VZCZCXRO5746
OO RUEHAG RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHLH RUEHPW RUEHROV
DE RUEHAH #0680/01 1501003
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 291003Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0887
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI PRIORITY 0333
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 3822
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING PRIORITY 1640
RUEHKL/AMEMBASSY KUALA LUMPUR PRIORITY 0140
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL PRIORITY 0038
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 1507
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL PRIORITY 2076
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 1419
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE PRIORITY 2559

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 ASHGABAT 000680 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, SCA/A, DRL, EEB, ECA 
PLEASE PASS TO USTDA DAN STEIN 
USEU FOR AMBASSADOR GRAY 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/29/2018 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ECON EPET KEDM AF TX
SUBJECT:  TURKMENISTAN:  BERDIMUHAMEDOV PLIES AND A/S 
BOUCHER WITH POSITIVE OUTLOOK 
 
REF: ASHGABAT 0677 
 
Classified By: CDA RICHARD E. HOAGLAND:  1.4 (B), (D) 
 
¶1.  (C) SUMMARY:  President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov told 
Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian 
Affairs Richard Boucher: 
 
-- Turkmenistan is committed to funding and building two new 
power stations to provide electricity to Afghanistan, and 
strongly supports the Trans-Afghanistan pipeline as a way to 
enhance stability and cooperation in Central and South Asia; 
 
-- He fully endorses the concept of a hydrocarbon-funded 
state scholarship fund for Turkmen students to study abroad, 
but the "modalities" of such a program with the United States 
"need further study"; 
 
-- He is cautiously optimistic his economic reforms are 
taking hold; and 
 
-- He sees constitutional reform as a way to enhance 
democratic values and practices in Turkmenistan. 
 
Energy issues and relations with Azerbaijan are reported 
reftel.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central 
Asian Affairs Richard Boucher met with President Gurbanguly 
Berdimuhamedov for nearly two hours on May 28.  Also present 
were Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov, 
Senior Adviser Caitlin Hayden, and Charge d'affaires. 
 
¶3.  (C) Berdimuhamedov noted Turkmenistan's priorities for 
Afghanistan are to extend its railroad into northern 
Afghanistan, provide significant amounts of new electricity, 
and push forward the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India 
natural-gas pipeline. 
 
AFGHANISTAN:  ELECTRICITY AND BORDER SECURITY 
 
¶4.  (C) Boucher expressed gratitude for Turkmenistan's 
commitment to stability, security, and reconstruction in 
Afghanistan, emphasizing the value of electricity for 
education, business, and rural development.  He added the 
United States sees roads and electricity as fundamental for 
Afghan stability.  Berdimuhamedov reconfirmed Turkmenistan's 
commitment to fund and build two new gas-fired power stations 
in Turkmenistan to provide electricity for Afghanistan.  He 
said, "As soon as USAID is ready on the Afghan side, we're 
ready to start." 
 
¶5.  (C) Berdimuhamedov said he has told Afghanistan's 
President Hamid Karzai that he needs to pay more attention to 
border control.  Berdimuhamedov said, "On the other side from 
our border, some days the Afghan government is in control, 
some days the Taliban.  The Taliban are pushing Afghans 
closer to our border.  We're providing humanitarian support, 
but the Afghans have to take more responsibility." 
 
NATURAL-GAS PIPELINE THROUGH AFGHANISTAN 
 
¶6.  (C) Expanding on the importance of the trans-Afghanistan 
pipeline, Berdimuhamedov acknowledged Turkmen gas flowing 
south would increase Turkmenistan's national income and 
support its policy of diversification of export routes.  But, 
he said, the most important reason for the pipeline is to 
 
ASHGABAT 00000680  002 OF 004 
 
 
enhance stability and cooperation in the Central-South Asian 
region.  He estimated the pipeline could produce up to $500 
million per year in transit fees for Afghanistan and produce 
about 12,000 new jobs there. 
 
¶7.  (C) Boucher asked if Turkmenistan has identified volumes 
of natural gas for the trans-Afghanistan pipeline and whether 
commercial interest in the project, one of the keys to 
success, is growing.  Berdimuhamedov responded he is 
confident that adequate volumes exist.  He noted the UK firm 
Gaffney Kline is conducting an independent audit of 
Turkmenistan reserves, information that will be made public, 
but even now he is comfortable with the current estimate that 
Turkmenistan has reserves of 24.6 trillion cubic meters apart 
from what exists in Turkmenistan's portion of the Caspian 
Sea.  He specified that the South Yolatan deposit is 
estimated to contain seven trillion cubic meters and added 
Turkmenistan has just identified another deposit 150 km 
outside of Ashgabat with an estimated 1.8 trillion cubic 
meters.  Responding to Boucher's question about commercial 
interest, Berdimuhamedov said there is increasing interest 
from India. 
 
