REQUEST TO RECEIVE U.S. REPRESENTATIVE TO DISCUSS

UNCLAS STATE 024630 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KNNP PARM PGOV PREL TU SUBJECT: REQUEST TO RECEIVE U.S. REPRESENTATIVE TO DISCUSS POSSIBLE TURKISH ASSISTANCE TO ANTI-NUCLEAR SMUGGLING PROJECTS IN THE CAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA ¶1. (U) This is an action request for Embassy Ankara. Please see paragraph 4. ¶2. (SBU) SUMMARY: U.S. Negotiator for Nuclear Security and Dismantlement Michael Stafford, Coordinator of the Nuclear Smuggling Outreach Initiative (NSOI),is seeking to meet with relevant Turkish officials to present for their consideration several NSOI-developed assistance projects that the Government of Turkey (GOT) could potentially be interested in supporting. NSOI's general approach is to work with the international community of donors to seek support for various assistance projects to help the countries that NSOI has engaged improve their ability to counter the nuclear smuggling threat. The GOT could play an important role in this endeavor given its impressive experience and capabilities in several areas. (Additional information on these projects is in para 3). Washington seeks Embassy Ankara's assistance in conveying the points enumerated in para 4 to solicit the GOT's willingness to receive Mr. Stafford to discuss several projects assisting countries in the Caucasus or Central Asia that Turkey co uld potentially support. END SUMMARY. ¶3. (SBU) BACKGROUND: In the September 2008 Export Control and Related Border Security and Nonproliferation discussions in Ankara, GOT representatives spoke positively about the idea of sharing Turkey's experience with other countries in the region, but noted that the GOT was still in the process of determining specific priorities. The Nuclear Smuggling Outreach Initiative (NSOI) has worked with several countries in the region to develop joint action plans highlighting specific steps that these countries can take to improve their capabilities to combat nuclear smuggling, as well as joint lists of assistance projects to help these countries implement some of these steps that they cannot complete on their own. The NSOI team is actively seeking U.S. and international assistance providers to contribute to these projects. There are several projects to which we believe the GOT could make a valuable contribution. For example, the U.S. and several other international donors have made substantial pledges to suppor t Georgia in the wake of the August 2008 conflict. Projects that would complement existing U.S. and international assistance to Georgia include debt relief for the Georgian Coast Guard and assistance for monitoring Georgia's green borders (those areas between established border crossings). In Kazakhstan, Turkey could contribute to an NSOI-developed project on improving control and accounting of radioactive materials or a project on securing the green border areas. In the near future, NSOI expects to also have projects in Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, and Tajikistan that Turkey might be interested in supporting. ¶4. (SBU) ACTION REQUEST FOR EMBASSY ANKARA: Washington requests that Embassy Ankara convey the following points to the appropriate interlocutors within the Government of Turkey (GOT): Begin points: --In our September nonproliferation discussions, various Turkish agencies highlighted Turkey's substantial capabilities in the areas of export control, border security, and maritime security. Your government also noted several examples where you are sharing your experience to improve the capabilities of neighboring countries. --The United States has also been working cooperatively with many of the countries in the region to improve border security and combat nuclear smuggling. Given Turkey's impressive capabilities and experience, the United States believes that other countries in the region could benefit significantly from further Turkish assistance. --Our government has some ideas we would like to share with you in this regard. --To this end, U.S. Negotiator for Nuclear Security and Dismantlement Michael Stafford would like to meet with appropriate officials in your government to present several possible areas where the Government of Turkey (GOT) might consider contributing to enhancing the capabilities of neighboring countries in the Caucasus or Central Asia to combat the smuggling of nuclear and radioactive materials. --Mr. Stafford leads the Nuclear Smuggling Outreach Initiative (NSOI) and has engaged in similar discussions with numerous potential donor countries. Thus far, eight countries, the European Union, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA),and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) are supporting various assistance projects developed by NSOI. --We would like to inquire whether the GOT would be willing to host Mr. Stafford for this discussion. --We want to emphasize that agreeing to hear Mr. Stafford's presentation will in no way obligate your government to support any of these projects. We ask only that you hear him out and then subsequently consider whether the GOT would like to support any of the projects he presents. --One of the countries that we believe would benefit from additional Turkish help is Georgia. We understand that Turkey is already providing some assistance to help Georgia improve its border security. We would be interested in learning more about Turkey's assistance to Georgia and any existing plans for expanding that assistance. We developed a list of anti-nuclear smuggling assistance projects with the Government of Georgia (GOG) in 2007, and we recently agreed with it on a revised list of projects to reflect new needs that arose as a result of the August 2008 conflict. If Turkey is interested in expanding its assistance to Georgia, we would like to discuss with you some of these projects in more depth. --We also have specific projects in Kazakhstan that could benefit from expertise and assistance from Turkey, and expect in the near future to have projects in Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Azerbaijan that Turkey may be interested in supporting. --All of these projects that we would like to discuss with you were developed in close partnership with the governments of these countries. --We hope you can agree to host this discussion with Mr. Stafford at your earliest convenience. If you are prepared at this point to suggest dates when this discussion could occur, we would welcome any feedback that we could take back to Washington. IF ASKED WHY THE UNITED STATES IS MAKING THESE REQUESTS RATHER THAN THE INDIVIDUAL COUNTRIES: --The projects Mr. Stafford wishes to discuss with you were developed in an extensive series of discussions with the relevant partner governments aimed at identifying agreed priorities. --As part of these discussions, our partners agreed that it would generally be more effective and efficient for the United States to take the lead in presenting these priority projects to prospective donors and in coordinating among those donors. --One of the first questions that many prospective donors ask is, "How do these projects fit with existing U.S. assistance?" All of the projects we present to prospective donors have been fully vetted, not only with the partner government, but also with the U.S. assistance community, in order to ensure that they will efficiently complement existing U.S. efforts. We also take into account ongoing international assistance to avoid duplication and maximize the synergy of all relevant efforts. End points. ¶5. (U) Department greatly appreciates Post's assistance. Please slug responses for ISN/WMDT, ISN/ECC, and EUR/SE. ¶6. (U) Department Point of Contact: Daniela Carcani (CarcaniD@state.gov),phone 202-736-4917. CLINTON