Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08SARAJEVO1707
2008-11-05 14:54:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Sarajevo
Cable title:
BOSNIA: DODIK REJECTS US-EU PROPOSAL FOR TRANSCO
how-toVZCZCXRO3753 RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG DE RUEHVJ #1707/01 3101454 ZNR UUUUU ZZH R 051454Z NOV 08 FM AMEMBASSY SARAJEVO TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9226 INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC RUEKJCS/JCS WASHINGTON DC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SARAJEVO 001707
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
STATE FOR EUR/FO JONES, EUR/ACE HYLAND, FOOKS, STINCHCOMB
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EINV ENRG PINR PREF PREL BK
SUBJECT: BOSNIA: DODIK REJECTS US-EU PROPOSAL FOR TRANSCO
NEGOTIATIONS
REF: SARAJEVO 1623
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SARAJEVO 001707
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
STATE FOR EUR/FO JONES, EUR/ACE HYLAND, FOOKS, STINCHCOMB
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EINV ENRG PINR PREF PREL BK
SUBJECT: BOSNIA: DODIK REJECTS US-EU PROPOSAL FOR TRANSCO
NEGOTIATIONS
REF: SARAJEVO 1623
1. (SBU) Post received a response from Prime Minister of the
Republika Srpka on Friday, October 31 that answered the
Ambassador English and EU Ambassador Kourkoulas, joint
letter proposing reform of Electroprenos (TRANSCO),the
state-run electricity transmission company (reftel). The
English translation of the letter is as follows:
October 31, 2008
Dear Sirs:
With reference to your letter dated October 24, 2008,
regarding problems in Elektroprenos BiH and proposals for
resolving them, I wish to present to you my position on the
issue.
It is a well known fact that the situation in Elektroprenos
BiH is difficult, with a number of problems in the
functioning and in the management, which Republika Srpska, as
a shareholder, has been stressing for a while now via its
representative in the shareholders assembly and has proposed
ways for overcoming the stalemate. Our proposal regarding
the removal of the said blockage in the functioning
(management and decision-making, balanced planning of the
development of the transmission network, company,s
investments, structure and number of employees) is absolutely
substantiated, just and based on the existing legal
regulations in BiH.
This is especially the case since this is a company that is a
specific economic entity (established under special law, the
founder are the two entities, there is no profit sharing for
10 years, and other),and when it comes to its functioning,
apart from the existing regulations that need to be amended
and harmonized, we need to apply the usual standards and
principles in managing companies that are accepted worldwide.
Any other way of overcoming the problems in the company would
represent an act of violence over the principle of legality.
We appreciate your intentions as representatives of the
international community to help in resolving this problem,
but in our opinion, your proposal breaches the framework of
local legislation. On the other hand, the said proposal will
not contribute to confidence building between the parties,
and therefore we are not in a position to accept it.
However, the RS Government remains open for all activities in
accordance with law that will normalize and improve the work
of the company, and thus provide a full realization of
responsibilities that derive from the Treaty on the
Establishment of the Energy Community and other international
agreements.
Having this in mind and in accordance with legal regulations
and general documents of the company, I have convened an
extraordinary session of the shareholders assembly for
December 2, 2008, at the company,s headquarters, which will
focus on the current problems in the functioning of the
company.
I sincerely hope and expect that the extraordinary session of
the shareholders assembly will be held, at which time we will
make decisions in the interest of both shareholders and in
the interest of the company as a whole.
With Respect, Dodik
NEXT STEPS AND COMMENT
--------------
2. (SBU) Dodik has now made his intentions known ) he is not
willing to negotiate in good faith as he agreed to do with
Ambassador on October 16 (reftel). We intend to send a
letter back to Dodik, expressing our disappointment with his
intentions to move forward with his February proposal at the
December 2 shareholders session and making clear that his
position is not consistent with the September 12 Peace
Implementation Council (PIC) statement on TRANSCO. The clear
thrust of his proposal is to re-divide TRANSCO into three,
ethnically-based &sub-TRANSCOs8, which amounts to a
de-facto dissolution of the company and a roll-back of the
reform that was a precondition to the SAA. We will brief the
PIC Ambassadors this week on the letter, and encourage
SARAJEVO 00001707 002 OF 002
TRANSCO to be a leading agenda item at the PIC meeting in
Brussels on November 19. We will continue to push for
European support to continue pressure on Dodik to prevent him
from moving forward with his plans to essentially destroy
TRANSCO.
