Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09VIENNA558
2009-05-08 12:51:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Vienna
Cable title:  

Austria's Strategic Repositioning of Embassies/Consulates

Tags:  PREL AMGT ODIP AU 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO9719
RR RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLZ RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHVI #0558 1281251
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 081251Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY VIENNA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2537
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES
RUEHKB/AMEMBASSY BAKU 0353
RUEHMS/AMEMBASSY MUSCAT 0081
RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI 0404
RUEHSA/AMEMBASSY PRETORIA 0485
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA 0359
UNCLAS VIENNA 000558 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL AMGT ODIP AU
SUBJECT: Austria's Strategic Repositioning of Embassies/Consulates

UNCLAS VIENNA 000558

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL AMGT ODIP AU
SUBJECT: Austria's Strategic Repositioning of Embassies/Consulates


1. Austria will open a new embassy in Baku,
Azerbaijan, with construction beginning by the end of
2009, as part of a strategic decision to support
Austria's growing energy business and other activities
in the Caucasus/Caspian region. Foreign Minister
Michael Spindelegger said the new embassy would
"noticeably strengthen our presence in the Black Sea
region, which has great potential in political and
economic terms, as well as from the viewpoint of
energy policy." (NOTE: The planned Nabucco gas
pipeline, led by Austrian energy company OMV, is
competing to secure initial gas volumes from
Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz II field).


2. While budgeted to receive a slight increase in
2009 and 2010, the Ministry is reorganizing four of
its overseas operations in order to reduce
administrative costs. Specifically, the MFA will
close its embassy in Muscat (Oman) in 2009, but will
add staff to the embassy in Abu Dhabi (UAE) to
compensate. Likewise, Austrian Consulates General in
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) and Cape Town (South Africa)
will close in 2009 and 2010 respectively, with those
personnel to be added to the Honorary Consulate in San
Paulo and the embassy in Pretoria. Austria's
Consulate-General staff in Hamburg will move to
Frankfurt in 2010.


3. Worldwide, the Austrian MFA operates 81 bilateral
embassies, 14 consular offices, and multilateral
missions in Brussels (EU),New York (UN),Geneva (UN),
Strasbourg (Council of Europe),and Vienna (IAEA and
UNIDO).

KILNER