EUROPEAN ACTION PLAN FOR AZERBAIJAN MOVING FORWARD

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAKU 001153

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/01/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV ECON EAID PBTS AJ
SUBJECT: EUROPEAN ACTION PLAN FOR AZERBAIJAN MOVING FORWARD

REF: BAKU 01086

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Jason P. Hyland per 1.4 (b,d).


1. (C) Summary: German and Finnish diplomats separately
confirmed that Azerbaijan has completed its European Action
Plan (EAP). Previous hold-ups over EAP language regarding
Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and Azerbaijan's August
2005 commercial flight to Northern Cyprus have been resolved
through language in the EAP endorsing Azerbaijan's
territorial integrity, and a suspension clause should
Azerbaijan send any future flights to Northern Cyprus. With
all three Caucasus Action Plans expected to be completed
soon, the EU is hailing a "new step in EU-Caucasus
relations." Finish Ambassador Terhi Hakala (EU Presidency)
expects that all three Caucasus Action Plans will be adopted
by the Council of Ministers in September, followed by a
high-profile Troika visit to all three capitals in early
October. The EU also hopes to bring the Foreign Ministers of
Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia together during a November
Cooperation Council meeting, in order to discuss regional
conflicts. Hakala also said the EU will meet in September to
discuss the mandate of new EU Special Representative for the
South Caucasus Peter Semneby. End summary.


2. (C) On July 28, German Embassy First Secretary Klaus
Keller, serving as the representative for European Union (EU)
president of Finland, confirmed that the European Action Plan
(EAP) for Azerbaijan in principle, was agreed upon on July 17
between EU Special Envoy Peter Semneby and Azerbaijan,s
Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Economic Development (ref).
Among other topics, the EAP contained language on Human
Rights, Strengthening Civil Society, Increasing Diplomatic
Efforts, Increasing Support for the OSCE MINSK Group,
Democracy, Reform of the Electoral Codes, International
Conventions, Energy, Political Dialogue and Reform, Migration
Issues, Fighting Organized Crime, Police Cooperation,
Decreasing Poverty, Improving the Pension System, WTO, and
Customs. Keller said that Azerbaijan,s action plan, along
with soon-to-be finalized action plans for Armenia and
Georgia, will be submitted for ratification by the 25 EU
member states during the next Council of Ministers.


3. (C) Keller reported that two previous points of
contention, language regarding Azerbaijan's territorial
integrity and Greek concern over Azerbaijan,s relations with
Northern Cyprus, had been resolved. Azerbaijan had
strenuously objected to previous versions of the EAP that did
not refer explicitly to Azerbaijan's territorial integrity.
Finnish Ambassador Terhi Hakala reported that the EU solved
the problem by taking language from Azerbaijan's 1997
Partnership Cooperation Agreement (PCA),that referred
explicitly to Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. While the
EU had intended the EAPs to be symmetrical regarding the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Hakala said the EU ended up with
PCA language in the EAPs for both Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Armenia's draft EAP, she said, now includes language stating
that conflicts should be resolved on the basis of
international law, including self determination. Separately,
the Cyprus flight issue was resolved by a suspension clause,
specific langague that makes it explicitly clear that if
there were anymore Azerbaijani flights to Northern Cyprus,
the implementation of the EAP would be suspended. Both
Keller and Hakala said that Cyprus and Greece are comfortable
with the clause.


4. (C) Finnish Ambassador Tehri Hakala separately told
Charge that the Finnish Presidency would like to push for
early approval of all three action plans, possibly in
September. Hailing the action plans as a "new step in
EU-Caucasus relations," Hakala said the Finnish Presidency
would like to signal EU commitment to the region through a
high-profile EU Troika visit to all three capitals in early
October. Hakkala said the Finnish Foreign Minister and EC
External Relations Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner have already
agreed to the trip; she was not certain whether the German
Foreign Minister would be available. (Hakkala also noted
that the last EU Troika visit to the region had occured in
February 2001.) The EU also hopes to bring all three
Caucasus Foreign Ministers together -- for the first time
since 2005 -- in a Cooperation Council Meeting in Brussels in
November. At that meeting, the EU hopes to encourage a
regional dialogue, particularly on the region's conflicts.


5. (C) Hakala also noted that the EU planned to hold further
discussions in September regarding the mandate for EU Special
Representative for the South Caucasus Peter Semneby. She
commented that while EU expectations for a negotiated
solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict had been high,
perhaps they had been misplaced. Hakala said that "deep in

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the corridors of the EU," some planning was being done for
possible N-K peace-keeping operations. Hakala said she
personally did not believe a peace deal was immiment, as
"neither side wants peace."
HYLAND