TFGG01: SLOVAKIA WILL SUPPORT STRONG NAC STATEMENT

UNCLAS BRATISLAVA 000372 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: NATO PREL RU GG LO SUBJECT: TFGG01: SLOVAKIA WILL SUPPORT STRONG NAC STATEMENT ON RUSSIA-GEORGIA CONFLICT REF: SECSTATE 85678 ¶1. (SBU) Summary. Ambassador delivered reftel points to Acting Foreign Minister Olga Algayerova on August 11. Algayerova said that Slovakia will "of course" support a strong statement from the NAC, and that she will also support a firm united statement from the EU at the August 13 GAERC meeting. (Comment. Algayerova is attending the GAERC; FM Jan Kubis is on holiday. End comment.) ¶2. (SBU) Algayerova thanked the Ambassador for his visit and explanation of the events in the Caucuses, and agreed with him that the priority must be for hostilities to stop. Algayerova also agreed with the Ambassador's suggestion that Russia has responded out of proportion to events. While Algayerova implied she believes Georgia bears some responsibility for starting the conflict, she reiterated Slovak support for all possible international efforts to bring the fighting to a quick end. ¶3. (U) Algayerova drew the Ambassador's attention to Slovakia's official statement on the conflict, which was released on August 8 and reads: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic expresses deep concern over the current military clashes in the South Ossetia region and calls for pursuing of all means to stop the violence in the region. The MFA of the Slovak Republic calls on the parties involved to refrain from any action that would result in further escalation of the conflict and stresses the necessity of restoring the peace talks." ¶4. (U) Algayerova chaired a meeting of the MFA's Crisis Committee on August 9, after which the MFA announced it would send the government aircraft (an AN-26) to Georgia to retrieve Slovak citizens, and reiterated its concern and call for an immediate end to hostilities. ¶5. (U) Two Slovak opposition political parties, the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) and the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKU) released separate statements condemning the violence, calling for an end to hostilities and calling on the Slovak government to affirm its support for the territorial integrity of Georgia. ¶6. (U) The Ambassador stated our public position strongly in a taped interview with Slovak news channel TA3 on August 11. The Ambassador's interview will be aired together with a recorded interview with the Russian Ambassador to Slovakia. OBSITNIK