GUAM BATUMI SUMMIT STRESSES TRADE, TRANSPORTATION

C O N F I D E N T I A L STATE 083009 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/01/2018 TAGS: PREL OVIP EAID ECON KCRM AJ GG MD UP SUBJECT: GUAM BATUMI SUMMIT STRESSES TRADE, TRANSPORTATION IN "INTEGRATING EUROPE,S EAST" Classified By: E.O. 12958 ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: On July 1, the Black Sea port of Batumi played host to the 2008 Summit of the Organization for Democracy and Economic Development, familiarly known as GUAM for its members Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova. Georgia assumed the year-long GUAM presidency from Azerbaijan under the theme &Integrating Europe,s East.8 Although the frozen conflicts were discussed at the plenary, much more time was spent talking about trade, transportation and energy and specifically about connecting Black Sea countries to Caspian Sea countries and resources. The International Road Transport Union announced a new cooperative venture with GUAM covering motor and ferry transport. President Adamkus of Lithuania urged GUAM to continue internal reforms, maintain solidarity and keep faith with democratic values. The Summit concluded with a picture-perfect press availability for the five presidents and the Secretary-General on the beach near the Summit venue, the sun setting on the Black Sea behind them. A list of countries and international organizations attending the Summit is in paragraph 13. The report of the GUAM-U.S. meeting and the meeting of the U.S. delegation with the GUAM Secretary-General will be reported septel. END SUMMARY. -------------- PLENARY ) MEMBER STATES SPEAK -------------- ¶2. (U) President Saakashvili of Georgia and President Aliyev of Azerbaijan both began their presentations with detailed discussion of the frozen conflicts. President Saakashvili also explicitly cited the Summit site of Batumi as an example of how Georgia has moved from an era of separatist war to prosperity. However, both moved fairly quickly onto issues of trade, transportation and energy. President Aliyev noted how, on his arrival in Batumi, he and President Saakashvili had walked together to a private home and ceremonially turned on the gas, vivid proof of how Azerbaijan is supporting Georgia with natural gas supplies. He also mentioned the Baku-Akhalkalaki-Kars railroad project as an example of continuing regional integration. President Saakashvili echoed this, and stressed the importance of customs and tax harmonization among member states. He also put forward a proposal for a summer youth camp program for GUAM countries, joking that &the word camp, is not always a nice word in this region.8 ¶3. (U) In his statement, President Yushchenko of Ukraine praised GUAM,s development, noting the establishment of the Secretariat in 2007 and the creation of the nine GUAM working groups (law-enforcement, emergencies, economics/trade, energy, tourism, information technology, culture/science/technology, transport and pol-mil issues) with their individual action plans. He said that in the past year, Ukraine,s trade with Georgia had doubled, as had its trade with Azerbaijan (about USD 1 billion each),because of the streamlining of customs and transportation procedures brought about through GUAM. President Yushchenko said that he felt issues surrounding the Odessa-Brody-Gdansk pipeline, and its potential use in transporting Caspian oil, had been resolved. A joint transportation policy is important for the GUAM states, he added. Georgian ports like Batumi and Poti could be harnessed to connect GUAM to Central Asia as well. Yushchenko concluded by urging continued work to resolve frozen conflicts. ¶4. (U) Moldova, represented by Interior Minister Mejinschi, was the last to speak among the member states. The Minister spoke briefly, saying that GUAM,s expert-level conferences produced good results and that GUAM,s priority should be European integration and the adoption of European standards. -------------- LITHUANIA,S ADAMKUS ) THE CONSCIENCE OF GUAM? -------------- ¶5. (U) Perhaps the most extensive and thoughtful remarks came from President Adamkus of Lithuania, who enjoys a deep respect and deference at GUAM events. President Adamkus said that GUAM was part of building a Europe &whole and free,8 and that the organization can be a &ray of hope8 for the spread of democratic ideals. He spoke of GUAM,s cooperation with the EU Border Assistance Mission (EUBAM) and of the importance of Azerbaijani gas. What is key, he said firmly, is that member states not undermine the solidarity of the group by focusing only on their individual interests. GUAM,s work will take time, said Adamkus, and members should not repudiate the organization just because progress seems slow. ¶6. (U) President Adamkus advised GUAM to focus on trade, education and cultural programs, even though these are lower-profile than security issues. He mentioned that he was trying to create a &Friends of GUAM8 group within the EU, and outlined three areas for GUAM,s future work: continued work on domestic and democratic reform; improving infrastructure, energy and transport links between the Black and Caspian seas, possibly linking Kazakhstan as well; and working with the UN and EU to resolve the &frozen conflicts8 in GUAM states. He concluded by urging a firm commitment to democratic and liberal values among the GUAM countries, because it was &values-based cooperation8 that ended the Communist era and transformed the region a generation ago. ¶7. (C) COMMENT: Some of Adamkus,s remarks seemed obliquely aimed at Moldova and that country,s