TURKMENISTAN: U/S BURNS' MEETING WITH TURKMEN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 06 ASHGABAT 000888

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SCA/CEN, EEB
PLEASE PASS TO USTDA DAN STEIN
ENERGY FOR EKIMOFF, THOMPSON
COMMERCE FOR HUEPER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/16/2019
TAGS: ECON ENRG PHUM PREL TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN: U/S BURNS' MEETING WITH TURKMEN
PRESIDENT BERDIMUHAMEDOV

Classified By: Charge Richard Miles for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: During an hour and a half, wide-ranging
discussion on July 10, Under Secretary for Political Affairs
Bill Burns and Turkmen President Berdimuhamedov touched on
regional issues, including Turkmen support for the stability
of Afghanistan. Other participants in the meeting included:
On the American side -- Assistant Secretary for South and
Central Asian Affairs Robert Blake, NSC Senior Director for
Russia
and Eurasia Michael McFaul, Special Envoy for Eurasian Energy
Richard Morningstar, DASD for East and South Asia David
Sedney, and Charge Richard Miles. On the Turkmen side --
Deputy Chairman and Foreign
Minister Meredov, and Deputy Chairman Hojamuhammedov.


2. (C) Berdimuhamedov, who seemed somewhat tired, even
distracted, emphasized his desire for closer relations with
the United States, giving passing approval to the idea of a
framework agreement
establishing a bilateral, government-to-government forum to
push progress in the various areas of interest to the two
countries. Berdimuhamedov said he planned to attend
UNGA this year and would speak at a business forum
organized by the United States-Turkmenistan Business
Council. Berdimuhamedov went on at some length about the
large scale purchases of American equipment -- John Deere,
Case, Caterpillar, Boeing -- which his government has
made. He noted his recent meeting with senior executives
of Honeywell and Chevron and indicated his willingness to
meet others. Despite prodding by NSC Senior Director
McFaul, Berdimuhamedov did not seem very interested in
discussing his current difficulties with the Russians.


3. (C) Burns conveyed greetings from President
Obama and discussed the Administration,s desire to deepen
the bilateral relationship. He expressed our appreciation
for the support which Turkmenistan provides to the American
effort in Afghanistan including over flights, and touched
on the need for a land route through Turkmenistan to allow
shipments of civilian goods. Berdimuhamedov did not
respond directly to the issue of shipments except to make the
usual
disclaimer about Turkmen neutrality, and he repeatedly
emphasized the importance of working with the
Ashgabat-based U.N. Center for Preventive Diplomacy. Burns
emphasized the danger of Iran,s current policy and attitude
with regard to its nuclear program. He described the
Administration,s readiness to engage directly with Iran, but
stressed that this offer could not remain on the table
forever. He asked Berdimuhamedov to convey to the Iranian
Leadership that this was an offer Iran could not afford to
miss.


4. (C) The Under Secretary expressed his
satisfaction with the recent meetings between
Berdimuhamedov and representatives of major American
companies. He suggested that further such meetings would be
helpful. Berdimuhamedov responded
positively to this.


5. (C) Burns concluded by describing the U.S.
desire to help with the continual development of civil
society in Turkmenistan. Noting that this sector would
form one of the work areas of the previously mentioned
bilateral forum, Burns described areas of cooperation
including education exchange, health, culture, and human
rights.


ASHGABAT 00000888 002 OF 006



6. (C) Special Envoy Morningstar and President
Berdimuhamedev discussed briefly cooperation in the energy
sector. Berdimuhamedov spoke favorably of Nabucco, but did
not agree to send a representative to the signing ceremony
in Ankara. &Our positive statements on Nabucco are
enough,8 he said. END SUMMARY.

RAMBLING MAN: THE REGION


7. (C) President Berdimuhamedov took up most of
the first half hour of the conversation with a rambling
account of Turkmenistan,s relationships with neighboring
countries and Azberbaijan. He described Turkmenistan,s
interest in Azerbaijan in positive, but general terms and
then turned his attention to Afghanistan. Describing the
situation there as "very important", he listed the various
ways in which Turkmenistan has helped - providing
subsidized electricity (he praised USAID involvement in
this sector),building a hospital and clinics in the
Turkmen-inhabited regions, and providing educational
opportunities for Afghan students.
Berdimuhamedov commended the work of the
U.N. Center for Preventive Diplomacy headquartered in
Ashgabat. Establishment of the Center was "the greatest
achievement of our State," he said, raising a theme he
repeated several times during the meeting.

IRAN


8. (C) Berdimuhamedov emphasized the historic good
relations between Turkmenistan and Iran. "Iran has never
interfered in our internal affairs, and we do not interfere
in theirs," a mantra he repeated several times during the
discussion. "There are two issues with regard to Iran," he
said:

--Iran,s nuclear program: "If they pursue nuclear energy
under the supervision of the IAEA, then this should not
present a problem," he said, blithely ignoring what might
happen should Iran not do this.

