This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

S E C R E T  SOFIA 000548 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
FOR THE SECRETARY FROM AMBASSADOR PARDEW 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/21/2015 
TAGS: PREL PGOV MOPS MARR EFIN LY IZ BU EUN
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR VISIT TO WASHINGTON OF BULGARIAN 
FOREIGN MINISTER SOLOMON PASSY 
 
REF: A) SOFIA 0524 B) SOFIA 0436 C) 04 SOFIA 2054 
     (NOTAL) D) 04 SOFIA 2261 D) 
 
Classified By: Ambassador James Pardew, reasons 1.5(b) and (d). 
 
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SUMMARY 
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 ¶1. (C) SUMMARY.  Bulgarian Foreign Minister Solomon Passy's 
meeting with you on March 25 is an opportunity to shape 
Bulgaria's commitment to the Iraq coalition as the government 
searches for an exit strategy.  Passy has consistently been 
the most pro-American voice in this government on the full 
range of bilateral relations.  Though he will certainly raise 
other issues, his primary purpose in requesting a meeting 
with you is to secure an invitation to the White House before 
Bulgaria's June 25 elections for the former king and current 
Prime Minister, Simeon Saxe-Coburg Gotha.  We support a 
Simeon-POTUS meeting because it is in our interest to see 
Simeon's party do well in the upcoming elections, and because 
it will help the government shore up support for its policy 
on Iraq.  Passy and the government he represents now view 
every issue through the lens of the June elections, which the 
opposition Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) would win if they 
were held today.  The Socialists have made Bulgaria's 
withdrawal from Iraq a major campaign theme.  The most recent 
opinion poll shows that roughly two-thirds of the Bulgarian 
population favors withdrawal from Iraq either immediately or 
right after the June elections.  This, combined with the 
killing of another Bulgarian soldier on March 4 , has put the 
government on the defensive and led it to seek ways to 
neutralize the war in Iraq as a campaign issue (refs A-B). 
 
¶2. (C) The Council of Ministers is set to discuss an exit 
strategy at its next meeting on March 24, and to decide the 
issue on March 31.  Despite our repeated, high-level 
recommendation that the government avoid a date certain and 
instead focus on conditions in Iraq, the government may reach 
a decision to withdraw Bulgarian forces from Iraq at the end 
of 2005, when the fifth Bulgarian battalion completes its 
scheduled six-month rotation.  Passy will be seeking concrete 
"deliverables" from the U.S. that the ruling party can use 
with the electorate to counter the perception that this 
government has received nothing in return for its sacrifices 
in Iraq.  Deputy Secretary Zoellick will meet with President 
Purvanov, the Prime Minister and Passy in Sofia on March 30. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
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WHAT PASSY WANTS 
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¶3. (C) This government has felt for months that its 
contributions to the Coalition in Iraq and the broader war on 
terrorism are under-appreciated by the U.S. (refs C-D). 
Passy is likely to repeat the theme that his government needs 
concrete benefits to show Bulgarian voters that their country 
is a valuable member of the Coalition.  In the past, this 
list included reconstruction contracts for Bulgarian 
companies, repayment of Iraqi debt, inclusion in the Visa 
Waiver Program, negotiation of a treaty on the avoidance of 
double taxation, and help with the release of the Bulgarian 
medics in Libya.  Passy is realistic enough to know that debt 
repayment and  the visa waiver are probably non-starters at 
this point, but that will not stop him from pressing for a 
concrete demonstration of U.S. support.  At the top of his 
list will be a White House meeting for the Prime Minister. 
Simeon badly wants such a meeting, and has approached us 
through Passy and other trusted confidants.  The Prime 
Minister knows that President Purvanov beat him to the punch 
by formally requesting a meeting with President Bush through 
Bulgaria's ambassador in Washington last January.  Purvanov, 
the former leader of the BSP, has taken a responsible 
position on Iraq and also deserves a meeting.  However, we do 
not recommend a Parvanov visit until after the Bulgarian 
elections, because a White House meeting would give a 
political boost to the Socialists 
 
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WHAT'S DRIVING THE GOVERNMENT 
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¶4. (C) Simeon's interest in meeting POTUS is two-fold: to 
dispel the notion that Bulgaria is not a valued ally of the 
United States, and to help close the gap between his party 
and the Socialists on the eve of elections.  We see both 
 
 
goals as being in the U.S. interest.  First, a White House 
meeting at this stage in the domestic debate over Iraq will 
help shore up support for a significant Bulgarian presence in 
Iraq, at least until key political milestones are reached. 
And second, closing the gap between the Prime Minister's 
party and the Socialists favors our interests after June 25. 
Inside the government, the Prime Minister's party will be a 
force for continuity in foreign policy.  While a Socialist 
victory would not be a total disaster for us, it would make 
our job much more difficult on a wide range of issues we care 
about. 
 
 
¶5. (C)  The current government has a record that most 
politicians would be glad to run on:  steady five-percent 
economic growth, low inflation, falling unemployment, a 
stable currency, booming real estate and tourism sectors, 
NATO membership, the best relationship with the U.S. in 
Bulgaria's history, and -- as of April 25 -- the signing of 
Bulgaria's EU Accession Treaty.  Yet they have so far been 
unable to translate these successes into electoral support, 
in part because they are a new party without strong 
grassroots organization and in part because the Prime 
Minister himself is remarkably passive.  If Passy complains 
about the need for deliverables to shore up public support, 
you can point out that an effective domestic campaign is more 
important to their political future than a single meeting. 
 
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ISSUES YOU SHOULD RAISE 
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¶6. (C) The U.S. military's investigation into the killing of 
Bulgarian Sergeant Gurdi Gurdev on March 4 is not complete as 
of this writing, but you should express our condolences for 
this, the eighth Bulgarian soldier killed in Iraq.  You 
should praise Passy for Bulgaria's deployment of troops in 
Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo, and Bosnia, as well as their 
initial contribution of five trainers to the NATO mission in 
Iraq.  Bulgaria will also take over responsibility for 
security of the Kabul airport in 2006. 
 
¶7. (C) On Iraq, you should encourage Passy to link Bulgaria's 
withdrawal to a set of conditions in Iraq, rather an 
arbitrary date certain.  In Sofia we have advised them to 
link their strategy to the approval of a constitution, the 
holding of parliamentary elections under that constitution 
and the development of the Iraqi security forces.  In the 
meantime, they should maintain their battalion-strength 
capability in Diwania and start planning for a significant 
increase in their contribution to the NATO training mission. 
 
¶8. (S) You should note that cooperation between our 
intelligence services in the global war on terrorism has been 
extraordinary. 
 
¶9. (C) You should assure Passy that we will follow through 
vigorously on our efforts to secure the release of six 
Bulgarian nurses held in Libya for seven years on charges of 
infecting some 400 children with HIV.  This is an issue that 
touches ordinary Bulgarians deeply, and it is hard to imagine 
an area where the U.S. could potentially gain more goodwill 
with Bulgarians across the political spectrum.  It is also an 
area where we have been forthcoming.  Passy will thank you 
for U.S. support and Ambassador Bill Burns' personal 
attention to this issue.  Finally, the one area where this 
government has fallen short of expectations is in 
strengthening the rule of law.  Corruption and organized 
crime are endemic here, and the government has done little to 
stem the tide.  If there is a shortcoming that could hamper 
Bulgaria's political and economic development, this is it. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Deputy Secretary Zoellick will meet in Sofia March 
30 with the President Purvanov, the Prime Minister and Passy.