DEFENSE MINISTER MEDIU RESIGNS OVER WEEKEND

C O N F I D E N T I A L TIRANA 000199

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/17/2018
TAGS: PGOV NATO PREL AL
SUBJECT: DEFENSE MINISTER MEDIU RESIGNS OVER WEEKEND
EXPLOSIONS

Classified By: Ambassador John L. Withers II, Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D).


1. (C) In a one-on-one meeting March 17, Albanian Defense
Minister Fatmir Mediu told the Ambassador that he would
resign later that afternoon. The proximate cause of his
departure, he maintained, was "moral responsibility" for the
March 15 explosions at a military weapons depot that to date
have resulted in ten confirmed deaths, hundreds of wounded,
and widespread destruction of two nearby civilian communities
(septel). Mediu claimed that he had phoned Prime Minister
Berisha with the news of his resignation and that the PM had
reluctantly concurred. He insisted the PM had not asked him
to resign. The Minister also reported that he had spoken to
opposition leader Edi Rama and that Rama had told him in
confidence that the opposition's call for Mediu to step down
came over Rama's personal reservations. Finally, Mediu said
that he was unconcerned with any investigation that the
government might launch, that he would be fully cooperative
with the Prosecutor General's inquiries, and that the final
result would be to establish the legality of his actions
vis-a-vis the Gerdec explosions.


2. (C) Mediu specifically raised the concern that his
actions not affect the decision at the upcoming Bucharest
Summit on a possible NATO invitation for Albania. He asked
the Ambassador's view on whether Allies might see his
resignation as instability in the Albanian government at this
crucial time. The Ambassador replied that the tragedy at
Gerdec was an accident and should have no bearing on NATO's
evaluation of Albanian preparedness. It would be important,
however, not to allow a domestic feeding frenzy over this
episode to convey the very impression of instability that
Mediu wished to avoid. The Minister smiled wanly and said,
"So we should be quick about it?" The Ambassador replied,
"Unfortunately, yes."


3. (C) Mediu also went out of his way to mention an
expected New York Times article, which he claimed would
attack him for being complicit in an arms deal sending
Chinese-made weapons to Afghanistan. While not illegal under
Albanian law, the matter is being investigated by the
Department of Defense. The article, according to Mediu, was
prompted by his political enemies and will assert corrupt
actions on Mediu's part. Although Mediu again protested his
innocence, he conceded that the timing of the article, which
he expects out very soon, would be deeply embarrassing to the
government at a very sensitive time. His resignation, he
said, would spare the GOA and particularly the Prime
Minister, whom he lauded on numerous occasions as a visionary
and historical figure, from that humiliation.


4. (C) COMMENT: Mediu was showing signs of great stress.
At various points in the conversation, he became teary and
his voice cracked. At others, he was defiant and said that
he would be proven right in the long term. That said, we do
not have to take his claims of falling on his sword at face
value. In our estimation, Berisha called this particular
shot, as he so often does, with the larger picture in mind.
That is, caught between a domestic firestorm with Mediu at
its center and the need to project the best possible face for
NATO under difficult circumstances, the Prime Minister
clearly feels that sacrificing Mediu immediately is the best
among bad choices. We will follow up in coming days but our
first reading of the situation is that he's got it right.
WITHERS