AMBASSADOR'S CALL ON TURKEY'S NEW ENVIRONMENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 002614 SIPDIS SIPDIS ANKARA PASS TO ADANA NEA FOR LAWSON OES FOR SALZBURG E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/23/2017 TAGS: ENIV ENRG SENV TU SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S CALL ON TURKEY'S NEW ENVIRONMENT MINISTER Classified By: Ambassador Ross Wilson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary: On October 9, Ambassador paid a courtesy call on newly appointed Minister of Environment and Forestry Veysel Eroglu. Previously, Eroglu served for four years as the Director General of State Hydraulic Works. He continues to be highly interested in water issues and hydro electricity generation and less knowledgeable, if not less interested, in broader environmental issues. Eroglu is a friend of the U.S. and urged more U.S. private sector investment in Turkey and more bilateral cooperation. With pride, he mentioned that his daughter is on scholarship at Harvard University. End summary. ¶2. (C) Eroglu lamented IMF budgetary restraints that have tightly controlled Turkish Government public works spending and have not allowed the Government to offer sovereign guarantees on several hydroelectric projects under construction. Eroglu discussed the status of nine hydroelectric power plants which had been selected per a U.S.-Turkish agreement for U.S. prime contractors to lead international consortia in the design and engineering of these projects (the so-called "Protocol Projects"). These companies spent significant sums preparing engineering and feasibility studies for the projects. A recently passed Turkish law dictates that these projects must find private, rather than GOT, financing. Responding to a concern raised by the Ambassador that these American companies be able to recoup costs already expended, Eroglu said he was interested in continued American investment in Turkey and if U.S. firms encountered any bureaucratic of other barriers, he stood ready to assist. ¶3. (SBU) Eroglu expressed his Ministry's support for the renewal of the bilateral Science and Technology Agreement. The Ambassador agreed and said he hoped environmental cooperation could be part of this agreement and noted we sent the MFA our draft in March 2007. (Note: We understand that the MFA may be withholding support for a technical reason. Embassy will report more septel. End note.) Eroglu mentioned that during a visit to the U.S. last year in his capacity as the Director General of the State Hydraulic Works (DSI),an exchange of technical staff between DSI and the Army Corps of Engineers was agreed to. Eroglu asked for the Ambassador's help in getting this program stated. The Ambassador agreed and requested details so we could follow up. ¶4. (SBU) The Ambassador invited Ministry of Environment participation in the upcoming Clean Energy Workshop that will be sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources and the American Turkish Council and held in Istanbul, November 15-16. (Note: We understand that Energy Secretary Bodman plans to attend. End note.) ¶5. (SBU) Referring to Ankara's water shortage this summer, Eroglu said the situation was unique and projects were underway to prevent a reoccurrence of such shortages in either Istanbul or Ankara. He said water supplies from the Kizirilmak river would be available by the end of November. He also said the Ministry will be conducting a feasibility study on new water pipelines for Ankara and Istanbul. He added that Istanbul will host the Fifth World Water Forum in ¶2009. ¶6. (C) Comment: When the Ambassador raised the Ministry's participation in the Clean Energy Workshop or the potential for environmental cooperation under the Science and Technology agreement, Eroglu didn't pursue these topics nor did he make any comments about a broader environmental agenda for Turkey. Clearly his experience with water projects is dominating his current agenda. We may need to educate, rather than advocate, in order to gain his support on U.S. environmental initiatives like climate change and renewable energy. End comment. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ WILSON