SWEDEN ON DECEMBER GAC/FAC AGENDA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 STOCKHOLM 000756 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/03/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV EUN SW SUBJECT: SWEDEN ON DECEMBER GAC/FAC AGENDA REF: A. A. STOCKHOLM 751 ¶B. B. STOCKHOLM 754 ¶C. C. STOCKHOLM 738 Classified By: PolCouns Marc Koehler for reasons 1.4 (B) & (D). ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Poloff discussed the December 7-8 GAC/FAC agenda with Deputy EU Correspondent Jonas Wendel on December ¶3. The General Affairs Council (GAC) will discuss enlargement problems regarding Turkey (slow progress on Ankara),Macedonia (name problem),and Serbia (Serbian authorities tracking down war criminals). The Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) will discuss ending the EUFOR Althea Mission in Bosnia by November 2010, Middle East Peace Process, Iran sanctions (wait for UNSC discussions) and maybe Burma sanctions (no need to change them). The Swedes will chair the GAC and FAC for the last time. EU Minister Cecilia Malmstrom will chair the GAC, but hand it over to FM Bildt to give a "lengthy intervention." Baroness Ashton will be present at the FAC, but Bildt will lead it. End Summary. Big-Time Enlargement -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Enlargement will be the major item of the GAC with discussion of Turkey, Macedonia, and Serbia. -- Turkey: Wendel said the Swedes are trying to find a way to criticize Turkey's failures to meet the terms of the Ankara Protocol that is "confrontational-enough" to satisfy the Greeks, but doesn't upset the Turks. -- Macedonia: Sweden wants to the Council to give a clear mandate to start accession negotiations in 2010. However, the name issue is still problematic and some Member States want a caveat put in to the statement saying once the name issue is resolved, negotiations can begin. The text is still being debated and foreign ministers will make the final decision at the GAC. -- Serbia: ICTY Chief Prosecutor Brammertz will attend this session and give his report, which will likely state that although Serbia has not arrested the two outstanding war criminals, the Serbian authorities are doing their best to find the individuals. Most Member States agree with this assessment, he said, but the Dutch still need to be convinced. If the Dutch agree with the report, then the EU can start to implement the association agreement with Serbia. Bildt has been in close contact with the Dutch FM Verhagen. Ending Althea -------------- ¶3. (C) Wendel said there will be conclusions on ending the EUFOR Althea mission to Bosnia. The Swedish proposal is to set the end date for November 2010, to coincide with the end of the UN mandate. Most Member States agree, but the British are worried about delinking Althea from the closure of the Office of the High Representative. Sweden understands the reasoning, said Wendel, but no longer sees a need for the EU troop contingent, as violence has abated. Sweden supports the idea of keeping Althea trainers in Bosnia, but Bildt says the Bosniaks need to take care of their own security (ref A). Sweden also supports an EU rapid reaction force to deploy to Bosnia should the need arise. The PSC Ambassadors will debate the issue Friday, December 4. MEPP Conclusions -------------- ¶4. (C) Deputy Director of the Middle East Department Fredrik Floren told poloff on December 3 that the Swedish-authored draft conclusions on the Middle East Peace Process should "not be dramatized" and the media has exaggerated the content. He claimed the draft reflects numerous discussions among EU Member States and the has wide support within the EU, including from "Germany, France and Britain." Parts of the text are taken from the 2008 EU Action Strategy and also previously drafted EU positions on MEPP, which were not publicly distributed (ref B). Wendel said there will be two Troikas with each the Palestinian Authority and Israel surrounding the GAC/FAC. Iran: still waiting -------------- ¶5. (C) There will not be conclusions on Iran, but the FMs will discuss it in more depth at the European Council Meeting December 10. Sweden is disappointed with the Commission's draft on sanctions (ref C). Wendel said it was purely descriptive with no analysis or evaluation of the feasibility and applicability of different sanctions regimes. Many Member States want to wait until after the UNSC to push STOCKHOLM 00000756 002 OF 002 autonomous measures. Wendel lamented that if the Commission paper had been more analytical, the EU would be much closer to being ready to adopt EU autonomous measures. Burma: Never-ending story -------------- ¶6. (SBU) This agenda item might be dropped, Wendel said, because the EU has already developed a "successful" paper outlining a "calibrated" approach towards Burma. The internal paper (not to be made public) outlines needed EU steps and Burmese steps and possible outcomes. It will be used in all EU dealings with Burma, including any meetings between EU Ambassadors and Aung San Suu Kyi. The Swedes do not want to reopen discussion that could revert the process made with the internal paper. Wendel said some Member States had a hard time agreeing to the paper for domestic political reasons and want the paper to remain internal. Under the paper's guidelines, there is a chance the EU will engage with Burma at COP 15 and "make a point of it." There is also discussion of a high level visit to Burma, maybe at the Troika level during the Spanish Presidency. Informal Dinner -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Bildt will use this opportunity to present his report "EU as a Global Actor" to Lady Ashton and maybe table the text. If the text is tabled, then the Council will adopt it the following day. Wendel said Bildt and Ashton have already discussed the report and Ashton was involved in drafting some of the text related to duties of the High Rep. Bildt views the report as game plan for the High Rep, but there are economic challenges related to the required travel budget. Lisbon-Induced Perfidy! -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Wendel predicts the Spanish will return to the traditional pre-Bildt GAERC format in order to maximize their influence during their presidency. This means that the Spanish FM would preside over the GAC and intentionally prolong it to allow for maximum discussion time. At the FAC, when Ashton would take over, most of the important discussions and work will have been completed and the groundwork laid for any conclusions. BARZUN