TURKEY: DEMOCRACY IN VENEZUELA

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 002819 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/23/2017 TAGS: PGOV PHUM VE TU WHA SUBJECT: TURKEY: DEMOCRACY IN VENEZUELA REF: SECSTATE 154674 Classified By: Acting PolCouns Kelly Degnan, reasons 1.4 b, d ¶1. (C) We delivered reftel points on November 21 to MFA Latin America Head of Department Ece Ozturk Cil. Cil assured us that U.S. concerns in Latin America are strongly taken into account in Turkey's Latin America policies, given her department's location in the MFA Americas Directorate and Turkey's otherwise limited political and economic engagement in the region. She noted that while Turkey does have an Embassy in Caracas, relations between the two countries are shallow. No high level visits are planned in the near future. She does not expect Turkey to publicly raise any concern about Venezuelan democracy or its Inter-American Democratic Charter commitments, but conceded that Turkey's aspiring to a UNSC seat next year could prompt the GOT to take greater interest in global democracy and human rights issues. ¶2. (C) Concerning Venezuela as an almost-full MERCOSUR member, Cil noted that MFA is concerned about the MERCOSUR parliament's November 19 decision to formally recognize an Armenian "genocide" and its call on other governments to do the same. Preventing recognition of an Armenian "genocide" in foreign parliaments is an important policy priority for Turkey anywhere in the world, and the GOT is considering the implications of and its response to the MERCOSUR decision. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ WILSON