U.S. CHAMBER-TURKEY BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

UNCLAS ANKARA 001352 SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPT ALSO PASS USAID FOR DAA WOODY MEFFORD E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID BEXP TU SUBJECT: U.S. CHAMBER-TURKEY BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. ¶1. (SBU) The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and its Turkish counterpart, the Union of Chambers and Exchanges (TOBB), tell us they are not prepared to sign a "memorandum of understanding" in Ankara on March 17. Activities under the MOU would be implemented by the private contractor Carana, which has received from USAID a $400,000 grant from the Economic Support Fund (ESF). U.S. Chamber and TOBB officials say that despite their efforts, they have not been able to agree with Carana on a budget and workplan for activities that would support interaction between U.S. and Turkish small- and medium-sized firms. ¶2. (SBU) This project originated from the Economic Partnership Commission led by the Under Secretary of State for Business Affairs and Turkey's Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs. Its success would diversify and expand our bilateral economic relationship, expand U.S. business contacts in this growing market, contribute to Turkey's economic and business development, and be a public symbol of commitment to expanding the bilateral relationship. Although the amount of funding is relatively small, TOBB and the U.S. Chamber see the project as an opportunity to create a collaborative relationship that would make a long-term contribution to greater U.S.-Turkey business ties. ¶3. (SBU) In that spirit, we see this project as an important part of the bilateral economic relationship and are committed to working with USAID, the U.S. Chamber, TOBB and Carana for its success. As we do so, it is important that we keep at the forefront the goal of building a strong relationship between the two business organizations. The program implemented by Carana should meet the needs and desires of both TOBB and the U.S. Chamber. It is therefore hard to understand that elements agreed by TOBB, U.S. Chamber, USAID, and Embassy officials last November were not included in the initial workplan proposed by Carana, which instead called for activities that would involve only Carana employees and reach only a small number of companies. ¶4. (SBU) TOBB has recently made suggestions that refocus Carana's proposal and allow the project to reach a maximum number of Turkish firms. Its letter to the Ambassador has been copied to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and USAID. We expect that Carana will incorporate these suggestions into a revised workplan and budget that TOBB and the U.S. Chamber will support and work with Carana to implement. We appreciate the efforts of USAID to keep this important project on track and to provide direction to Carana to support maximum interaction between TOBB and the U.S. Chamber. In lieu of the MOU signing in Ankara, we suggest working with the two organizations to target a signing ceremony in Washington on the margins of the March 26-29 annual meetings of the American Turkish Council, at which TOBB will be represented by a high-level delegation. WILSON