ANOTHER BROADSIDE FROM THE PRESIDENT'S OFFICE ON

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 YEREVAN 001394

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EUR/CARC, EUR/ACE, DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2017
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM KPAO KDEM AM
SUBJECT: ANOTHER BROADSIDE FROM THE PRESIDENT'S OFFICE ON
RADIO LIBERTY

REF: YEREVAN 1353

YEREVAN 00001394 001.2 OF 003


Classified By: CDA JOSEPH PENNINGTON FOR REASONS 1.4(B,D)

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SUMMARY
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1. (C) Presidential Chief of Staff Armen Gevorkian called in
CDA November 27 to renew Kocharian's visceral objections to
Radio Liberty (RL) programming which, according to Gevorgian,
has been "turned into a mouthpiece for (former President)
Levon Ter-Petrossian (LTP) by the director of the RL Armenian
Service. Gevorkian explicitly threatened to remove Radio
Liberty from the airwaves in Armenia, saying "we expect the
US embassy and the US Government to take steps to change this
situation. If that does not happen soon, we will take our
own measures." CDA reminded Gevorkian of the President's
"personal commitment" to former Charge Perina and DAS Bryza
that the GOAM would not interfere with RL broadcasts once
they were moved to private radio. He noted that a shutdown
of RL would be a grave mistake for Armenia and a serious
setback in US-Armenian relations. Post believes we should
act now to discourage the GOAM from giving in to its worst
instincts on the RL issue (see suggested actions in paras 9
and 10). End Summary.

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DEJA VU AT THE PRESIDENCY
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2. (C) Armen Gevorkian, President Kocharian's Chief of Staff,
called in CDA November 27 to reiterate Kocharian's
allegations that Radio Liberty's Armenia Service has become
"nothing more than a campaign tool of (former President)
Levon Ter-Petrossian." Gevorkian expressed his "surprise and
disappointment" that there had been no change in the tenor of
RL broadcasts since he first raised the issue with us on
November 14. "Our leadership expects action from your side,"
he said. When the CDA recalled President Kocharian's
repeated "personal guarantees" to former Charge Perina and
DAS Bryza back in August that the GOAM would not interfere
with RL once it moved to private radio, Gevorkian claimed
that "the commitments went both ways," implying that the USG
had undertaken to ensure a "more objective" editorial policy
by RL. CDA explained that neither the embassy nor the State
Department controls Radio Liberty programming, and pointed
out that we had arranged for RL representatives to meet with
the GOAM over the summer to discuss the Government's
objections to RL programming and editorial content.


3. (C) Gevorkian repeated his contention that "the problem"
at RL is being caused by Harry Tamrazian, Director of the
Armenian Service, whose longstanding ties to Ter-Petrossian,
according to Gevorkian, are well known. He claimed to have
"friends in Radio Liberty" who have expressed their own
unhappiness with the station's editorial line and feel
intimidated from producing more "objective" coverage.
Gevorkian decried RL's "obsessive focus on Ter-Petrossian,"
when, he claimed, the former President is running a distant
fourth or fifth place in most opinion polls. Gevorkian
alleged that, on a weekly RL program that affords ordinary
Armenians the chance to express their views, "8 in 10 say
they support Ter-Petrossian." "How is this possible," he
asked, "when he has just 2 percent support in the country?"

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LTP SHUT DOWN RL -- NOW HE MAY HAVE TO REOPEN IT
-------------- ---


4. (C) Gevorkian renewed his threat, this time more directly,
to remove Radio Liberty from Armenia's airwaves. Recalling
that it had been LTP who had closed down Radio Liberty during
his tenure as President, Gevorkian blustered that "maybe he
will have to re-open it this time" if he were to win the
presidency in February. CDA cautioned that, whatever
objections Kocharian or others in the GOAM may have to RL
broadcasts, shutting the station down would have a disastrous
impact on Armenia's image in Washington and other western
capitals, and would be a huge black mark on the upcoming
election process. Gevorkian responded that Armenia "is fully
committed to a process that meets international standards,"
but noted that there are "mechanisms that can be used" to
deal with RL.


5. (C) When CDA raised our concerns about the lack of

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opposition voices on other broadcast media in Armenia,
Gevorkian pushed back. "There have been 86 opposition
members and their supporters on Armenian TV this month
alone," he said, "and not a day goes by without the
opposition being heard on television." (Comment: A report
released last week by a local media watchdog tells a
different story. The report noted a dramatic increase in
negative stories about LTP since he announced his candidacy,
and a strong positive bias for PM Sargsian. Moreover, we
have observed a GOAM strategy to spotlight and even bolster
(politically impotent) non-LTP opposition vioces in order to
keep the opposition divided and to misdirect outside
observers. End Comment.) He alleged that LTP and his
surrogates have been invited to appear on political talk
shows by four Armenian TV stations, but have declined each
time. "They prefer to go on Radio Liberty," he claimed,
"because Radio Liberty will do what they tell them."
Gevorkian said that while he and President Kocharian
understand that RL doesn't necessarily reflect the views of
the US Government, "ordinary Armenians believe it does."
Consequently, the argument went, those who listen to RL
believe the US supports LTP.

