VZCZCXRO7634
RR RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHCH #0401/01 1001435
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 091435Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY CHISINAU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6548
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CHISINAU 000401 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/UMB 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/08/2018 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PBTS NATO MD
SUBJECT: FM STRATAN:  SEES PROGRESS ON TRANSNISTRIA; IS UNHAPPY ABOUT 
NATO CENTER 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Michael D. Kirby for reasons 1.4(b) and (d) 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  In an April 8 meeting with the Ambassador Foreign 
Minister Stratan discussed President Voronin's recent phone call to 
Transnistrian leader Smirnov, the NATO Summit, resignation of the 
NATO Documentation center leader and the EU Action Plan.  The 
Ambassador asked whether the GOM would welcome a USG initiative to 
meet with Smirnov, and Stratan was supportive, promising to raise the 
questions with President Voronin.  Stratan was bitter about Romania's 
role in the NATO Documentation Center, and said he hopes Lithuania 
will replace Romania as Moldova's NATO contact point. 
 
Opening Dialog with Smirnov 
--------------------------- 
 
¶2. (C) Stratan confirmed that President Voronin had spoken on the 
phone with Smirnov on April 7, and that the two would probably meet 
soon.  Stratan viewed this conversation as positive proof of the 
president's efforts to reinvigorate the 5 plus 2 process.  The 
Ambassador mentioned that David Merkel would arrive in Moldova April 
13 and go to Odessa for the informal 5 plus 2 meeting.  He said that 
we had asked for an April 14 meeting. 
 
¶3. (C) The Ambassador noted that he had never met with Transnistrian 
"President" Smirnov, but suggested that given the need for progress 
on 5 plus 2, such a meeting might be useful.  He inquired about the 
GOM reaction to such an initiative.  Stratan responded that he did 
not think it would be badly received by the Moldovan leadership, if 
the Ambassador and/or David Merkel were to meet with Smirnov. 
Stratan promised to check with President Voronin, but expressed his 
confidence that any such initiative undertaken by the Ambassador 
would be to the benefit of Moldova.  Moldova needs to use all its 
possibilities to solve the Transnistrian problem, he said. 
 
NATO Summit a Success, NATO Center a Problem 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (C) Stratan thanked the USG for ensuring that Moldova's issue of 
the continued presence Russian troops on its and Georgia's soil was 
included in the final document.  He viewed the summit as a success 
for Moldova.  While in Bucharest, Voronin met with Ukrainian 
President Yushchenko and the two agreed that the latter would visit 
Moldova April 25-27.   Ukrainian Foreign Minister Ogryzko is expected 
to visit Chisinau on April 14. 
 
¶5. (C) However, Stratan complained bitterly about the situation with 
the NATO documentation center.  The Ambassador expressed his concern 
about reports that MFA personnel had forced the resignation of the 
head of the center.  (Note: The Romanians recently informed us that 
MFA representative Dumitriu Rusnac repeatedly threatened center head 
Gorincioi urging him to quit.  End Note.)  Stratan complained that 
under Mr. Gorincioi, the NATO Information Center had been turned into 
a center for representing Romanian political interests, rather than 
NATO.  Stratan said that the Moldovan Ambassador in Brussels had been 
working on letting NATO know that this center was a problem.  He was 
working on a letter to the NATO SYG asking for an open competition 
for a new director for the center. 
 
¶6. (C) Additionally Stratan noted that the GOM had asked NATO to 
change the NATO contact point, so that it would not be Romania any 
more.  He said that the Lithuanians had agreed to take up this role, 
but that there was not agreement that they would do so.  The 
Ambassador promised to raise this issue with the Lithuanians, and 
suggested that it would be useful for the MFA to invite 
representatives from NATO Embassies in Chisinau and present its 
position.  (Note:  In a separate conversation later in the day, 
Lithuanian representatives confirmed that they had expressed 
willingness to be Moldova's NATO contact point; a Lithuanian Defense 
Attache is expected to arrive in Chisinau in September.  End note.) 
 
Good Report Card from the EU 
---------------------------- 
 
¶7. (C) Stratan expressed his satisfaction with the EU report of 
Moldova's fulfillment of the EU-Moldova Action Plan, putting Moldova 
in the top four of twelve countries.  He was pleased with recognition 
that Moldova had accomplished a great deal in the past three years. 
Stratan gave credit to the USG, suggesting that part of Moldova's 
recent success with the EU is the result of its relationship with the 
United States.  The Ambassador underscored that the U.S. and EU want 
to see the same results.  Though both have noted the passage of many 
new laws in Moldova, both the U.S. and the EU agree that Moldova had 
to better implement the many laws it had passed.  Stratan underscored 
Moldova's intention to improve its implementation of laws.  He also 
stressed Moldova's commitment to the European path.  However, he was 
concerned that despite Moldova's progress on a range of issues 
including a visa facilitation agreement and on trade questions, 
Chisinau might be set aside by the EU, which would never let Moldova 
move faster towards EU membership than Ukraine. 
 
 
CHISINAU 00000401  002 OF 002 
 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶8. (C) The Voronin-Smirnov phone call represents a genuine step 
forward, which could create improved conditions for resumption of 
talks, but many stumbling blocks still remain in the way of progress. 
 
¶9. (C) Stratan seemed genuinely irritated by Romania's role in the 
NATO Documentation Center and implied that - in part - the center's 
chief was forced out because he was crooked.  For Stratan seemingly, 
the icing on the cake was that Gorincioi was the brother-in-law of a 
prominent member of the opposition.  The Ambassador encouraged 
Stratan to provide local NATO embassies with enough information on 
the NATO Documentation Center-GOM conflict for us to understand that 
the MFA's actions not be taken as anti-NATO inspired.  In any case, 
Lithuanian assumption of the NATO contact-point slot can only be good 
for NATO-Moldova relations. 
 
KIRBY