Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06ROME1588
2006-05-24 13:37:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Rome
Cable title:  

ITALY WANTS TO BE MONTENEGRO'S MOST INFLUENTIAL EU

Tags:  PREL PGOV IT MW SR YI 
pdf how-to read a cable
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DE RUEHRO #1588/01 1441337
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 241337Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY ROME
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4902
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHFL/AMCONSUL FLORENCE PRIORITY 1428
RUEHMIL/AMCONSUL MILAN PRIORITY 7146
RUEHNP/AMCONSUL NAPLES PRIORITY 1498
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 001588 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/30/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV IT MW SR YI
SUBJECT: ITALY WANTS TO BE MONTENEGRO'S MOST INFLUENTIAL EU
PARTNER


ROME 00001588 001.2 OF 002


Classified By: Classified by Gabriel Escobar, Political Officer, for re
asons 1.4 (b) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 001588

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/30/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV IT MW SR YI
SUBJECT: ITALY WANTS TO BE MONTENEGRO'S MOST INFLUENTIAL EU
PARTNER


ROME 00001588 001.2 OF 002


Classified By: Classified by Gabriel Escobar, Political Officer, for re
asons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary. Immediately after the Montenegrin referendum
on independence, Raimondo De Cardona, director of the Balkans
office of the MFA, told the Serbia and Montenegro ambassador
Darko Uskokovic that Italy wants to become Montenegro's
strongest EU partner and added that Montenegrin President
Filip Vujanovic would be invited to visit Italy as soon as
possible. De Cardona told Uskokovic that the Contact Group
is unified in its commitment to continue to press for a
status solution on Kosovo despite the results of the
Montenegrin referendum and that Italy would take no action on
the Kostunica/Tadic letter asking for a change in negotiation
format on Kosovo. End Summary.

Italian MFA: Ready to Work with Montenegro, Kosovo Still on
Track
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -


2. (C) Darko Uskokovic, SAM ambassador and close Montenegrin
confidat to Montenegrin PM Milo Djukanovic told poloff that
he had a two hour meeting with De Cardona after his weekend
trip to Montenegro to vote in the referendum. De Cardona
told Uskokovic that the GOI welcomed the democratic and
transparent referendum process and expected that the official
results would confirm a victory for the independence bloc.
De Cardona told Uskokovic that the GOI wanted to be the most
influential EU partner for an independent Montenegro. Italy
would sign onto the joint EU message welcoming Montenegrin
independence but made its own national statement welcoming
the result and encouraging close coordination on succession
issues between Montenegro and Serbia. De Cardona also stated
that the GOI would extend a formal invitation to Montenegrin
PM Filip Vujanovic to visit Rome immediately after formal
independence (Note: The Italian MFA has been stalling for
over a year on a request by the GOM to arrange a visit to
Italy by Vujanovic. No GOM official has made an official
visit to Rome in over 3 years, while both Kostunica and Tadic
have been welcomed in the past year.)


3. (C) De Cardona told Uskokovic that due to a change in
Foreign Minister he could not confirm when or how an Italian
ambassador would be appointed to Montenegro and asked
Uskokovic to communicate to the Montenegrin Government that a
dual accreditation of its ambassador in Belgrade was not a
sign of its unwillingness to begin immediately working on
bilateral relations with Podgorica.


4. (C) De Cardona told Uskokovic that the Contact Group
remained unified on the question on the question of Kosovo
and the results of the Montenegrin referendum would not
affect the timing or the format of the discussions. The GOI
had recently received a letter from Kostunica and Tadic
asking for a change in the format of the negotiations. De
Cardona stated that the GOI would not respond to the letter
and fully supported the work of Ahtisaari. (Note: Uskokovic
told poloff that Kostunica and Tadic would soon formally
request the Contact Group to replace Ahtisaari. End Note.)

Somber Mood in Embassy of Serbia and Montenegro
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -


5. (C) Uskokovic expected to be removed from his position
shortly after the official results are announced, at which
time he would request agremont as the Montenegrin
representative. Upon his return from Montenegro, Uskokovic
requested that his staff refrain from any open or public
sentiment either for or against Montenegrin independence and
forbade the display of Montenegrin flags in work spaces. He
said employees watched Monday's press conferences and news in
silence - recognizing that the country they represent would
soon cease to exist. Uskokovic overheard a Serbian employee
tell a Montenegrin member of the staff, "Congratulations on
the independence of Montenegro", to which the Montenegrin
replied, "Congratulations on the independence of Serbia."


6. (C) Comment. Despite occasional private concerns about
the timing and public message on the Kosovo status issue, the
GOI remains firm in its commitment to communicate a message
of Contact Group unity to the SAM government. Additionally,
after years of opposing Montenegrin independence, Italy's
intention to immediately establish itself as Montenegro's
most important EU partner underscores its commitment to the
Balkans and its insistence on taking a leadership role in the
region.

ROME 00001588 002.2 OF 002


SPOGLI