TURKEY/NATO/ESDP: UK NATO PERMREP MAKES LITTLE

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 001351 SIPDIS SIPDIS OSD FOR ROD FABRYCKY USNATO FOR ROBERT KEMP E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/01/2017 TAGS: PREL MARR NATO EU TU SUBJECT: TURKEY/NATO/ESDP: UK NATO PERMREP MAKES LITTLE HEADWAY IN ANKARA REF: A. ANKARA 1319 ¶B. ANKARA 1232 ¶C. ANKARA 1205 ¶D. ANKARA 1192 Classified By: Political Military Counselor Carl Siebentritt for reason s 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary: UK NATO PermRep Stewart Eldon made little headway with the Turks during May 30 ESDP/Kosovo discussions in Ankara. The UK plans to encourage NATO SYG Solana to offer proposals prior to the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) Summit in Istanbul, June 24-25. In meetings with MFA officials, the British team raised some ideas for a more substantial Turkish voice in ESDP. Turkish officials offered no changes in their positions, including insistence that Kosovo be considered a Berlin Plus operation. According to press reports, Deputy Chief of the Turkish General Staff (D/CHOD) GEN Ergin Saygun has said Turkey will not allow Cyprus' participation in joint EU-NATO operations and has vetoed a Cypriot police team in KFOR's Multinational Task Force South, which Turkey now commands. End Summary ¶2. (C) The British team did not have high expectations, UK Poloff Catherine Barnes told us, and were recalled to London for unrelated reasons after the first day of talks on May 30. In meetings with MFA U/S Ertugrul Apakan and DG for NATO Affairs Tomar Bayer, Eldon floated a more substantive role for Turkey in ESDP meetings, suggested Turkey might be given a role within the NATO military liaison to the EU, and proposed enhancing existing channels for consultation while considering new ones. (Note: Barnes made clear that Eldon was speaking for the UK and not on behalf of NATO. End Note). ¶3. (C) Turkish officials were grateful for the UK team's efforts, Barnes reported, but did not change their fundamental position that Kosovo should be a Berlin Plus operation. Repeating appeals made to Ambassador the previous day (ref a),Apakan told the British that the issue was a political one that could not be solved by technical drafting fixes. NATO, in the Turkish view, should not be cast as subservient to the EU. In response to the latter point, Barnes noted, Eldon went to some length to emphasize the autonomy of both organizations. ¶4. (C) On next steps, Barnes said Eldon plans to approach Solana about making a proposal to the Turks prior to the June 24-25 BSEC Summit in Istanbul, which Solana is expected to attend. More ideas would be put on the table. No magic solution is expected, but the UK hopes for incremental progress, Barnes said. ¶5. (C) Because the UK team departed earlier than expected, their planned meeting with D/CHOD GEN Saygun was canceled. TGS declined a UK request to re-schedule the meeting with a Saygun subordinate. ¶6. (U) Speaking at a TGS-sponsored symposium in Istanbul May 31, Saygun reportedly said that Turkey had recently vetoed the participation of a police team from Cyprus in Kosovo's Multinational Task Force South. Saygun asserted that, despite Turkey's good will in contributing to European security, the EU considers Turkey to be a third-class country within the ESDP. The EU should provide the same rights to non-EU members as NATO does to non-NATO members, Saygun told the press. The EU and NATO are in global competition. Strengthening one of these organizations can only be achieved by weakening the other, according to Saygun. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ WILSON