Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07BERLIN1943
2007-10-24 14:22:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Berlin
Cable title:  

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FRIED'S CONVERSATION WITH

Tags:  PREL GM KS RS 
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BERLIN 001943 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/24/2017
TAGS: PREL GM KS RS
SUBJECT: ASSISTANT SECRETARY FRIED'S CONVERSATION WITH
NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER HEUSGEN


Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission John M. Koenig for reasons 1.4 (
b) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BERLIN 001943

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/24/2017
TAGS: PREL GM KS RS
SUBJECT: ASSISTANT SECRETARY FRIED'S CONVERSATION WITH
NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER HEUSGEN


Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission John M. Koenig for reasons 1.4 (
b) and (d).


1. (C) EUR Assistant Secretary Dan Fried met October 23 with
German National Security Adviser Christoph Heusgen. They
discussed Russia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Georgia, Turkey, and the
Middle East.

Russia/2 2/MD/CFE:
--------------


2. (C) Heusgen noted that the Chancellor saw Russian
President Putin October 14-15, a few days after the "2 2"
meeting Secretaries Rice and Gates held in Moscow. Heusgen
said the U.S. proposals must have surprised the Russians.
Putin reportedly expressed to Merkel some skepticism about
the sincerity of the U.S. offer, suggesting it was "just
tactics" designed to keep the Europeans on the U.S. side, but
he couldn't dismiss them out of hand. Heusgen pointed out
that in the discussion, Presidential Adviser Prikhodko had
chimed in with a more positive view of the U.S. proposals;
Heusgen said that was the first time he had seen that happen.



3. (C) Heusgen said the U.S. had done a good job in recent
months to turn the Missile Defense (MD) issue around. A/S
Fried noted the good atmosphere of his meeting at NATO last
week. Heusgen later said Putin was coming to the realization
he could not split the EU and may be looking for a better
approach.

Kosovo:
--------------


4. (C) Heusgen raised Kosovo and said we all had to move
carefully. EU and U.S. Troika representatives Ischinger and
Wisner had caught the Russians off-guard. Even Putin had
told Merkel that Ischinger's ideas were serious. They had
talked about different precedents, Serbia-Montenegro, the CIS
(Heusgen said the CIS was a good model). Merkel reportedly
told Putin that he should push Kostunica. Fried expressed
our support for Ischinger but said that the outcome of the
Troika process still was likely to be failure. Heusgen
agreed; but if it was a 5 percent chance of success before,
now it was perhaps 20 percent, he said.


5. (C) Heusgen expressed optimism about getting EU approval
for the follow-on mission in Kosovo. He said the EU would
need an invitation from the UNSYG to take it over, with UNSCR

1244 as the basis. The Greeks and Slovaks would go along
with that, Heusgen thought. Recognition of independence was
a different question: Cyprus, Romania, Slovakia, and Greece
were unlikely to recognize. Fried said it would be good if
there were 21 EU members that recognized -- Heusgen thought
that was achievable, even Spain.


6. (C) Fried and Heusgen agreed that it was advisable not to
talk publicly about independence now. Heusgen said the U.S.
needed to use its influence with the Kosovars so they would
engage; they needed to understand that their interests were
better served by an agreement. Fried said that was o.k. as
long as it was understood by all that independence would be
the result; if we waffled, there would be problems. He
outlined contacts U/S Burns and he had had with the Kosovars
on the margins of UNGA, in which the U.S. had been clear.

Macedonia:
--------------


7. (C) Heusgen raised Macedonia. Merkel had met Karamanlis
recently -- the Greeks were furious about Macedonia,
especially after an incident in which the UNGA President had
announced them as "Macedonia" and not FYROM. There was
extreme sensitivity in Greece; some in Skopje had the view
that the U.S. would support them no matter what. Fried
related U.S. contacts with Greek FM Bakoyannis in New York
and Fried's subsequent engagement at the highest levels in
Skopje. Heusgen said the Greeks claimed they would accept a
"prefix" or modifier in front of "Macedonia" but Macedonian
PM Gruevskiy rejected this. Fried said UN negotiator Nimetz
remained active.

Georgia:
--------------

BERLIN 00001943 002 OF 002




8. (C) Heusgen raised Georgia, and Fried outlined U.S.
support for a Georgia Membership Action Plan (MAP) at NATO.
We recognized Germany's view. Fried underscored that it was
important, in light of the work following the 2 2, to
remember Georgia's key importance on CFE. The U.S. was
working on this intensively. It was important that Georgia
not feel isolated. Fried welcomed MFA PolDir Stanzel's
recent comment to the USG that MAP for Georgia was not a
question of "whether" but "when," and thought Stanzel's
suggestion of a Georgian non-first-use of force declaration
was significant, since it was the first time a German
official was thinking of ways forward that included MAP.


9. (C) Heusgen said Berlin was dismayed by Saakashvili's
handling of the Okruashvili accusation/arrest/confession. It
looked "Stalinist." Germany agreed that Russia could not
have a veto on NATO membership, but the Chancellor remained
unconvinced on Georgia, and did not want to "import" unsolved
crises into NATO. But she was willing to keep talking to the
Georgians and had invited Saakashvili to Berlin (December 11)
for a visit. It would be a second chance for Saakashvili to
make a first impression, Heusgen quipped.


10. (C) Heusgen said Merkel was not as negative as Sarkozy
on Georgia. Heusgen liked Levitte's idea of an offer to
Georgia that contained the substance of MAP but without a
"MAP" label. Fried said it was important to underscore the
sense that Georgia belonged to our family and that its own
evolution would determine how far and fast the relationship
would go. It would be a mistake to convey somehow that
Georgia was outside the transatlantic family and area of
interest. Heusgen agreed with that.

Turkey:
--------------


11. (C) Fried noted that dealing with the Turks on NATO-EU
would still be complicated. Heusgen pointed to the
Merkel-Erdogan discussion in New York, in which Erdogan
reportedly had agreed to be flexible on EU-NATO in Kosovo.
Heusgen asked for U.S. views on Turkey in light of the AGR
and the problems in northern Iraq. Fried said we were still
thinking; there might be ways to work around the problem.

Middle East/Annapolis:
--------------


12. (C) Heusgen said he was traveling to Saudi Arabia
October 24, and the Saudi King would visit Germany November 7
-- Germany wanted to be helpful on the Middle East meeting in
Annapolis, especially by helping get the Saudis to attend.
Heusgen noted his recent discussion with A/S Welch in
Jerusalem. The Palestinians (including Fayyad and Erekat)
were telling him that this was the most committed they had
seen the U.S. to progress in the MEPP. The U.S. was doing a
good job, Heusgen said, and Merkel wanted to help.
TIMKEN JR