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
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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
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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
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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