AUSTRIA VIEWS RUSSIAN PARTICIPATION IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L VIENNA 002400

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EUR/UMB, EUR/SNEC, AND EUR/AGS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/15/2015
TAGS: OPDC PARM PBTS PHUM PREL PGOV AU EUN OSCE
SUBJECT: AUSTRIA VIEWS RUSSIAN PARTICIPATION IN
MULTILATERAL CONFERENCE ON TRANSNISTRIA AS KEY

REF: STATE 125824

Classified By: Acting Economic-Political Counselor Phillip R. Nelson
for reasons 1.5(b) and (d).


1. (C) On July 7, post conveyed reftel talking points to
Josef Litschauer, Head of the MFA's CIS Unit. Acting
Econ-Pol Counselor met with Litschauer on July 15 to elicit
GoA views on a multilateral conference. Litschauer said the
GoA would support EU participation in such a conference, but
only if Russia agreed to attend also. The GoR, in
Litschauer's opinion, would construe a multilateral
conference without it as a U.S.-EU attempt to isolate Russia
from the negotiations. Litschauer noted that the real
challenge was how to foster a more constructive approach from
the GoR. Litschauer added that the GoA believed the U.S. and
EU could still persuade Russia to attend a multilateral
conference.
Brown