TURKMENISTAN PRESIDENT PLEASED WITH NEW YORK TRIP;

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ASHGABAT 001053 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR SCA/CEN, EUR/ACE, EEB, DRL, ECA E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/01/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ECON EPET SCUL KPAO KIRF TX SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN PRESIDENT PLEASED WITH NEW YORK TRIP; NEXT STEPS Classified By: CHARGE RICHARD E. HOAGLAND FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: According to Foreign Minister Meredov, President Berdimuhamedov left New York with a strongly positive reaction to his bilateral, business, and UN meetings. Meredov said the president asked him to thank the United States for its high level of professionalism in organization and protocol. The president,s two events at Columbia University further cemented his view of the value of educational exchanges and his desire for a U.S. university presence in Ashgabat. One unplanned meeting Meredov singled out was with a senior executive from Midland Oil. As a result of te trip, Meredov said, we have two deliverables to work on: the president,s proposal to Secretary Rice, to which she had agreed, to establish a bilateral energy working group of legal and technical experts; and the possibility of establishing a U.S.-Turkmenistan business council as a result of the president,s business luncheon sponsored by the Eurasia Group. Action Request: Please see para 14. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (SBU) Charge met with Foreign Minister Rashit Meredov September 28 for a read-out of President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov,s September 23-27 visit to New York for the UN General Assembly. Meredov passed along the president,s thanks to the U.S. side for the excellent organization and protocol of the visit. Meredov said, "We learned a lot from it." The respectful and positive atmosphere, especially in the meeting with Secretary Rice, "will lead to the further development of relations and will advance legal and democratic reform in Turkmenistan." Meredov judged the most important result of the visit is that the president is more than ever convinced of the value of educational exchanges. COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY: THE VALUE OF EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGES ¶3. (SBU) Meredov reported Berdimuhamedov was especially pleased with his program at Columbia University and truly enjoyed the exchange of views. Meredov commented the president was initially taken aback by some of the direct and difficult questions from the academic audience -- for example about the status of the imprisoned former Foreign Minister Shihmuradov and former Ambassador to OSCE Berdiyev -- but allegedly commented later that he wished students in Turkmenistan would be so bold. ¶4. (SBU) Following his speech at Columbia University, Berdimuhamedov participated in a round-table discussion at the university,s Harriman Institute. Meredov said the president was impressed by the detailed knowledge of the American intelligentsia and commented again on the value of "open dialogue." Meredov said Berdimuhamedov,s main message for both Columbia events was "our door is open to the world" and his desire for more educational exchanges. ¶5. (SBU) Further on educational exchanges, Meredov said the president repeated his desire to establish an American University in Turkmenistan. If not that -- and he realizes it may not be possible in the short term -- he would like to have a U.S. university open a branch (filial) or specialized study center in Ashgabat. Meredov commented the first step might be to establish a university linkage for exchange of students and professors. ¶6. (C) COMMENT: We are struck by the difference between the president,s views and the roadblocks thrown up by the Ministry of Education, specifically by the Director of International Relations, Nury Bayramov. We have raised the Bayramov problem twice with Foreign Minister Meredov, noting specifically that Bayramov is blocking the president,s intentions. We are now beginning to work with the EU and ASHGABAT 00001053 002 OF 003 other like-minded ambassadors to consider the possibility of a joint demarche on this problem. END COMMENT. OTHER MEETINGS AND EVENTS ¶7. (SBU) Meredov reported the president thought his luncheon with U.S. business leaders sponsored by the Eurasia Group was a success, as was his side meetings with specific businesses. One concrete result is that the government will give Chevron permission to open its offices in one of the now under-used hotels on Niyazov,s "hotel row" that he had ordered constructed in the 1990s across the ring road from the U.S. Embassy housing compound, a prestigious location. ¶8. (SBU) Meredov said he,d heard that the going rate for the luncheon was $10,000 and $25,000, and wanted to know if that was per person. Charge explained that corporate sponsorship of the event, a common practice in the U.S. business world, was at $10,000 per table, and $25,000 to be seated at the head table, and that the income is used to pay for the event and to fund Eurasia Group activities and programs. (COMMENT: To the Turkmenistanis, this looked like the familiar bribes-for-access common in Central Asia. END COMMENT.) ¶9. (SBU) Berdimuhamedov visited the New York stock exchange where his interlocutor was the Vice President for International Relations whom Meredov said was "your former lady ambassador to Morocco." (NOTE: We believe this is Margaret Tutwiler. END NOTE.) Meredov commented the president was impressed by her knowledge of current conditions in Turkmenistan, and especially enjoyed his tour of the trading floor. ¶10. (SBU) Meredov judged that the president,s many bilateral and official UN meetings had been successful. He singled out Berdimuhamedov,s bilateral meeting the UNICEF Executive Director and former Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman, saying that she had charmed and delighted the president with her warm attitude and encyclopedic knowledge of conditions in Turkmenistan. APOLOGY FOR THE MISSED MEREDOV-BOUCHER MEETING: "BLAME MIDLAND OIL" ¶11. (C) Meredov asked that his sincere apology be passed to Assistant Secretary Richard Boucher for their missed meetings. He explained he had had to cancel the first late-afternoon meeting because the president had called a snap briefing to prepare him further for his attendance at the UN Secretary General,s reception later that evening. Meredov had had to cancel the rescheduled meeting the next morning, much to his dismay, he said, because "a high level on your side (NFI) requested an urgent and unscheduled meeting" with Berdimuhamedov for a senior executive of Midland Oil (Texas),Roger Murphy (name as received). Meredov declined to be drawn out on the content of the meeting. SUMMING UP: BE PATIENT, AND NEXT STEPS ¶12. (C) Summing up, Meredov said, "Be patient, and we will get to where we both want to go." Specifically on religious freedom, he repeated his and the president,s message to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom: "If there are individual religious groups you want registered, tell us. Of course we will investigate first to ensure they are not radical, extremist, or plan to violate the rights of others, but we are serious about working with you on this issue." ASHGABAT 00001053 003 OF 003 ¶13. (C) Meredov said he saw two "next steps" from the visit. Establish the bilateral energy working group of technical and legal experts Berdimuhamedov had proposed to Secretary Rice, and to which she had agreed. He clarified this means U.S. legal experts and Turkmenistani technical experts. And consider establishing a U.S.-Turkmenistan business council, an idea that developed from the Eurasia Group luncheon with U.S. business leaders, and to which Berdimuhamedov had agreed. ¶14. (U) ACTION REQUEST: If possible, please provide a front-channel read-out of President Berdimuhamedov,s meetying with Secretary Rice. ¶15. (SBU) COMMENT: We are struck by the positive and business-like read-out Meredov provided of Berdimuhamedov,s visit to New York. We judge the Turkmenistani side is sincere in its desire to build on this visit to accomplish "next steps." END COMMENT. HOAGLAND