PM ERDOGAN'S WISH LIST FOR OCTOBER 15 BAGHDAD VISIT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 ANKARA 001477 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE AND NEA/I E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/05/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER TU IZ SY SUBJECT: PM ERDOGAN'S WISH LIST FOR OCTOBER 15 BAGHDAD VISIT REF: ANKARA 1446 Classified By: POL Counselor Daniel O'Grady, for reasons 1.4(b,d) ¶1. (SBU) Prime Minister Erdogan and his delegation of nine ministers hope to sign well over 40 protocols, memoranda of understanding and agreements with their Iraqi counterparts when they visit Baghdad October 15 (REFTEL),according to the MFA. The GOT hopes the documents will guide bilateral cooperation in public works and housing, environment, forestry and water rights, energy, security and counterterrorism, healthcare, trade, agriculture, land and maritime transportation, civil aviation and communications. ¶2. (C) Of likely interest to Embassy Baghdad and MNF-I are agenda items 3 and 4 under SECURITY AND COUNTERTERRORISM below. Item 3 derives from Turkey's strong interest in mutual ratification of the Counterterrorism Agreement, signed by the two Ministers of Interior on September 27, 2008. This agreement has not come into effect because of the GoI's resistance to the inclusion of Article 4, which Turkey drafted to secure Iraqi acquiescence to Turkish cross-border operations against the terrorist Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). Item 4 implies both the GOT's commitment to the Trilateral Mechanism, established by joint agreement of the USG and the Iraqi and Turkish governments in November 2008, and its frustration over the mechanism's ineffectiveness in eliminating the PKK. Turkish Minister of Interior Besir Atalay, who is accompanying Erdogan, will lead the Turkish side's engagement with Iraqi counterparts on these two items. ¶3. (C) An MFA contact gave us a copy of his ministry's agenda for the trip in advance of Erdogan's departure for Baghdad. To protect that contact, our possession of the agenda should be held in confidence. We have included a translation of the agenda immediately below. Begin Embassy translation of Turkish MFA agenda for the October 15 visit of PM Erdogan to Baghdad: PUBLIC WORKS AND HOUSING ¶1. Memorandum of Understanding to identify projects relevant to infrastructure, consulting, housing development, building contractors, roads and bridges. ¶2. Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in the field of technical training. ¶3. Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in the field of standardization and production of construction materials. ENVIRONMENT, FORESTRY AND WATER: ¶1. Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in the field of water. ¶2. Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in the field of forestry. ¶3. Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in the field of meteorology. ¶4. Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in the field of environment. ENERGY ¶1. Memorandum of Understanding to transport Iraqi natural gas to Europe via Turkey. ¶2. Agreement to extend the contract to transport raw petroleum via the Kirkuk-Yumurtalik pipelines. ANKARA 00001477 002 OF 004 ¶3. Memorandum of Understanding in planning, structure, and operations of natural gas pipelines (including inter-city distribution networks) ---including the preparation of relevant guidelines/regulations and training that the Turkish side is to provide to the Iraqi side. ¶4. Protocol for the completion of new electric cables between the two countries, including a reference to increasing existing capacity. ¶5. Protocol pertaining to repair and/or replacement work of the Kirkuk-Yumurtalik raw petroleum pipeline on the Iraqi side - one that is appropriate, both for BOTAS (Note: Turkey's state-owned crude and natural gas pipelines and trading company) and its Iraqi counterpart to sign. SECURITY AND COUNTERTERRORISM ¶1. Protocol to establish cooperation in the field of applied sciences between the Ministries of Interior. ¶2. Protocol to open up a new border gate between Turkey and Iraq. ¶3. Bring to a conclusion the Counterterrorism Agreement, Article 4. ¶4. Examine at length possibilities to enable the Tripartite Mechanism to work more effectively. HEALTHCARE ¶1. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation in the field of healthcare. ¶2. Memorandum of Understanding to organize Joint Medical Science Week (Health Fairs) on a regular basis. ¶3. Memorandum of Understanding to establish a medical specialists exchange. ¶4. Memorandum of Understanding to educate/train Iraqi health personnel in Turkey and Iraq. ¶5. