators holding
American flags in the U.S. Creepy Halloween music, similar
to that heard during horror movie knife scenes, continued in
the background during Lednik's speech.


3. (SBU) Lednik opined that the U.S. could never stop
fighting wars and was at a loss when the Cold War ended.
However, the U.S. was now involved in a battle for
"democracy" and instead of using bombs and tanks, it uses
ideology and propaganda as weapons. According to Lednik,
close friends of the White House are creating a number of
radio stations within the U.S. that are spreading the
administration's propaganda. [Comment: Accompanying this
last statement BT showed footage of liberal radio
commentator Al Franken speaking on his radio show,
insinuating that he was helping the Bush administration
spread its ideology. Yet another example of BT's poor
understanding of who is who in the U.S.]

U.S. Diplomats Involved in the Conspiracy
--------------


4. (U) Speaking about American chekists at work, Lednik
referred to Emboffs' October 25 visit to Grodno (ref A),a
large city located near the border between Belarus and
Poland, and claimed it was an inspection rather than a
diplomatic visit. Lednik, who showed footage of Pol/Econ
Chief and Poloff and gave their names and titles, accused
the diplomats of gathering information from radical
opposition nationalists and opposition media. Video footage
showed Emboffs and the Embassy vehicle in a parking lot and
entering meetings. Some footage appeared to be secretly
shot from an office building across from a restaurant where
Emboffs were meeting Union of Belarusian Pole activists.


5. (U) Lednik reported that the Grodno trip was not the
Poloff's first inspection trip outside of Minsk. Referring
to an August trip to Gomel in which Poloff was detained (ref
B),Lednik claimed that Poloff had closed conversations with
Gomel's active opposition members at a private apartment.
The opposition activists received instructions from the
diplomat and one activist subsequently quit his job and
joined a rival political party. According to Lednik, it is
essential for the opposition to follow the directions given
by their "supreme commanders." [Note: This segment was
accompanied by footage of Poloff and a locally employed
staff member leaving the apartment following their police
detainment.]

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6. (U) Lednik called Emboffs' failure to inform local
authorities about their visit or meet with the regional
administration a blatant disrespect of diplomatic courtesy.
Lednik wondered what the USG would think if Belarusian
diplomats met with separatists in Texas without informing
the authorities. Belarusian diplomats, according to Lednik,
would be accused of violating the sovereignty of the U.S.,
but American diplomats think they can do whatever they want
in Belarus. [Note: Emboffs did meet with the mayor of Grodno
and the head of the city's Council of Deputies. The mayor
told Emboffs during the private meeting that it was not
necessary for diplomats to call on local officials every
time they visit his city.]


7. (U) Lednik opined that Emboffs were unable to gather
objective information from the opposition in Grodno since it
was all one-sided, distorted, and full of rumors and lies.
Unfortunately, according to Lednik, diplomats base their
reports on such information. The American diplomats were
interested only in propaganda work and the influence of the
opposition on the population in the region. The Embassy
could have asked the opposition activists to come to Minsk,
but the diplomats did not want to be fooled with all the
receipts, checks, and reports to prove that their money had
been properly spent on "fighting the dictatorship."
Instead, Emboffs want to control the expenses and traveled
to Grodno to see first hand how American taxpayers' money
was being spent.


8. (SBU) The diplomats allegedly arrived to find out about
the membership and political parties' structure, but Lednik
pointed out that all information on parties was available at
the Ministry of Justice. According to Lednik, the American
diplomats in Grodno had something else in mind. [Note: At
this point, BT showed stock footage of a large protest in
Minsk that took place several years ago in which
demonstrators threw rocks and concrete at the police. BT
and other state media channels often show this footage when
speaking about the instability of a revolution.] Lednik
opined that American diplomats are trying to replace the
legal Belarusian government with an easily controllable
regime that would be beneficial to the U.S. Hence,
Americans are in search of people who will implement their
ideas. Lednik concluded that the U.S. has tried to mobilize
the youth, trade unions, and ethnic minorities for this
purpose, but have thus far failed.

Who is Who in the Pol Section
--------------


9. (U) The November 13 expose on BT's Center of Attention
similarly accused U.S. diplomats in Belarus of inappropriate
conduct by "hiding behind opposition doors" and not speaking
with state authorities. The opposition, according to host
Yuri Prokopov, presents diplomats "one-sided" and "false"
information whereas the government authorities are willing
to give the diplomats "real" and current information.


10. (U) Prokopov criticized the Human Rights Report for
portraying Belarus negatively and ignoring Belarus
achievements in combating human and drug trafficking, its
successful cross-border cooperation, and stable economy.
Prokopov claimed this "one-sided" information stems from
Emboff trips similar to the ones to Gomel, Slutsk (ref C)
and Grodno. [Note: Prokopov's program showed various footage
and gave the names of some former and all current Poloffs,
the DCM, and Ambassador.] At one point, Prokopov called one
Poloff an "amateur, or a professional in non-traditional
tourism" because he is reportedly the Embassy employee who
most actively engages in "secret" meetings with opposition
members in private apartments.


11. (U) Prokopov called diplomatic meetings with the
opposition in private apartments a "dirty" tradition
introduced by a former PAS officer (name and footage shown)
and is now "practiced" at the DCM's residence. [Note:
Accompanying footage showed PAS and Pol personnel and guests
entering the DCM's residence for a cocktail party.]
Prokopov, similar to Lednik, concluded that the main reason
for these meetings is to overthrow Belarusian government and
install an easily controllable regime.

Comment
--------------


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12. (SBU) These exposes are just the latest, but most
hostile, in a series of attacks against the Embassy. In
October, a Gomel newspaper article published an article
alleging that all Emboff trips to Gomel are covers for
espionage and listed most of the trips Emboffs have made to
the city in the last year. The TV news reports
unambiguously and aggressively accuse Embassy personnel of
espionage and revolutionary activities. Like previous news
stories, the journalists have distorted Embassy statements
and Emboff footage to create a controversial story. Lednik,
for example, claimed Emboffs would not speak to reporters or
meet with the Grodno authorities, but the footage they aired
showed Pol Chief speaking to their cameras inside the
mayor's office (although his statements were muted and no
footage of the mayor was used). Prokopov's sensational
story did not introduce new allegations, but introduced a
larger spectrum of Embassy personnel while providing names
and pictures. The hostile "news" coverage serves to further
distort the view the Belarusian public has of USG intentions
and activities in Belarus, further obstructing our public
diplomacy efforts. Furthermore the aggressive camera work
seeks to intimidate Embassy contacts and complicate routine
Embassy field travel.


13. (SBU) Comment Cont'd: The deputy BKGB director has made
comments that claim the U.S. has plans to intervene in
Belarus. The Embassy has taken up these reports with the
Belarusian MFA and even sent a diplomatic note in protest.
The MFA reported that they have spoken with the Ministry of
Information (MoI) to caution journalists about interfering
with diplomatic work, but has not answered our diplomatic
protest. Furthermore, the MFA contends that the MoI cannot
control the work of these "journalists." We continue to
provide our responses in Embassy statements and press
conferences, but the state controlled media refuses to air
or print these statements, which are noted only in the small
independent media.

KROL