AZERBAIJAN STICKS TO ITS STORY ON CONFRONTATION

S E C R E T BAKU 000717 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/28/2018 TAGS: PGOV PREL ENRG AJ TX SUBJECT: AZERBAIJAN STICKS TO ITS STORY ON CONFRONTATION WITH TURKMEN BOATS ON THE CASPIAN REF: A. BAKU 383 ¶B. IIR 6 941 0063 08 Classified By: Ambassador Anne E. Derse per 1.4 (b,d) ¶1. (S) Summary: Embassy contacts have provided a consistent account of an incident in early April during which they claim a Turkmen oil exploration rig, accompanied by a Russian research vessel, crossed into Azerbaijani waters from Turkmenistan. The GOAJ's description of the events differs widely from Turkmenistan's and reconciling the two versions is a difficult task. However, the broader significance of the event is clear - questions about boundaries in the Caspian Sea still plague the bilateral relationship between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, disrupting prospects for exploration and exploitation of Caspian hydrocarbons. End Summary. PRESIDENT ALIYEV FIRST DESCRIBES THE INCIDENT -------------- ¶2. (C) The GOAJ has presented a consistent story regarding the confrontation with a Turkmen vessel towing an oil exploration platform, which it claims clearly crossed the median line into Azerbaijani waters in early April. President Aliyev first raised the issue with the Ambassador and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for European and NATO Policy Daniel Fata on April 16. As described in reftel a, President Aliyev noted in confidence that Turkmen and Russian vessels had crossed Azerbaijan's maritime border before being queried by Azerbaijan's State Border Service (SBS) Coast Guard. After consultations between the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, the vessels withdrew to Turkmenistan's section of the Caspian. Aliyev noted that the incident was strange given the planned visit of Turkmen president in May but stressed that Azerbaijan had no interest in making the incident public. FOREIGN MINISTER AND COAST GUARD GIVE THE SAME STORY -------------- -------------- ¶3. (C) In separate and subsequent meetings with the Ambassador, Foreign Minister Mammadyarov confirmed Aliyev's account and provided further details. According to Mammadyarov, the State Border Service (SBS) called him in early April to inform him that a Russian research vessel and a Turkmen vessel separately pulling an exploratory rig had clearly crossed into Azerbaijani waters in the area of the disputed Serdar/Kyapaz field. Mammadyarov called his counterpart in Turkmenistan, who confirmed that exploration was taking place, but stated that this exploration was not in Azerbaijani waters. The Turkmen Foreign Minister provided Mammadyarov with the coordinates for the ships, which Mammadyarov relayed to the SBS. The SBS informed Mammadyarov that the coordinates were in Turkmenistan's waters, but they did not correspond with the location of the ships. Mammadyarov called the Turkmen foreign minister back, provided him the coordinates for the location of the ships provided by the SBS, and asked him to make sure the boats moved back to the coordinates he had given him. The boats then went back into Turkmenistan's waters. When he relayed the story to the Ambassador, Mammadyarov emphasized the presence of the Russian vessel and at one point suggested that Moscow was likely behind the incident as a means to throw off Azerbaijani-Turkmen relations in the lead up to President Berdimuhamedov's visit in May. (Note: This allegation was not repeated in following meetings. End note) ¶4. (C) Mammadyarov agreed with the Turkmen Foreign Minister that they would in the future consult and provide coordinates before conducting any exploration near the median line. In a July 28 follow-up meeting with the Ambassador, Mammadyarov confirmed that since the incident in April the deputy foreign ministers of the two countries have consulted and provided coordinates for vessels in the Caspian. According to Mammadyarov, the two sides are working together constructively on the issue. Moreover, the Foreign Minister said that Azerbaijan is being very "flexible" on the issue, and that he does not expect it to interfere with plans to hold a joint GOAJ-GOTX energy conference in Baku on September 9-10. ¶5. (S) (DAO Comment: President Aliyev and Foreign Minister Mammadyarov's account of the confrontation on the Caspian is consistent with accounts told to the DAO by sources with direct access (ref B). Per ref B, the SBS Coast Guard responded to radar and intelligence that a Turkmen oil exploration platform named TRIDENT 20 was being towed to the western end of the Serdar/Kyapaz field and into Azerbaijani waters, accompanied by a Russian hydrographic research vessel, PROFESSOR VELINKOV. The Coast Guard confronted the ships and communicated that they were in Azerbaijani waters. The senior Coast Guard officer on the scene communicated with his headquarters, and Coast Guard officers have confirmed that the issue was resolved through consultation between the governments at senior levels. The Turkmen and Russian vessels then relocated approximately 2 nautical miles to the southeast of their original position, on the eastern side of the median line and in clear Turkmen waters. DAO contacts emphasize that relations between Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan are improving and that this incident can be explained as a Russian attempt to derail this progress. Without agreement on Caspian delimitation, however, there remains the possibility of future, and perhaps more dangerous, confrontations in the Caspian. End Comment.) COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (C) Regardless of which side is to blame for the incident, the broader significance remains clear - problems regarding Caspian boundaries continue to impact the Azerbaijan-Turkmenistan relationship, may have the potential to disrupt warming ties, and hurt prospects for exploration and exploitation of Caspian resources. Nonetheless, it is reassuring that the foreign ministers were able to discuss the issue and reach agreement on resolution without hyped-up public rhetoric or threats of military action. Moreover, it appears that the deputy foreign ministers now have mechanisms in place for consultations to avoid future incidents and manage any that may take place. Embassy Baku will continue to work with the GOAJ to promote improvements in Azerbaijan-Turkmenistan bilateral relations and renewed efforts to resolve delimitation issues and cooperate on energy development, beginning with the GOAJ-GOTX joint conference on energy cooperation, now slated for September 9-10 in Baku and to include some 38 invitees (septel). DERSE