--Elections: As for elections, he said they have their
own way of doing things. COMMENT: The rapidity of the
Pesident,s speech did not allow the interpreter to
translate this remark. END COMMENT. They have the usual
institutions, he said with a shrug, but the country does
need a leader.

Berdimuhamedov then digressed with a few remarks about the
numerous advantages which would result from realization of
the idea of a rail link from the Persian Gulf, through
Turkmenistan and on to Russia and Europe.

AZERBAIJAN AND CASPIAN DELIMITATION


9. (C) President Berdimuhamedov returned to
Azerbaijan. He said that he and President Aliev respect
each other and have established "very good" relations,
especially recently. "The only issue between us is
delimitation," said Berdimuhamedov. Berdimuhamedov said he
had just asked the head of SOCAR, the Azeri State oil
company, to renew the negotiations on delimitation. The
discussions will continue in Baku July 16-17. He repeated
that he and Aliev understood each other but that there were
some legal issues to be resolved. Berdimumahedov said that
delimitation was important, and that resolving it will open
the way for NABUCCO.


10. (C) Berdimuhamedov then re-told, (as he has in

ASHGABAT 00000888 003 OF 006


every meeting which the Charge has attended),the
story of Russia and the other attending countries thwarting
the idea he presented at the Tehran Summit in 2007 for a
simple solution to the issue of Caspian Sea delimitation.

REGIONAL WATER ISSUES


11. (C) Berdimuhamedov discussed briefly Central Asia,s
regional water issue, using this to again emphasize the
important role of the U.N. Center for Preventive
Diplomacy. This was followed by a digression on the
so-called Turkmen Lake - A huge body of water in the
Karakum Desert designed to catch and store "waste" water
from irrigation run-off.

IT'S THE ECONOMY, SORT OF


12. (C) Berdimuhamedov admitted that the global
financial crisis had affected Turkmenistan, but he also
described at some length the preparatory measures which the
Turkmen Government had taken to soften the effect of the
crisis. Then he described the large purchases the
Government had made of John Deere, Case , Caterpillar, and
Boeing equipment. With regard to Boeing, he said that
Turkmenistan had received proposals from many countries; he
then stated emphatically, "we won,t change."


13. (C) Berdimuhamedov returned to the energy
sector. In a somewhat disorganized manner, he described
Turkmenistan,s oil and gas resources, emphasized
Turkmenistan,s policy of diversification, and dwelled on
the economic benefits of the TAPI pipeline. He repeated
the mantra of only Turkmen companies "with the exception
of the Chinese" exploiting the on-shore resources. In a
slightly different twist to the usual justification for
allowing the Chinese to work on shore, i.e., to enable
infrastructure development, he added another - "the first
President (Niyazov) made that decision."


14. (C) Berdimuhamedov mentioned the fact that no
gas was being sent to Russia but did not expand on this.
He said that bids will be opened under the terms of the
international tender for the East-West pipeline on July 27,
and that several American companies were taking part.
COMMENT: The Embassy has no knowledge of the American
companies. END COMMENT. Berdimuhamedov described his
recent meetings with the senior executives of Chevron and
Honeywell. He said he was prepared to meet with others and
that they will continue their dialog with the
American companies. He mentioned ConocoPhillips in this
regard.

UNGA, UNITED STATES - TURKMENISTAN BUSINESS COUNCIL


15. (C) Berdimuhamedov said that he planned to
attend this year,s UNGA, and that they would organize a
business meeting in America at that time.


16. (C) NSC Senior Director McFaul asked
Berdimuhamedov about gas to Russia. Berdimuhamedov
side-stepped the question by re-telling, at some length,
the story of the rupture in the gas pipeline several months
ago. COMMENT. Berdimuhamedov said nothing about current
negotiations with the Russians over price and supply of
gas, nor did he mention his upcoming visit to Moscow. END
COMMENT.

BILATERAL RELATIONS


ASHGABAT 00000888 004 OF 006



17. (C) The Under Secretary began by emphasizing
President Obama,s interest in strengthening relations
between the United States and Turkmenistan. Burns noted
that the U.S. inter-agency delegation was a good follow on
to FM Meredov,s successful visit to
Washington. Senior Director McFaul said the importance of
Meredov,s visit was demonstrated by the Secretary seeing
him despite her recent injury, an injury sufficiently
troublesome to prevent her from attending the Moscow
summit. Berdimuhamedov noted his appreciation for the
Secretary,s gesture and mentioned it
again as the meeting concluded. Burns favorably mentioned
Turkmenistan,s initiative at the U.N. on energy security as
well as the U.N. Center for Preventive Diplomacy. He
expressed appreciation for the shared interest of
Turkmenistan of stabilization in Afghanistan. Noting the
supply of electricity and the over flights, Burns said he
hoped that we could build on these achievements.

