FINNISH VIEWS ON JULY GAERC

UNCLAS HELSINKI 000665 SIPDIS C O R R E C T E D C O P Y - CAPTION ADDED SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EUN FI PREL UN SUBJECT: FINNISH VIEWS ON JULY GAERC REF: A. STATE 114605 ¶B. STATE 115346 ¶1. (U) PolChief and Emboff delivered subject demarche to Deputy European Correspondent Tanja Jaaskelainen on July ¶14. Jaaskelainen said the GOF generally supports most of our points. The ministry response focused on Kosovo, Israel/Palestine, North Korea and Iraq. ¶2. (SBU) Kosovo: Jaaskelainen noted that UN Special Envoy Ahtisaari would brief the Council on July 17 on final status negotiations. The Finns fully support Ahtisaari's efforts and hope to see negotiations conclude by the end of 2006 as planned. The Council will begin examining framework plans for a future ESDP mission in Kosovo following the conclusion of negotiations. The EU anticipates a UN lead and continued NATO presence, along with ESDP programs focusing on police and rule of law programs. ¶3. (SBU) Israel-Palestine-Lebanon: In general, Jaaskelainen agreed with our points and re-emphasized that the EU and the Finnish Presidency are seized with the crisis in the Middle East. Solana will travel to the region July 15 and brief the GAERC on his return, and the ministers' discussions of next steps will clearly dominate the GAERC agenda. Finnish FM Tuomioja hopes for a Quartet meeting as soon as July 18 in Brussels, immediately following the GAERC, she said. Jaaskelainen also noted the GOF's disappointment that the UN Security Council had not passed Qatar's July 13 resolution on Israel's actions -- a resolution Finland found "balanced for an Arab country", and a possible avenue for better cooperation between the West and the Muslim world. ¶4. (U) Iraq Compact: The GOF welcomes the July 20 Baghdad meeting as the first of hopefully many opportunities for discussion of Iraq's political future. Finnish Ambassador Aapo Polho will attend. However, Iraq has been removed from the GAERC agenda because of the expected time necessary to discuss Israel-Palestine-Lebanon. ¶5. (U) North Korea: Jaaskelainen agreed with our points on North Korea but noted that it is not on the GAERC agenda. ¶6. (SBU) Serbia and ICTY: Jaaskelainen noted that Finland has long agreed with US demands regarding Serbia's cooperation with ICTY, including the concept that such cooperation is best proven by "delivering Mladic to the Hague without delay." Speaking for Finland, she noted that it is very important for the US to maintain this tough stance, given the fact that some member states (and certainly Serbia) would like to see the ICTY conditionalities softened for both EU perspectives and eventual NATO/PfP participation. If "mixed messages" were to emerge from Washington, Jaaskelainen continued, it could undermine Finland's efforts to hold as tough line and would certainly offer Serbia an opportunity to begin manipulating member states' resolve. We assured Jaaskelainen that our point, as phrased in reftel, represented the US position. WARE