¶8.  (C) Berdimuhamedov acknowledged that security in 
Afghanistan is a key element.  He made a pitch for his vision 
of a UN convention on pipeline security.  He said he 
understands that commercial interests are usually responsible 
for pipeline security, but "Companies come and go; pipelines 
remain.  That's why we need to guarantee long-term security." 
 He asked that the United States consider supporting his 
vision for the UN convention he's proposed. 
 
THE U.S.-TURKMENISTAN BILATERAL RELATIONSHIP 
 
¶9.  (C) Berdimuhamedov noted the large number of U.S. 
delegations that have visited Turkmenistan since his February 
2007 inauguration.  In a quick review, he praised cooperation 
on border security, student exchange programs (including 
FLEX), the Peace Corps, and the possibility of university 
linkages with Columbia University and Texas A&M University. 
Boucher said the United States, during the past 16 months has 
made about 60 proposals for cooperation:  "Several are 
especially important, for example in education."  He noted 
how valuable it would be if Turkmenistan were to establish a 
major university scholarship fund from its hydrocarbon 
revenues for up to 1,000 students per year to study in the 
United States.  We are prepared to help administer such a 
program.  Berdimuhamedov agreed this was an excellent idea. 
"My dream," he said, "is to provide our young people with the 
best access to international education to bring them into the 
modern world."  However, he added, the modalities of such a 
program will require more study. 
 
¶10.  (C) Boucher noted the United States would like to see 
the American Corner in Turkmenbashy reopened (the Turkmen 
closed it two years ago) because it would help provide 
Internet access in Turkmenbashy as well as information for 
students who want to study in the United States. 
Berdimuhamedov responded there are already several successful 
American Corners in Turkmenistan:  "We are not against them 
in principle and not against one in Turkmenbashy, but we need 
to study it more." 
 
¶11.  (C) Berdimuhamedov praised increased U.S.-Turkmenistan 
cultural cooperation and said he was pleased with the U.S. 
Embassy-produced program to teach English on state 
television.  He pointed out that he has asked state 
 
ASHGABAT 00000680  003 OF 004 
 
 
television to cover more U.S. public diplomacy events, but 
then he complained that in one recent TV report he'd noticed 
that the flag of the United States was prominently displayed, 
but Turkmenistan's flag was "hidden behind the piano." 
 
ECONOMIC REFORM 
 
¶12.  (C) In response to Boucher's question about the status 
of economic reform, Berdimuhamedov replied he had emphasized 
from his first days in office the importance of diversifying 
the economy, including building the textile industry. 
Preliminary results are encouraging, he said, but, most 
important, he wants more economic transparency and reliable 
world-standard statistics.  He noted his government is 
cooperating with the United Nations to create a model 
development plan for Balkan province that, if successful, 
could be implemented nation-wide.  When Boucher suggested a 
USAID-sponsored Investor Roadmap project might help support 
Berdimuhamedov's economic reform goals, the president replied 
there were already "quite good preliminary results" in that 
field with assistance from the European Union and the United 
Nations. 
 
POLITICAL REFORM AND HUMAN RIGHTS 
 
¶13.  (C) The assistant secretary asked Berdimuhamedov to 
discuss his vision for political development, including human 
rights.  The president expressed cautious optimism that his 
creation of new government institutes/think tanks is 
beginning to show results, especially the Institute for 
Democracy and Human Rights.  He also explained in detail the 
current process to revise the constitution, which "is 
necessary for this new period."  He emphasized the plan is to 
enhance the power of the parliament and phase out the 
unwieldy 2,500-member Peoples Council.  The president 
suggested human rights issues, like the release of prisoners 
of concern, will be enhanced because, he alleged, currently 
the Peoples Council must approve prisoner releases.  He said, 
"We will do more, go further."  (COMMENT:  We judge the 
president is disingenuous when he lays the blame for slow 
prisoner release at the door of the Peoples Council, 
especially since the current Peoples Council is simply a 
rubber-stamp for presidential decrees and government policy. 
END COMMENT.)  Boucher noted the government is making 
important efforts in the area of human rights, and encouraged 
tghem to work with the Organization for Security and 
Cooperation in Europe, the UN, technical experts from the 
United States and other nations, and with nongovernment 
organizations, like Human Rights Watch. 
 
¶14.  (C) Berdimuhamedov acknowledged rumors that the new 
constitution might extend the presidential term from five to 
seven years.  He said, "I'll stay neutral on that.  Let 
others decide.  Most important, I do not want to violate 
international standards." 
 
¶15.  (SBU) NOTE:  Berdimuhamedov's read-out of his May 9-10 
official visit to Baku is reported septel.  END NOTE. 
 
¶16.  (C) COMMENT:  After nearly a year and a half in office, 
Berdimuhamedov is increasingly self-assured.  As always, he 
was well-briefed and conversed without prepared talking 
points.  Clearly indicating his desire for a strong 
relationship with the United States, he emphasized the 
positive and glossed over some of the problem areas.  END 
COMMENT. 
 
 
ASHGABAT 00000680  004 OF 004 
 
 
¶17.  (U)  Assistant Secretary Boucher has cleared this cable. 
HOAGLAND