NDN


18. (C) Burns told Berdimuhamedov of the U.S.)
Russian agreement on the use of Russian territory for the
transit of military supplies. He asked Berdimuhamedov to
consider future land transport of civilian cargo for
Afghanistan. COMMENT. Berdimuhamedov responded to this
later in the discussion. His comments are included here
for clarity. END COMMENT. Referring to his &really good
conversation8 with General Petraeus, he said that they
understood one another. He understood what General
Petraeus was saying, but nevertheless Turkmenistan can,t
break its neutrality. As for U.S. flights and emergency
landings ) the Ministry of Foreign Affairs works 24/7 and
can give an answer within minutes. In case of emergency, a
U.S. plane will always be able to land. Berdimuhamedov
then referred once again to the U.N. Center for Preventive
Diplomacy, &All the issues in the region could be settled
through this center,8 he said.

IRAN


19. (C) Burns said that he had listened carefully
to Berdimuhamedov,s description of Turkmenistan,s
relationship with Iran. He said that we also recognized
Iran,s right to a peaceful nuclear program, but that the
issue is how to get Iran to comply with international
obligations it has consistently ignored
. He emphasized
that there is a real danger here, and that with Iran,s
current nuclear program, we can easily see an arms race in
the Middle East. This would be in no one,s interest. The
Under Secretary said he hoped that Berdimuhamedov would try
to convince the Iranian leaders that the present
opportunity to clarify Iran,s intentions in this regard, is
one they cannot afford to miss.

ENERGY SECTOR


20. (C) Burns welcomed Berdimuhamedov,s positive
attitude toward Azerbaijan as well as his willingness to
meet the senior executives of major American companies.

DEVELOPMENT OF CIVIL SOCIETY


21. (C) Burns described at some length the ways in
which the United States could help in the development of
civil society in Turkmenistan. He described the framework
agreement which he had discussed with FM
Meredov in Washington, civil society development being an

ASHGABAT 00000888 005 OF 006


important part of those arrangements.

NEW AMBASSADOR. MEETING WITH PRESIDENT OBAMA


22. (C) Burns said he understood that Turkmenistan
wanted to have a permanent, fully confirmed Ambassador. He
explained that the White House will do what it can to
expedite this. Burns said that we should be able to give
the Turkmen a name very soon. Burns concluded by saying
that President Obama looked forward to meeting
Berdimuhamedov at some point in the future.

MORNINGSTAR AND ENERGY ISSUES


23. (C) Special Envoy Morningstar recounted his
previous meeting with Berdimuhamedov as well as his meeting
with Meredov in Washington. He described the new
flexibility of the American energy companies which should
permit a creative role in Turkmenistan,s energy sector
while preserving the boundaries of Turkmen law.
Morningstar said that he had spoken to the United States -
Turkmenistan Business Council. The member companies were
very excited about coming to Turkmenistan to explore
business possibilities - Chevron, ExxonMobile,
ConocoPhillips, Marathon were all eager to do business
here. In an ensuing discussion on the Ankara signing
ceremony on NABUCO, Berdimuhamedov revealed that only that
day, he had removed Deputy Chairman (Energy) Tagiyev and
replaced him with former Turkmen State Gas Concern
Director Hojamuhammedov. Hojamuhammedov would be the point
of contact for Morningstar in the future, Berdimuhamedov
said.

U.S.COMPANIES AND CNPC


24. (C) In response to S/E Morningstar,squestions about
possible U.S. -- Chinese energy sector cooperation in
Turkmenistan, Berdimuhamedov said, "let,s don,t get ahead
of the game. Let the American companies start to work
here. Show us what they can do. Let,s see some practical
results, then we,ll see."

CONCLUSION


25. (C) Before asking Burns to extend an
invitation to President Obama to visit Turkmenistan,
Berdimuhamedov emphasized one last time the importance of
the U.N. Center of Preventive Diplomacy. He repeated his
belief that all issues in the region could be settled
through this center.



26. (C) COMMENT: Berdimuhamedov looked tired and drawn as
the meeting began. Perhaps the expanded Cabinet meeting he
had chaired earlier in the day, a meeting in which the
removal of energy sector Czar, Deputy Chairman Tagiyev, had
been announced, had taken its toll. This may also explain
his unusually rambling and sometimes disconnected remarks.
Nonetheless he seemed genuinely pleased to welcome the
Burns delegation, and he actually perked up a bit as the
lengthy meeting went on. The atmosphere at the meeting was
certainly a friendly one.


27. (C) What was interesting about Berdimuhamedov,s
s comments was what he didn,t say. He showed no interest
whatsoever in the just-concluded summit in Moscow. He
mentioned the gas stoppage to Russia but did not mention
the simultaneous stoppage to Iran, and he never touched on
the fact that Turkmenistan is presently living off its

ASHGABAT 00000888 006 OF 006


financial reserves with no energy income in sight.
Payments from Russia and Iran will continue for the next
two to three weeks, but at that point, will cease unless
new agreements have been reached. END COMMENT.


28. (C) This cable has been approved by U/S Burns.
MILES