VZCZCXRO5995
OO RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHRO #1588/01 1441337
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 241337Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY ROME
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4902
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHFL/AMCONSUL FLORENCE PRIORITY 1428
RUEHMIL/AMCONSUL MILAN PRIORITY 7146
RUEHNP/AMCONSUL NAPLES PRIORITY 1498
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC WASHDC PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 001588 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/30/2016 
TAGS: PREL PGOV IT MW SR YI
SUBJECT: ITALY WANTS TO BE MONTENEGRO'S MOST INFLUENTIAL EU 
PARTNER 
 
 
ROME 00001588  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
Classified By: Classified by Gabriel Escobar, Political Officer, for re 
asons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
¶1. (C) Summary.  Immediately after the Montenegrin referendum 
on independence, Raimondo De Cardona, director of the Balkans 
office of the MFA, told the Serbia and Montenegro ambassador 
Darko Uskokovic that Italy wants to become Montenegro's 
strongest EU partner and added that Montenegrin President 
Filip Vujanovic would be invited to visit Italy as soon as 
possible.  De Cardona told Uskokovic that the Contact Group 
is unified in its commitment to continue to press for a 
status solution on Kosovo despite the results of the 
Montenegrin referendum and that Italy would take no action on 
the Kostunica/Tadic letter asking for a change in negotiation 
format on Kosovo.  End Summary. 
 
Italian MFA: Ready to Work with Montenegro, Kosovo Still on 
Track 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶2. (C) Darko Uskokovic, SAM ambassador and close Montenegrin 
confidat to Montenegrin PM Milo Djukanovic told poloff that 
he had a two hour meeting with De Cardona after his weekend 
trip to Montenegro to vote in the referendum.  De Cardona 
told Uskokovic that the GOI welcomed the democratic and 
transparent referendum process and expected that the official 
results would confirm a victory for the independence bloc. 
De Cardona told Uskokovic that the GOI wanted to be the most 
influential EU partner for an independent Montenegro.  Italy 
would sign onto the joint EU message welcoming Montenegrin 
independence but made its own national statement welcoming 
the result and encouraging close coordination on succession 
issues between Montenegro and Serbia.  De Cardona also stated 
that the GOI would extend a formal invitation to Montenegrin 
PM Filip Vujanovic to visit Rome immediately after formal 
independence (Note: The Italian MFA has been stalling for 
over a year on a request by the GOM to arrange a visit to 
Italy by Vujanovic.  No GOM official has made an official 
visit to Rome in over 3 years, while both Kostunica and Tadic 
have been welcomed in the past year.) 
 
¶3. (C) De Cardona told Uskokovic that due to a change in 
Foreign Minister he could not confirm when or how an Italian 
ambassador would be appointed to Montenegro and asked 
Uskokovic to communicate to the Montenegrin Government that a 
dual accreditation of its ambassador in Belgrade was not a 
sign of its unwillingness to begin immediately working on 
bilateral relations with Podgorica. 
 
¶4. (C) De Cardona told Uskokovic that the Contact Group 
remained unified on the question on the question of Kosovo 
and the results of the Montenegrin referendum would not 
affect the timing or the format of the discussions.  The GOI 
had recently received a letter from Kostunica and Tadic 
asking for a change in the format of the negotiations.  De 
Cardona stated that the GOI would not respond to the letter 
and fully supported the work of Ahtisaari.  (Note: Uskokovic 
told poloff that Kostunica and Tadic would soon formally 
request the Contact Group to replace Ahtisaari. End Note.) 
 
Somber Mood in Embassy of Serbia and Montenegro 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶5. (C) Uskokovic expected to be removed from his position 
shortly after the official results are announced, at which 
time he would request agremont as the Montenegrin 
representative.  Upon his return from Montenegro, Uskokovic 
requested that his staff refrain from any open or public 
sentiment either for or against Montenegrin independence and 
forbade the display of Montenegrin flags in work spaces.  He 
said employees watched Monday's press conferences and news in 
silence - recognizing that the country they represent would 
soon cease to exist. Uskokovic overheard a Serbian employee 
tell a Montenegrin member of the staff, "Congratulations on 
the independence of Montenegro", to which the Montenegrin 
replied, "Congratulations on the independence of Serbia." 
 
¶6. (C) Comment.  Despite occasional private concerns about 
the timing and public message on the Kosovo status issue, the 
GOI remains firm in its commitment to communicate a message 
of Contact Group unity to the SAM government.  Additionally, 
after years of opposing Montenegrin independence, Italy's 
intention to immediately establish itself as Montenegro's 
most important EU partner underscores its commitment to the 
Balkans and its insistence on taking a leadership role in the 
region. 
 
ROME 00001588  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
SPOGLI