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WE EXPECT YOU TO CHANGE THIS SITUATION
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6. (C) Gevorkian closed by saying Kocharian "doesn't want to
have to write a letter to the US Congress or to the head of
Radio Liberty" to effect a change in RL programming. "We
expect the US Embassy and the US Government to change this
situation." CDA replied that we would (again) pass along the
President's concerns to RFE/RL, but were not in a position to
influence the content of RL programs. He again urged that
the GOAM consider carefully the potential repercussions
before making any moves against Radio Liberty.

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RFE/RL COMING TO TOWN
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7. (SBU) Post understands that RFE/RL will soon send one of
its managers to Yerevan to look into the situation on the
ground. Post encourages the visiting RFE/RL official to meet
with emboffs, relevant GOAM officials, and independent media
outlets in Yerevan to obtain a broad spectrum of views about
RL Armenia Service programming. Meeting Gevorkian personally
would be a welcome demonstration of good faith that RFE/RL is
willing to hear him out about the president's objections, as
well as a chance to rebut the allegations.

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THE NEED FOR ACTION
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8 (C) COMMENT: Some of Gevorkian's arguments may not be
entirely without merit, and we have heard reports of
disagreement within the RL Armenia Service about the
Service's editorials. Since Gevorkian's first intervention
(reftel),we have gone back through a number of recorded RL
programs. From the still-limited sample our staff has
reviewed, we too are somewhat surprised by the extent of what
might be considered pro-LTP coverage. While we therefore
have some concerns about RL Armenia Service's editorial
judgment, we are nonetheless fully convinced of the need to
fight on Radio Liberty's behalf against government efforts to
suppress it. Unlike the more oblique attack the GOAM
directed against RL this past summer -- shifting the
broadcasts from public to private radio channels -- this
latest challenge is a frontal attack that should be answered
firmly and directly. This threat against RL may also be a
way for the GOAM to test US resolve in the continued absence
of a permanent US ambassador at post. Our defense should be
robust. At the same time, we want to avoid creating a GOAM
perception that the US has become a political partisan in
direct opposition to the ruling party. Therefore, we ask
RFE/RL to ensure that its Armenia Service is setting an
example of objectivity for its Armenian listeners.


9. (C) Action Proposal: Post proposes the folowing steps:

-- CDA has already requested a meeting with PM Sargsian to
discuss this issue (along with several other
democracy-related concerns) and lay down a clear marker that
shutting down Radio Liberty is unacceptable to the US,
regardless of the GOAM's complaints about the content of RL

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programs.

-- Post requests that the Department consider a letter from
the Secretary or another Department principal to President
Kocharian reaffirming strong US support for Radio Liberty
(suggested draft text in para 10).

-- Post already has plans to allocate USD 85,000 of FSA
funding to advertise Radio Liberty's shift from public radio
to the private radio network. CDA intends to advise the PM
about this program, noting that it was conceived as a
response to the switch to the private network last summer and
is not a response to the government's current concerns. Our
inclination is to go ahead with the advertising campaign
despite the latest dust-up, but we may need to recalibrate
depending on the PM's response. In any case, we do not plan
to back off on the advertising absent firm assurances from
the PM that RL programs will continue without interference.

-- An RFE/RL representative should meet with chief of staff
Armen Gevorkian here in Yerevan as a token of serious and
willingness to listen to criticism, as well as to present
counter-arguments.


10. (C) SUGGESTED TEXT OF LATTER FROM SECRETARY RICE TO
PRESIDENT KOCHARIAN:

Dear Mr. President,

Our Charge d'Affaires in Yerevan, Joseph Pennington, has
conveyed to me concerns raised by your administration about
the editorial policies and content of Radio Liberty's
Armenian language programming in Armenia, and I felt it
important to respond. As you know, Radio Free Europe/Radio
Liberty was established by the United States Congress to
provide balanced and objective news information and editorial
comment, completely independent of the US Government. The
Administration does not have influence over the editorial
practices of RFE/RL or its subsidiaries. These news agencies
operate independently under their charter, with separate
funding from Congress. I want to be very clear that RFE/RL
does not speak for the United States Government. Its
editorial analysis and news judgment are entirely its own.

I also want to assure you that RFE/RL enjoys high respect and
political support in Washington -- both in the Administration
and in Congess. We stand strongly behind RFE/RL's mission
and mandate to provide independent news and opinion
programming in the countries it has served in with such
distinction for many years. I note that the OSCE Election
Observation Mission's final report on Armenia's May 2007
parliamentary election cited RFE/RL as virtually the only
media outlet on Armenia's airwaves to "broadcast critical
viewpoints expressed by different contestants and voters."
In that context, I would note that Armenia fails the "Voice
and Accountability" indicator, an independent measure of
media freedom, on its 2008 MCC scorecard.

I also am mindful of your personal guarantee, conveyed to the
US this past summer by our then Charge d'Affaires, Rudolf
Perina, and by Deputy Assistant Secretary Matthew Bryza, that
Radio Liberty would face no obstacles to its broadcasts once
it was transferred from Armenian public radio to a private
sector broadcaster. I understand that you personally vouched
for the credibility and performance of the private
broadcaster in airing an undiminished schedule of Radio
Liberty programming in Armenia.

In light of all these factors, I would be greatly troubled if
Radio Liberty were to lose its ability to broadcast freely in
Armenia, or if those broadcasts were otherwise put in
jeopardy. I look forward to an early resolution of this
important issue.

(complimentary close)
PENNINGTON