TURKEY: KOSOVO STATUS PROCESS TIMELINE

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 000089 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/18/2017 TAGS: PREL UN UNMIK PGOV YI EU OPDC SUBJECT: TURKEY: KOSOVO STATUS PROCESS TIMELINE REF: A. STATE 5652 ¶B. 06 ANKARA 6470 ¶C. 06 ANKARA 5475 Classified By: Political Counselor Janice Weiner for reasons 1.4(b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Turkey continues to agree with the U.S. view of Kosovo's final status process and supports UN Special Envoy Ahtisaari's timeline for moving forward toward resolution. Ambassador discussed the issue with MFA Undersecretary (D-equivalent) Ertugrul Apakan January 17, emphasizing (per ref a) our continued resolve to see the process through to the end as quickly as possible. Ambassador also thanked Apakan for Turkey's longstanding support for NATO's KFOR mission and underscored the need for continued unwavering support for the mission following resolution of status. ¶2. (C) Apakan reiterated Turkish support for Ahtisaari's plan to present the parties his final status proposal following elections in Serbia as well as for Kosovo's eventual independence, as previously reported (refs b and c). Apakan took note of our expectation that KFOR should remain a robust force for some time since this will have implications for Turkish peacekeeping capabilities that are currently stretched in various locations including Afghanistan, Lebanon, Bosnia, and Macedonia. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/ankara/ WILSON