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation to boost the Iraqi National Health Care System. ¶6. Memorandum of Understanding in regard to Iraqi patients needing treatment in Turkey. ¶7. Memorandum of Understanding in regard to the announcement of sister-hospitals between Turkey and Iraq. ¶8. Memorandum of Understanding in regard to technical support, maintenance, and calibration of medical equipment. ¶9. Memorandum of Understanding in regard to technical support with health control at border gates. ¶10. Memorandum of Understanding in regard to technical support of hospital administration. ¶11. Memorandum of Understanding to boost medicine and medical equipment trade between Turkey and Iraq. TRADE ¶1. Memorandum of Understanding to form a Free Trade Agreement Task force to commence meetings. ¶2. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation to establish free trade zones and an intermodal logistic center in Iraq ANKARA 00001477 003 OF 004 and for Turkey to provide technical support. ¶3. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation to set up (trade) expos in Turkey and Iraq. ¶4. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation between technical consultants and building contractors, who are leading housing developments, schools and hospital projects in Iraq. ¶5. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation to finance Turkish building contractors who are executing projects in Iraq via the Raw Petroleum Off-set Agreement. ¶6. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation to organize an "Iraq Investment Conference" in Istanbul during the last quarter of 2009. ¶7. Memorandum of Understanding to develop project applications for the credits Turk Eximbank is procuring for building projects in Iraq. ¶8. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation in exporting Turkish goods sold in the domestic market to Iraq without interference or restrictions, informing the other side in advance of managerial changes and/or new regulations in the field of foreign trade. AGRIGULTURE ¶1. Memorandum of Agreement in economic, scientific and technical fields. ¶2. Memorandum of Agreement for cooperation in the field of animal health. ¶3. Memorandum of Agreement in the field of plants/vegetation health and quarantine. TRANSPORTATION Railways ¶1. Memorandum of Understanding to add a freight train service between Gaziantep-Mosul to start in October; changing the return date from six to 15 days, one time only. Subsequently, schedule a regular train service on this line with the collaboration of the railroad authorities from both sides. ¶2. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation to explore possibilities to build jointly a new and direct railroad connection between the two countries. ¶3. Iraqi railways to purchase locomotive and wagon spare parts from the appropriate Turkish institutions, within the below framework: a. Agreement to buy 14 passenger wagons from TUVASAS. b. Memorandum of Understanding to finalize the meetings concerning the purchase of 30 locomotives from TULOMSAS and 50 passenger wagons from TUVASAS -- provided that all financial matters are in order. c. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation between the institutions in both countries to replace and/or overhaul existing Iraqi railroad locomotives and passenger wagons, and the relevant training. OVERLAND TRANSPORTATION ¶1. Memorandum of Understanding to boost cooperation between ANKARA 00001477 004 OF 004 the two countries in technical matters, such as vehicle control, inspection, drivers licenses, company licenses and technical matters concerning overland regulations/ordinances. ¶2. Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation in viability of building and managing bus terminals. ¶3. Memorandum of Understanding to enable private Turkish passenger and cargo transportation companies to work in Iraq through a partnership with the Iraqi State Transportation Company. CIVIL AVIATION Memorandum of Understanding to commence meetings concerning Iraqi Airlines' intention to schedule Baghdad-London flights with a connecting service in Istanbul; expect civil aviation authorities from both countries to attend the conference to discuss other aviation matters on September 27 in Turkey; bring Air Transportation Agreement up to date and put into effect. MARITIME Memorandum of Understanding to evaluate the possibility of Turkish private maritime companies and the Iraqi National Maritime Company working together in partnership to ship goods, clean sea ports, salvage sunken ships, carry out other maritime activities. COMMUNICATION Memorandum of understanding for cooperation between the relevant institutions in both countries to evaluate possibilities for partnership and cooperation in the communications sector. End Embassy translation. JEFFREY "Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at http://www.intelink.s gov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turkey"