sometimes-criticized &fair-weather8 commitment to GUAM ) symbolized, among other things, by their low level of representation at the Summit. The Moldovan Minister did not react, but President Aliyev seemed irritated by the stress on democratic values, glancing sharply at the Lithuanian President at that point in the presentation. END COMMENT. -------------- OTHER NOTABLE SPEAKERS -------------- ¶8. (U) Polish President Kaczynski spoke of the importance of the principle of territorial integrity and of NATO-MAP status for Georgia and Ukraine. He urged GUAM to consider further links to the Baltic states and said Poland would be GUAM,s advocate within the Visegrad Group, returning to the issue of using the Odessa-Brody pipeline to bring Caspian oil to Gdansk. Czech Foreign Minister Schwarzenberg echoed this point in his presentation. Japanese Ambassador Oki discussed Japan,s dialogue with GUAM, noting the first GUAM-Japan Meeting which took place in 2007. In 2007, representatives of scientific organizations in the GUAM states visited Tokyo for discussions on energy-efficient technologies, and the Ambassador noted an upcoming GUAM expert-level workshop in Tokyo on investment and trade promotion. ¶9. (U) Romania was represented by their State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, who noted that she remembered conferences like this one in the past when it was Romania, Lithuania, the Czech Republic and Poland who were trying to reform and enter the EU. Today, it is GUAM that is in that position. GUAM is not directed against anyone but at the goal of European integration, which &is possible and worth fighting for,8 she said. She urged GUAM to focus on the EU and on democracy issues, and that &Romania will be there for you when you need it.8 Echoing the Polish President, she said that &your success is our success too.8 ¶10. (U) EUR DAS David Merkel spoke for the United States, noting the Summit theme of &Integrating Europe,s East8 and the importance of bringing together the Black Sea and Caspian Sea worlds, a gap that can be bridged by GUAM. He thanked the Azeris for their leadership of GUAM over the past year and congratulated Georgia on assuming the rotating presidency, thanking them for their leadership of the Secretariat. DAS Merkel briefly highlighted U.S. support for the GUAM Secretariat, the Virtual Law Enforcement Center (VLEC) as part of the U.S. partnership with the Law Enforcement Working Group, and past support for the Trade and Transportation Facilitation Initiative. He also reiterated the U.S. commitment to resolving the frozen conflicts. -------------- -------------- STATEMENTS BY INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AND CONCLUSION -------------- -------------- ¶11. (U) In addition to GUAM Secretary-General Chechelashvili, representatives of two other international organizations spoke. First Deputy Executive Secretary Vladimir Garkun of the CIS gave a brief, perfunctory speech where he noted the common Soviet heritage of the GUAM members (the only time the word &Soviet8 was uttered at the Summit). Secretary-General Martin Marmy of the International Road Transport Union discussed the New Eurasian Transport Initiative (NETI),a new project to work with GUAM in creating a Europe-Caucasus-Central Asia transport corridor for freight and passenger services, including Black Sea and Caspian Sea ferryboat links for motor vehicles. In his brief remarks, GUAM Secretary-General Chechelashvili said that the GUAM Transportation Working Group will hold an experts meeting in September which will be followed by a conference in Batumi. Secretary-General Chechelashvili noted that the GUAM countries now enjoy USD 4 billion of internal trade per annum, a billion dollars more than last year. He credited the new GUAM Free Trade Zone and customs harmonization procedures for bringing this about. ¶12. (U) After the plenary, the five presidents and the GUAM Secretary-General appeared together to make statements to the press. The press availability took place at the nearby beach and was expertly choreographed. The six principals stood at podiums facing the seated crowd, perfectly lit for television and with the sun setting on the Black Sea behind them. After a short dinner, featuring dancers from different regions of Georgia, and a brief, tasteful concert by a large fountain, the Summit concluded. ¶13. (U) The following were represented at the 2008 GUAM Summit in Batumi: Countries: Bulgaria ) Ambassador to Georgia Branimir Radev Czech Republic ) Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg Estonia ) their Ambassador to Georgia Finland ) Ambassador to Georgia (non-resident) Petri Salo France ) Ambassador to Georgia Erik Furnie Germany ) Deputy Chief of Mission in Georgia Japan ) Ambassador to Azerbaijan and Georgia (non-resident) Masamitsu Oki Kazakhstan ) Minster of Transportation Serik Akhmetov Korea ) Mr. Dong-Sook Lee, Counselor (resident in Kyiv) Latvia ) their Ambassador to Georgia Lithuania ) President Valdas Adamkus Poland ) President Lech Kaczynski Romania ) State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Russia ) Ambassador to Georgia Viacheslav Kovalenko Slovakia ) Political Director Ambassador Roman Buzek Sweden ) their non-resident Ambassador to Georgia Turkey ) Ambassador to Georgia Ertan Tezgor USA ) EUR DAS David A. Merkel Organizations: Arab League ) one participant CIS ) First Deputy Executive Secretary Vladimir Garkun Council of Europe ) their Ambassador to Georgia International Road Transport Union ) Secretary-General Martin Marmy OSCE ) Head of Mission Terhi Hakala RICE