THIRD TURKEY-IRAQ-U.S. TRILATERAL MINISTERIAL

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 BAGHDAD 002071 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/30/2019 TAGS: IZ MARR PGOV PINR PREF PREL PTER TU SUBJECT: THIRD TURKEY-IRAQ-U.S. TRILATERAL MINISTERIAL REF: A. 08 BAGHDAD 3710 B. BAGHDAD 1018 C. BAGHDAD 1409 D. BAGHDAD 1497 Classified By: A/PMA W. Scott Reid for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) (S/NF) Summary. The third ministerial meeting of the Turkey-Iraq-U.S. security dialogue took place on July 28 in Ankara. The meeting covered the accomplishments of the trilateral working group since the last ministerial ministerial (held in April),discussions centered around the Makhmour refugee camp, border issues, intelligence sharing and future Iraq-Turkey bilateral training initiatives. The major accomplishment of the trilateral working group was the establishment of the Trilateral Intelligence Sharing Office in Erbil. The Turkish delegation expressed frustration at the lack of intelligence being produced and their hesitancy to endorse the endeavor fully due to a lack of &concrete actions.8 The Iraqi and Turkish delegations formally discussed resolving the issue of the Makhmour refugee camp for the first time since April 2007. Although no formal decisions were made at this meeting (unlike previous meetings) all parties acknowledged the importance of the trilateral security dialogue to further cooperation and coordination in countering the PKK/Kongra Gel (hereafter PKK). The lower-rank of the U.S. delegation (a fact bemoaned repeatedly prior to the meeting by the GOT - from Minister Atalay to Ambassador Jeffrey in Ankara and from Ambassador Derya Kanbay to Charge in Baghdad) yielded a positive result by increasing bilateral discussion between the Iraqi and Turkish delegations. After the meeting, the two delegations were to discuss future support via military to military, intelligence and police training. The next ministerial level meeting is tentatively schedule for October in Baghdad. End summary. ¶2. (C) The third ministerial meeting of the Turkey-Iraq-U.S. trilateral security dialogue took place on July 28 in Ankara. The agenda for the meeting included a review of the accomplishments of the trilateral working group, Makhmour refugee camp and next steps/way ahead. The Turkish delegation was headed by Minister of Interior Besir Atalay, the Iraqi delegation by Minister of State for National Security Sherwan Waili and the U.S. delegation by BG Steven Hummer, MNF-I, Director, CJ3. The previous ministerial meetings were held in Baghdad on April 11 (ref B) and November 19, 2008 (ref A). 
ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF THE TRILATERAL -------------- -------------- ¶3. (C) Hamid Rashid, Secretary of the Trilateral Commission, gave a presentation on the accomplishments of the trilateral working group since the last ministerial meeting. Accomplishments included: - Numerous reports with names of and information on PKK members were distributed to both Turkish and U.S. delegations; - Letters from the GOI were sent to hospitals/clinics in the region asking them to not treat any PKK members who sought healthcare; - Letters were sent from the GOI to all KRG media outlets requesting that they not print or show any PKK-related material; - The Hiwa Group (a political front for the PKK) was banned from participating in the Kurdish regional elections (ref C); - Establishment of the Trilateral Intelligence Sharing Office (TISO) in Erbil (ref D). TISO AND CBOS -------------- ¶4. (C) Discussion of the TISO followed the presentation with Atalay stating the often expressed Turkish frustration that QAtalay stating the often expressed Turkish frustration that the TISO was not producing enough intelligence. He said that the GOT was &frankly hesitant to express full confidence in the program until we see concrete action taken.8 MG Erdal Ozturk, TGS, Chief,Plans and Operations Department, insisted that intelligence should lead to concrete action and that the GOI needed to provide more intelligence. BG Hummer reminded the group that the TISO has only been operational for one month and that communications and infrastructure issues were still being worked out. He noted that with additional time relationships and procedures would improve and the TISO would be a valuable component in the fight against the PKK. ¶5. (C) During this discussion, Waili raised Turkish cross border operations (CBOs) and demurred that it was an issue of Iraqi sovereignty which could lead to Iraqi public opinion in support of the PKK. Ozturk responded that the CBOs were conducted with intelligence obtained with the help of the U.S. and to date there have been no civilian casualties from any operations. He added &We want Iraq to conduct these operations themselves, if they did, there would be no need BAGHDAD 00002071 002 OF 003 for us to do them.8 Ozturk also remarked &We don,t believe the central government can do anything because they are too busy with other issues, the regional government (KRG) should be in the lead on this.8 (Note: The Turkish delegation numerous times stressed the importance of the KRG,s role in combating the PKK and involvement in all related dialogue throughout the meeting. End note.) Makhmour Camp -------------- ¶6. (C) The second item on the agenda was discussion of the