TURKEY-AFRICA COOPERATION SUMMIT PREPARATIONS ON

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 001364 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/29/2018 TAGS: PREL PGOV XA TU SUBJECT: TURKEY-AFRICA COOPERATION SUMMIT PREPARATIONS ON TRACK REF: ANKARA 1307 Classified By: DCM Doug Silliman, reasons 1.4 (b,d) ¶1. (C) MFA Deputy U/S Cevikoz updated the DCM on preparation for the August 18-20 Turkey-Africa Cooperation Summit in Istanbul (reftel). 17 heads of state or government have so far confirmed participation and the GOT is expecting more. Zimbabwe has not confirmed President Mugabe's participation, while Sudanese President Bashir has confirmed. Bashir, however, accepted before the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor filed the case against him, and Cevikoz thought he might still cancel or delegate another official. (Turkey is neither party nor signatory to the ICC.) Countries not sending leaders could be represented at the FM level. Outlining the program, Cevikoz said political directors will meet on August 18, followed by FMs. Leaders will then meet, for a half day only, on the 19th, beginning with a PM-hosted lunch. President Gul will chair the leaders' session, and then host a dinner. A draft political declaration is already being translated; Turkey met with African Union Commission Chairman Jean Ping in Ankara, July 16-17, to finalize the document. Information on the Africa Summit can be found, in English and Turkish, at http://africa.mfa.gov.tr. ¶2. (C) Building on its experience in Central Asia and Afghanistan, Turkey, said Cevikoz, has the capacity to make significant contributions to African development, namely in the fields of agriculture and irrigation, construction, health care, small and medium sized enterprises, and peace and security. He reminded that the Turkish military, gendarmerie and/or police is contributing to some eight UN peacekeeping missions, including in the Gambia and Sierra Leone, and is already operating a field hospital in Darfur, which Turkey plans to make permanent. The Africa Union, to which Turkey is an observer, has already declared Turkey a "strategic partner." Turkey is aiming to hold an Africa summit every five years, and wants political directors to meet every two years to prepare for summits and review progress; the declaration will contain an annex charting a program for continued senior-level exchanges between Ankara and Addis Ababa. ¶3. (C) Cevikoz said the summit invitation was valid for all African heads of state and government, Bashir and Mugabe included. Cevikoz emphasized there will be no special session at the summit on political issues. Turkey only wishes to demonstrate how it can contribute to resolving many of the continent's most serious problems, which extend beyond conflicts in Darfur and Zimbabwe. In particular, Turkey wishes to highlight the role of the Turkish International Development Agency (TIKA) in Africa. TIKA's Africa budget has grown substantially in recent years and it has opened field offices in Khartoum, Addis Ababa and Dakar. Cevikoz noted his efforts to secure from the government a substantial, five-year Turkish aid pledge for Africa, to be announced at the summit, which he believes will encourage Turkish firms to engage more actively in development projects. Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turk ey WILSON