Turkey Will Open Second PRT in Afghanistan, Wants a Seat at

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KABUL 003793

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR S/SRAP, SCA/RA, SCA/A, EUR/SE
DEPT PASS AID/ANE

E.O. 12958 N/A
TAGS: EAID ESTH PREL PGOV AF TK
SUBJECT: Turkey Will Open Second PRT in Afghanistan, Wants a Seat at
the Table

Ref: Kabul 3746
Kabul 2814

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1. (SBU) Summary: Turkish Ambassador to Afghanistan Basat Ozturk
said Turkey will open a PRT in Sheberghan, Jowzjan province, in 2010
and is willing to increase assistance in the fields of health,
agriculture and education, while expanding police and governance
programs. Turkey's existing PRT in Wardak province demonstrates
civilian-led PRTs are the way forward, Ozturk said. Despite
Turkey's contributions and Washington "promises" to include Turkey,
Ozturk said his Embassy still feels left out of crucial discussions
in Kabul. In this regard, he noted Turkey will be the lead nation
in the United Nations Security Council for Afghan issues in 2010.
Amb. Wayne pointed out that Turkey already attends most multilateral
donor meetings in Kabul but invited Ozturk to encourage his staff to
meet more regularly with U.S. mission personnel to coordinate
assistance. Ozturk also suggested President Obama outline the
civilian component of a predicted troop increase when Prime Minister
Erdogan visits Washington December 7, following U.S.-Turkey
consultations in Ankara on December 2, and "instruct us on the way
ahead." End Summary.

PRT Jowzjan: Police Training, Education, Health, and Agriculture
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2. (SBU) Forty five days after his arrival in Kabul, Ozturk told
Coordinating Director for Development and Economic Affairs, Amb. E.
Anthony Wayne, November 23 that Turkey is well positioned to help
Afghanistan become a modern state and "rediscover its Sufi roots."
He heralded Turkey's performace in Wardak province (and Regional
Command-Kabul) and claimed that even in those areas where Turkey
lacks official personnel, it wields soft power through popular high
schools and expeditionary Turkish businesses. The Turkish
Government has informed NATO, the Afghan, German, and Swedish
Governments of its intent to open a PRT in Sheberghan in Jowzjan
province, and is currently drafting a budget and recruiting
personnel for a spring 2010 opening. The PRT will focus on building
schools, roads and health clinics; providing agricultural
assistance; and potentially covering neighboring Sar-i-Pol province.
(Note: it remains unclear whether Turkey will assume responsibility
for security in Jowzjan from Sweden.)


3. (SBU) Turkey will also establish a police training center in
Jowzjan and will run train-the-trainer programs in Turkey, Ozturk
said. He sought to dispel rumors that Turkey obstructed the
relationship between NATO and the EU Police Mission to Afghanistan
(EUPOL),adding that EUPOL struggles to recruit police officers.
Turkey will coordinate with the NATO Training Mission Afghanistan
(NTMA) but will not necessarily transfer authority, Ozturk said,
because "if we raise the NATO flag in Wardak we will have problems."
He added that the Turkish jandarma and sub-provincial governments
may provide personnel for police and governance training.


4. (SBU) Turkey has built several health clinics and will build
more, Ozturk said, but he highlighted the lack of Afghan doctors to
staff new health facilities as a serious problem. Doctors at a new
Turkish-built facility want to "give it back," he said, and some new
clinics have no medical staff at all. U.S. representatives
emphasized the importance of involving the Ministry of Public
Health, prior to construction, to ensure adequate staffing and
sustainability.


5. (SBU) Ozturk said Turkey's existing PRT in Wardak province
demonstrates civilian-led reconstruction efforts can be successful,
adding that military-led reconstruction produces quick results but
creates a fundamentally different mentality. He welcomed the U.S.
civilian uplift and its emphasis on the district level. Asking for
U.S. assistance in countering rumors that Turkey is biased toward
Turkic Uzbeks and Turkmens, Ozturk pointed out that most of his
country's projects aid non-Turkic Afghans and provide assistance
regardless of ethnicity and gender.

Bring Us In From the Cold
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6. (SBU) Before outlining Turkey's contributions to Afghan
reconstruction, Ozturk expressed frustration at what he perceives as
a lack of access to the American-led decision making process in
Kabul. Comparing Turkey's physical and cultural connections with
Central Asia and the West to those of post-World War II West
Germany, Ozturk said Turkey had been included in Afghan strategy
meetings in Washington, Ankara and other capitals -- but not on the
ground in Kabul, where he said U.S. and Turkish officials have the
most realistic grasp of the situation. He reminded Amb. Wayne that
Turkey will be the lead nation in the United Nations Security
Council for Afghan issues in 2010. Amb. Wayne pointed out that

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there are few Kabul-based multilateral meetings of partner nations,
and that Turkey already attends most of them. He suggested
working-level staff meet more regularly with USAID personnel to
enhance their knowledge of successful programs already in place and
to closely coordinate actions of Turkey's current and future PRTs.


7. (SBU) Amb. Wayne outlined the U.S. goals of promoting Afghan
leadership, combating corruption and boosting agricultural
production for rural Afghans. Ozturk acknowledged the corruption
problem and agreed Turkey could set a positive example as a Muslim
state with strong institutions at the national and provincial level.
Both highlighted concrete areas of U.S.-Turkish-collaboration in
the areas of health, education, agriculture and good governance,
which can serve as the basis for more detailed discussions. Ozturk
said Prime Minister Erdogan's December 7 visit to Washington is a
good opportunity for President Obama to discuss U.S. strategy,
particularly the civilian component, and "instruct us on the way
ahead."


EIKENBERRY