AMBASSADOR AND KYRGYZ FOREIGN MINISTER DISCUSS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BISHKEK 000927 SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/CEN E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/14/2019 TAGS: PREL MARR KG SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR AND KYRGYZ FOREIGN MINISTER DISCUSS UPCOMING PETRAEUS VISIT; IVANOV COMPENSATION AND RAMP PROJECT REF: BISHKEK 828 Classified By: Ambassador Tatiana C. Gfoeller, for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: On August 14, the Ambassador met with Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Sarbayev to review the upcoming visit of U.S. Central Command's General David Petraeus to Kyrgyzstan. The Ambassador provided an outline of the goals for the visit. Sarbayev said that he looked forward to having a good conversation with General Petraeus. Sarbayev told the Ambassador that Prime Minister Chudinov would attend UNGA in September and requested a short meeting for him with President Obama in New York. Chudinov will also visit Washington and Sarbayev requested meetings with U.S. government officials there, including with the Department of State. On the Hatfield-Ivanov case, Sarbayev said he would contact the widow and then let the Ambassador know how he wanted to proceed. Sarbayev reacted extremely negatively to the news that a Turkish company had won the ramp contract at the airport. He said that taken together, the non-prosecution of Hatfield and the fact that a Kyrgyz company had not won the contract undermined his position in the government and "put us right back to the situation we were in, in February," (when the Manas agreement was denounced by President Bakiyev). END SUMMARY. VISIT OF CENTCOM GENERAL PETRAEUS -------------- ¶2. (C) Ambassador Gfoeller met with Foreign Minister Sarbayev August 14 to discuss the upcoming visit of U.S. Central Command's General David Petraeus. The Ambassador reviewed the key issues involved, including the Transit Center, security cooperation, and the Northern Distribution Network. Sarbayev said that he had never met Petraeus before and was looking for a good discussion in order to continue building on the strong U.S.-Kyrgyzstan relationship. Sarbayev told the Ambassador that he intended to raise with Petreaus anti-terrorism and anti-narcotics assistance, as well as the USD 20 million Economic Development Fund. The Minister also agreed to invite the First Deputy Minister of Defense to his meeting with Petraeus at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Defense Minister Kalyev is currently on vacation). PRIME MINISTER TO UNGA AND WASHINGTON -------------- ¶3. (C) Foreign Minister Sarbayev told the Ambassador that Prime Minister Igor Chudinov would go to New York for the United National General Assembly in September. Sarbayev had previously told the Ambassador that he would be attending, but now indicated that since the PM was higher ranking he would be the lead government of Kyrgyzstan official. A final decision on whether Sarbayev would accompany the PM had not been taken. Sarbayev said that the PM requested a meeting -- "very short, five minutes" -- with President Obama at UNGA. Sarbayev said that the PM would also visit Washington and requested meetings with U.S. government officials there, including at the Department of State. He added that the Kyrgyz Embassy and Kyrgyz Mission to the UN were handling the visit details. The Ambassador said that she would pass along immediately the PM's meeting request with President Obama in New York and with other USG officials in Washington. Sarbayev again inquired about when an official invitation for him to visit Washington to attend the Annual Bilateral Consultations would be forthcoming. HATFIELD-IVANOV CASE -------------- ¶4. (C) Turning to the Hatfield case and the pending payment to the widow of Ivanov (REFTEL),the Foreign Minister said that he had not made a final decision on how to proceed with the payment. He said that he would contact the widow personally "to feel out her emotional state and whether or not to expect trouble" and talk to her about options. He tended to prefer the idea of having him or the Government of Kyrgyzstan take the lead with distribution of the funds to BISHKEK 00000927 002 OF 002 the widow, but said he would review the situation in light of his conversation with Mrs. Ivanova and inform the Ambassador of his conclusion. TURKISH COMPANY WINS RAMP BID -------------- ¶5. (C) The Ambassador informed the Foreign Minister that a Turkish company had won the contract to construct the ramp and hot cargo pad at Manas International Airport. Sarbayev expressed his extreme disappointment at the news and told the Ambassador that this could be a large issue in the September session of Parliament. ¶6. (C) Sarbayev emphasized that a Kyrgyz company not winning the ramp construction project and the Hatfield decision were "minuses" and put him and the government in a difficult position with regard to elements against the U.S. and Transit Center in Parliament, the government, and the population at large. He added that President Bakiyev had been "very unhappy" when Sarbayev had briefed him on the Hatfield decision. Taken together, this "puts us right back to the situation we were in, in February!" (when the Manas agreement was denounced by President Bakiyev) he exclaimed emotionally. He also complained that the winning Turkish company did not operate regularly in Kyrgyzstan and would do shoddy work. (NOTE: It is a widespread belief in Kyrgyzstan that Turkish companies send their worst capabilities to Central Asia, do sub-standard work, and cruelly exploit Kyrgyz manual labor. END NOTE) COMMENT -------------- ¶7. (C) The visit of General Petreaus will be useful to solidify the U.S.-Kyrgyzstan relationship and review our mutual areas of cooperation. The visit of the PM to UNGA and Washington is also a positive sign, as it signals that Kyrgyzstan is looking to raise its level of dialogue with the U.S. and continue the forward momentum of the successful Transit Center negotiations. Sarbayev's negative reaction to the news of a Turkish company winning the ramp contract may indicate how much he has staked his personal reputation and job on being able to get Kyrgyz companies working at the Transit Center. GFOELLER