UKRAINE: KOSOVO - GOVERNMENT HOLDS ITS GROUND,

C O N F I D E N T I A L KYIV 000612 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT ALSO FOR EUR/UMB, EUR/SCE AND EUR/RPM E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/24/2018 TAGS: PREL MARR KDEM NATO UNMIK KV UP SUBJECT: UKRAINE: KOSOVO - GOVERNMENT HOLDS ITS GROUND, OPPOSITION SEEKS ADVANTAGE REF: KYIV 600 Classified By: Ambassador for reasons 1.4 (b,d). ¶1. (C) Summary: At a March 21 meeting, the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) determined that Ukraine should not change the nature of its participation in Kosovo peacekeeping activities in the wake of a March 17 incident in Mitrovica, Kosovo, during which a Ukrainian policeman was killed. Earlier in the day, the opposition Party of Regions attempted to make political hay from the controversy by submitting a bill calling for the immediate withdrawal of Ukrainian peacekeepers from Kosovo. Parliamentary Speaker Yatsenyuk adjourned the session after promising to present the position of Parliamentary factions to the NSDC meeting. (Parliament will reconvene April 1.) In a March 20 meeting with CODEL Price, Foreign Minister Ohryzko argued that Ukraine's best course should be to remain deliberately vague regarding whether or not to recognize Kosovo's independence. End summary. The Mitrovica Incident -------------- ¶2. (U) After a March 21 NSDC meeting, Foreign Minister Volodymyr Ohryzko reasserted the Ukrainian government's intention not to change the nature of its involvement in Kosovo peacekeeping activities (reftel) but also sought to tamp down the political controversy following an opposition Party of Regions resolution in parliament demanding the immediate withdrawal of Ukrainian peacekeepers from Kosovo. During a press conference, he said that "a withdrawal of the peacekeeping contingent from Kosovo is not under consideration." At the same time, he noted that he respected parliamentarians' right to debate the issue of Ukraine's involvement in Kosovo and said Ukraine would seek higher salaries for its servicemen participating in KFOR to reach parity with other states. Ohryzko said Ukraine was awaiting the results of a UN inquiry and might ask to participate in a follow-up review of UN's handling of the March 17 incident in Mitrovica, Kosovo, in which a Ukrainian UNMIK peacekeeper died and 20 others were wounded (two seriously). ¶3. (U) NSDC Secretary Raisa Bohatyryova also issued a statement after the NSDC meeting, saying the NSDC had decided to continue honoring Ukraine's UN commitments. The statement said, "Peacekeeping and consolidation of efforts with the European Union, the United States, Russia and other members of the United Nations to maintain peace on the sites of current conflicts form the universal and sovereign basis for the policy of Ukraine, which is a cofounder of the United Nations." Also on March 21, commander of the Interior Ministry's special peacekeeping unit in Kosovo Bohdan Salyuk, commander of the special dog unit in Kosovo Svitlana Abdrazakova, and commander of the Ukrainian contingent of the UN civil police in Kosovo Viktor Drobotenko signed a letter urging that decisions regarding deployment of peacekeeping units not be taken "under the influence of emotions, much less political populism." ¶4. (U) Earlier on March 21, Parliamentary Speaker Arseniy Yatsenyuk forestalled a possible Party of Regions disruption of the parliamentary (Verkhovna Rada) session by proposing that he would present the Rada political factions' positions at the NSDC session and adjourned the session until March 25, after Regions deputies grudgingly agreed to this approach and allowed other political factions to speak. Party of Regions leader Viktor Yanukovych had announced live on television that his party had registered a resolution calling for the withdrawal of Ukrainian peacekeepers from Kosovo. He claimed the Ukrainian police contingent had been used as a shield and continued that the conflict in Kosovo "was not ours." He said Ukraine would no longer "dance to the tune of those global political forces which fan military conflicts across the globe." (Note: The government coalition should be able to defeat the resolution, should it come to a vote.) European Integration Committee Chairman, and former Foreign Minister, Borys Tarasyuk and Rada Speaker Yatsenyuk refuted Regions' claim that NATO was responsible for the operation conducted by UN policemen. Kosovo Independence -------------- ¶5. (U) During the press conference after the NSDC meeting, FM Ohryzko also responded to questions regarding Ukraine's stance on Kosovo independence. He said Ukraine was continuing "very serious" consultations with many countries and international organizations to decide whether to recognize Kosovo's independence. Ohryzko was more candid, however, during a March 20 meeting with CODEL Price. Representative David Price mentioned that the status of Kosovo had been a topic during an earlier meeting with chairmen of Rada committees in the national security sphere. He had been surprised by a reluctance to recognize Kosovo independence that was expressed with surprising unanimity across political party lines. ¶6. (C) Ohryzko responded that Kosovo's status was an important issue, regarding which Ukraine had to be cautious due to a combination of external and internal factors. Internationally, Ukraine exercised a leading position in the regional GUAM grouping. Of the four member states (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, and Moldova),only Ukraine was free of a territorial issue resembling Kosovo. Moldova had Transnistria, Georgia had South Ossetia, and Azerbaijan had Nagorno-Karabakh. Since the other three GUAM members had clearly stated that they would not recognize Kosovo's independence, Ukraine was put in an awkward position. Domestically, if it recognized Kosovo's independence, Ukraine's political leadership would be the target of strong criticism from some political elements; if it did not, however, other elements would be equally critical. Ohryzko concluded that the best approach for the moment would be for Ukraine not to take a clear position. ¶7. (C) Ohryzko said the Foreign Ministry had reviewed the historical record after Ukraine's declaration of independence. Only 15-16 countries had recognized Ukraine in the first month and broad recognition of Ukraine's status had taken three to four months, even though there had been no legal issues regarding Ukraine's right to declare independence under the Soviet constitution. Ohryzko urged the CODEL to be patient, asserting that Ukraine was heading in the right direction but that now was not the right time to clearly articulate a position. ¶8. (C) Price responded that, while he understood Ukraine's difficulties, he wanted to emphasize that Kosovo's situation was unique and had no relation to the numerous conflicts regarding regional status that existed elsewhere. Ohryzko noted that Russia was using the Kosovo precedent as an excuse to step up its activity in Abkhazia, which Russia recognized de facto, if not de jure. ¶9. (U) Visit Embassy Kyiv's classified website: www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/kiev. Taylor