U.S. STRATEGY FOR NATO ENLARGEMENT GOALS FOR THE

C O N F I D E N T I A L KYIV 001944 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/08/2019 TAGS: PREL NATO PARM MARR KTIA UP SUBJECT: U.S. STRATEGY FOR NATO ENLARGEMENT GOALS FOR THE DECEMBER FOREIGN MINISTERIAL REF: SECSTATE 113840 Classified By: Political Counselor Colin Cleary. Reasons: 1.4 (b/d). ¶1. (C) We delivered reftel message November 6 to Anatoliy Oliynyk, new director of the MFA's NATO Directorate General. Oliynyk, a former Ukrainian ambassador to Serbia, volunteered that he was "happy for Montenegro," and appeared to accept the idea of multiple paths to NATO membership. He said it would be helpful to have "multiple paths" language in the December Ministerial communique, even without any specific mention of Ukraine in that context; we cautioned that it is important to avoid reopening the contentious issue of MAP for Ukraine (and Georgia). ¶2. (C) Oliynyk told us that his main task in his new assignment is to increase the pace of Ukraine's integration into NATO. Ukraine plans to send FM Poroshenko and Deputy FM Yeliseyev to the December Ministerial. He added that Kyiv would like to see a positive assessment of Ukraine's Annual National Program (ANP) in the Ministerial communique. ¶3. (C) Oliynyk stressed that NATO and Ukraine needed to "invigorate" the NATO-Ukraine Commission (NUC). He said Ukraine would like the Communique to establish a fixed number of annual meetings of the NUC: two Foreign Ministerial and two Defense Ministerial meetings per year, and quarterly meetings at the PermRep level. Oliynyk said that Ukraine's ANP for 2010 is nearly finished. He argued that NATO and the GOU should use NATO's new Strategic Concept process as a media opportunity to publicize NATO better in Ukraine, and he suggested that NATO embassies in Kyiv "adopt" regions of Ukraine for purposes of promoting the Alliance here. ¶4. (C) Comment: Oliynyk is a breath of fresh air after his languid predecessor. However, his ability to pursue an active agenda with NATO will be hampered by Ukraine's fiscal straits, and by the likelihood that the Ukrainian president elected in early 2010 will soft-pedal or even reverse the country's policy to seek NATO membership. Oliynyk appeared reassured and cooperative in reaction to our demarche. We'll see if that carries over at the NUC to Deputy FM Yeliseyev, who has a tendency to harp on Ukraine being in a strategic vacuum. The Ministerial will also be an introduction for new FM Poroshenko. PETTIT