ENGLISH
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
STATE FOR EUR/FO JONES, EUR/ACE HYLAND, FOOKS, STINCHCOMB
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EINV ENRG PINR PREF PREL BK
SUBJECT: BOSNIA: DODIK REJECTS US-EU PROPOSAL FOR TRANSCO
NEGOTIATIONS
REF: SARAJEVO 1623
1. (SBU) Post received a response from Prime Minister of the
Republika Srpka on Friday, October 31 that answered the
Ambassador English and EU Ambassador Kourkoulas, joint
letter proposing reform of Electroprenos (TRANSCO),the
state-run electricity transmission company (reftel). The
English translation of the letter is as follows:
October 31, 2008
Dear Sirs:
With reference to your letter dated October 24, 2008,
regarding problems in Elektroprenos BiH and proposals for
resolving them, I wish to present to you my position on the
issue.
It is a well known fact that the situation in Elektroprenos
BiH is difficult, with a number of problems in the
functioning and in the management, which Republika Srpska, as
a shareholder, has been stressing for a while now via its
representative in the shareholders assembly and has proposed
ways for overcoming the stalemate. Our proposal regarding
the removal of the said blockage in the functioning
(management and decision-making, balanced planning of the
development of the transmission network, company,s
investments, structure and number of employees) is absolutely
substantiated, just and based on the existing legal
regulations in BiH.
This is especially the case since this is a company that is a
specific economic entity (established under special law, the
founder are the two entities, there is no profit sharing for
10 years, and other),and when it comes to its functioning,
apart from the existing regulations that need to be amended
and harmonized, we need to apply the usual standards and
principles in managing companies that are accepted worldwide.
Any other way of overcoming the problems in the company would
represent an act of violence over the principle of legality.
We appreciate your intentions as representatives of the
international community to help in resolving this problem,
but in our opinion, your proposal breaches the framework of
local legislation. On the other hand, the said proposal will
not contribute to confidence building between the parties,
and therefore we are not in a position to accept it.
However, the RS Government remains open for all activities in
accordance with law that will normalize and improve the work
of the company, and thus provide a full realization of
responsibilities that derive from the Treaty on the
Establishment of the Energy Community and other international
agreements.
Having this in mind and in accordance with legal regulations
and general documents of the company, I have convened an
extraordinary session of the shareholders assembly for
December 2, 2008, at the company,s headquarters, which will
focus on the current problems in the functioning of the
company.
I sincerely hope and expect that the extraordinary session of
the shareholders assembly will be held, at which time we will
make decisions in the interest of both shareholders and in
the interest of the company as a whole.
With Respect, Dodik
NEXT STEPS AND COMMENT
--------------
2. (SBU) Dodik has now made his intentions known ) he is not
willing to negotiate in good faith as he agreed to do with
Ambassador on October 16 (reftel). We intend to send a
letter back to Dodik, expressing our disappointment with his
intentions to move forward with his February proposal at the
December 2 shareholders session and making clear that his
position is not consistent with the September 12 Peace
Implementation Council (PIC) statement on TRANSCO. The clear
thrust of his proposal is to re-divide TRANSCO into three,
ethnically-based &sub-TRANSCOs8, which amounts to a
de-facto dissolution of the company and a roll-back of the
reform that was a precondition to the SAA. We will brief the
PIC Ambassadors this week on the letter, and encourage
SARAJEVO 00001707 002 OF 002
TRANSCO to be a leading agenda item at the PIC meeting in
Brussels on November 19. We will continue to push for
European support to continue pressure on Dodik to prevent him
from moving forward with his plans to essentially destroy
TRANSCO.
ENGLISH