Makhmour Refugee Camp. Minister Atalay assured that &this issue is a priority for us8 and that &we have been working hard (internally) on this and efforts are progressing.8 He relayed that the GOT was taking a "whole of government" analytical approach to dealing with the Makhmour issue. He stated that the GOT needed additional demographic information on the residents of Makhmour that sought to return to Turkey and added &The solution won,t happen overnight, we need more time for exchange of intelligence and analysis.8 Atalay repeated throughout his remarks that the most important objective was to take concrete steps to &rid Makhmour of the physical and psychological influence of the PKK.8 That responsibility, he said, rests squarely on the shoulders of the GOI. ¶7. (C) Minister Waili responded to Minister Atalay,s comments by underscoring the pressing need to resolve the issue as soon as possible. He opined that the camp, with its growing number of unemployed youth, was a threat to Iraq,s internal security. Waili stated that &It must be looked at as an important issue and we must address it, we must work together to resolve it.8 Labeed Abawi, Iraqi Deputy Foreign Minister, also weighed in and told the Turkish delegation that giving the Turkish citizens of the camp hope that they would someday return to Turkey could potentially keep them from sympathizing with the PKK. Abawi referenced the last formal discussion the two countries had regarding Makhmour in April 2007 with the participation of UNHCR. Abawi noted that an agreement was presented at that meeting which the GOI agreed to but the GOT said it would study. He said that nothing has come of it in the past two years and hoped that the three parties would be able to reconvene to &determine the legal framework for Makhmour.8 Future Iraq-Turkey Bilateral Cooperation -------------- -------------- ¶8. (S/NF) The meeting closed with all parties agreeing that the trilateral process was valuable and that the dialogue needed to continue in order to further cooperation and coordination in the fight against the PKK and to resolve the issue of Makhmour. During the meeting, Turkey offered any assistance and support they could give to the GOI for training related to counter-terrorism for the ISF. Following the meeting, relevant Iraqi and Turkish delegates were going to work out when and how a team of Turkish trainers would be sent to Iraq to conduct counter-terrorism training that had been agreed to at the previous ministerial meeting in addition to discussing future military to military training and intelligence collection training (through the Turkish National Intelligence Organization) as offered by the GOT. Minister Atalay also briefly mentioned planned GOT talks with the Government ofSyria to address mutual issues of concern regarding border security. Minister Waili encouraged these talks and asked the GOT for help in obtaining ccoperation Qtalks and asked the GOT for help in obtaining ccoperation from the Syrians to stop the flow of foreign fighters from Syria into Iraq. Comment -------------- ¶9. (S/NF) Unlike the previous ministerial meetings, no major decisions were made, however, it was a useful tool to continue the dialogue at the highest level and the positive momentum set by the previous meetings. The lower ranking U.S. delegation (a fact bemoaned repeatedly prior to the meeting by the GOT - from Minister Atalay to Ambassador Jeffrey in Ankara and from Ambassador Derya Kanbay to Charge in Baghdad) may well have turned out to be a positive factor in encouraging the Iraqis and Turkish delegations to speak with one another directly. The USG role in this meeting was that of facilitator and observer. The discussion of Makhmour was also a positive step being the first formal discussion of the issue between the parties since April 2007. During their opening statements, both the Iraqi and Turkish delegations highlighted recent bilateral cooperation and coordination at the Presidential and Prime Ministerial levels and Minister Atalay indicated the the Turkish Foreign Minister and Prime Minister would be making separate visits to Iraq in the near future (August and October respectively). The next ministerial level meeting is tentatively scheduled BAGHDAD 00002071 003 OF 003 for October in Baghdad. ¶10. (U) U.S. Delegation: - BG Steven Hummer, MNF-I, Director, CJ3 - Scotty Reid, Embassy Baghdad, A/Pol-Mil Counselor - Dan O-Grady, Embassy Ankara, A/DCM - Carol Reynolds, Embassy Ankara, Regional Counter-terrorism Coordinator - COL David Thompson, MNF-I, Future Operations - Dew Tiantawach, Embassy Baghdad, Pol-Mil Officer Iraqi Delegation: - Sherwan Al-Waili, Minister of State for National Security Affairs - Labeed Abawi, Deputy Foreign Minister - MG Hussein Ali Kamal, Deputy Minister of Interior - MG Delshad Najeeb Othman, KRG Representative to the trilateral working group - Note: The entire Iraqi delegation totalled 15 people. End note. Turkish Delegation: - Besir Atalay, Minister of Interior - Osman Gunes, Undersecretary, Ministry of the Interior - Derya Kanbay, Ambassador to Iraq - MG Erdal Ozturk, TGS, Chief,Plans and Operations Department - Oguz Kagan Koksal, Governor, Director General of Security - Murat Ozcelik, Special Envoy to Iraq, Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Note: The entire Turkish delegation totalled 22 people. End note. FORD