VZCZCXYZ0003
RR RUEHWEB
DE RUEHAK #1379 1551436
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 041436Z JUN 07
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2404
INFO RUEHTH/AMEMBASSY ATHENS 8117
RUEHKB/AMEMBASSY BAKU 1503
RUEHBW/AMEMBASSY BELGRADE 0100
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN 4242
RUEHBM/AMEMBASSY BUCHAREST 0999
RUEHCH/AMEMBASSY CHISINAU 0470
RUEHKV/AMEMBASSY KYIV 0020
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 5557
RUEHSF/AMEMBASSY SOFIA 1163
RUEHSI/AMEMBASSY TBILISI 3109
RUEHTI/AMEMBASSY TIRANA 0275
RUEHYE/AMEMBASSY YEREVAN 1286
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL 2812
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 5395
UNCLAS ANKARA 001379
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
PARIS FOR USOECD
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL SENV KCRM TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY HOSTS BSEC SUMMIT - USG ATTENDANCE?
A) Ankara 804, B) State 40938
1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Following up on Secretary Rice's March message
to FM Gul promising participation by a senior State Department
official in the June 25 BSEC Summit in Istanbul (ref B) is an
important opportunity to emphasize USG support for BSEC and our
bigger objective of encouraging economic and political growth and
diversification in the Black Sea region. Turkey is working with us
to reinvigorate the organization, including by holding a seminar on
environmental pollution in the Black Sea. A visit to Turkey by a
senior official would also be an opportunity to support the
U.S.-Turkey relationship and shared interests during a testing time
in other areas. End Summary.
2. (SBU) The June 25 BSEC Summit in Istanbul will be the flagship
activity of Turkey's BSEC Chairmanship that began May 1. In
addition to formal meeting sessions, member country heads of state
and observer country foreign ministers are invited to a luncheon
hosted by PM Erdogan and dinner hosted by President Sezer.
3. (SBU) There will also be multiple opportunities for bilateral
meetings. The BSEC Secretariat and Turkish MFA have not yet
confirmed other participation, but press reports say Russian
President Putin, Greek Prime Minister Karamanlis, and Azeri
President Aliyev will attend. Ankara-based Embassies confirmed
attendance of Ukrainian President Yushchenko, Ukrainian Foreign
Minister Yatseniuk, Bulgarian President Purvanov, and Bulgarian
Foreign Minister Kalfin. We would expect high level participation
from Georgia and Armenia, but no confirmations were available.
Embassy will provide more specific information on attendance as it
becomes available.
4. (SBU) Participation by a senior Washington-based official would
recognize the United States' new observer status and our interest in
contributing to revitalizing BSEC during Turkey's Chairmanship.
This would boost this organization aimed at fostering economic
linkages and cooperation in this challenging region. By helping
Turkey build common ground during its chairmanship, we can help pull
BSEC more together and towards the Atlantic community. It would
also support the U.S.-proposed BSEC "Environmental Protection for
Economic Growth Symposium" that will be held September 12-13 in
Istanbul.
5. (SBU) Finally, visible U.S. support to BSEC would contribute to
our bilateral agenda with Turkey by showing our support for its
efforts to foster a more self-reliant region that is oriented to the
west and less vulnerable to outside pressure.
Wilson