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C O N F I D E N T I A L USNATO 000053 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/03/2020 
TAGS: PREL NATO MOPS PGOV MARR EUN
SUBJECT: NATO: AMBASSADORIAL REVOLT LIKELY TO KILL SECGEN'S 
INFORMAL GROUP ON NATO-EU 
 
REF: A. A. USNATO 516 
     ¶B. B. STATE 4074 
 
Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission John Heffern.  Reasons 1.4 (b) a 
nd (d). 
 
¶1. (C) SUMMARY:  On February 3, many NATO Ambassadors 
protested against the Secretary General's establishment of an 
informal group (ref a) on NATO-EU relations.  As a result, we 
anticipate that this group will end, at least in its current 
form.  The group did not make concrete progress but did allow 
frank exchanges on sensitive issues.  The U.S. representative 
promoted establishment of the informal NATO-EU "High Level 
Group" and practical arrangements for ISAF support to EUPOL 
in Afghanistan (ref b).  END SUMMARY 
 
¶2. (C) On February 3, more than a dozen NATO Ambassadors, led 
by Belgium, protested against the Secretary General's 
establishment of an informal 8-9 Ally group (ref a) on 
NATO-EU relations.  While the SYG's next step is not clear, 
we anticipate that this group will end, at least in its 
current form.  Allied complaints focused on the group's lack 
of transparency and inclusiveness.  Everyone acknowledges 
that there are many informal and ad hoc groups of Allies 
meeting on issues in small formats.  What triggered this 
revolt was that the SYG's office initiated the group and 
selected the participants (U.S., UK, France, Germany, Turkey, 
Greece, Canada, Norway, and Spain). 
 
¶3. (C) The group met four times between November and January. 
 While no concrete progress was achieved, the informal 
setting and uninstructed dialogue allowed frank exchanges on 
sensitive issues, including Cyprus, informal NATO-EU 
meetings, Turkish interest in participating in the European 
Defense Agency, NATO-EU cooperation under "Berlin-plus," and 
practical cooperation in Afghanistan.  Three new papers were 
circulated in the group: one list of potential areas of 
cooperation by the International Staff; one "personal paper" 
by the UK rep; and one by Canada.  We have sent the three 
papers to USEU, State/RPM, OSD/NATO and the NSC. 
 
¶4. (C) The U.S. representative pushed the group in two main 
areas.   We pushed for near term establishment of the "High 
Level Group," recommended in a French paper last year and 
endorsed, with conditions, in a Turkish paper.  The informal 
NATO-EU group could include the Secretary General, 
SACEUR/DSACEUR, Chairman of the Military Committee and 
Director of the International Military Staff on the NATO side 
and the EU High Representative, EU Operational Commander, EU 
Commission (an important addition), and EU Military Committee 
Chairman.  Now that the new EU team is in place, Secretary 
General Rasmussen wants to launch this group and all Allies, 
except Turkey, strongly support him.  Turkey remains cautious 
on all informal NATO-EU groups.  However, based partly on the 
discussions of the nine-country group, we believe, in the 
end, Ankara will accept and, hopefully, try to make use of 
this high level NATO-EU contact. 
 
¶5. (C) The second area that we pushed (ref b) was for 
practical arrangements for ISAF support to EUPOL in 
Afghanistan.  We argued that as the EU consolidates its 
police training presence in population centers there might be 
scope for ISAF, under its existing operational plan, to 
enhance its current level of informal security support.  No 
one in the group explicitly opposed this cooperation, 
although the Turkish representative (please protect) urged 
that any such cooperation be framed broadly to include the 
United Nations and other international organizations.  If the 
cooperation is presented explicitly as a NATO-EU project, 
Ankara will insist that Berlin-plus arrangements apply and 
the cooperation will stop (Note: We are currently working 
quietly on a bilateral basis with the Turkish Delegation to 
NATO to find a workable formula.  End note.). 
HEFFERN