VZCZCXRO6637
RR RUEHDBU RUEHLN RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHAH #1322/01 3631323
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 291323Z DEC 06
FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8172
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 001322 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR INR/R/MR, IIP/T, IIP/G/NEA-SA, SA 
SCA/CEN, SCA/PAB, SCA/INS, SCA/RA, SCA/PPD, DRL 
CENTCOM PUBLIC AFFAIRS-MAJ.BALDWIN/SGT. BAKER 
USCINCPAC FOR POLAD R. HUSO 
SECDEF FOR PA 
 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KMDR KPAO OIIP PREL PGOV AF TX
SUBJECT:  NEW GOVERNMENT OF TURKMENISTAN REBUKES RUSSIA FOR 
"PROVOCATION" 
 
REFERENCE:  ASHGABAT 1311 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1.  (U) Turkmenistan's Minister of Foreign Affairs on December 28 
publicly denounced the Russian media for assertions that the 
recently announced February 11 election was a farce and that state 
services have broken down because of a power vacuum following 
Niyazov's death.  Local media continues to reinforce reverence for 
Niyazov, as well as preparations for the February 11 presidential 
elections.  End Summary. 
 
HALK MASLAHATY SESSION STRESSES STABILITY 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (U) The Halk Maslahaty session of December 26 was four hours of 
well-intentioned, though quaintly orchestrated, theater, aimed 
mostly at foreign consumption.  A succession of speakers, including 
Foreign Minister Rashit Meredov, Acting President Gurbanguly 
Berdimuhammedov, and Elections Committee head Murat Garryev stressed 
stability and urged the seamless continuation of Niyazov's policies. 
 The tedious nominations process ended with the expected nomination 
of Berdimuhammedov, followed by Garryev's and Meredov's appeal to 
"follow the law, even though we already know who we want to be our 
president."  Several times during the session, state television 
panned over the faces of the diplomatic corps, and took pull-aside 
interviews during the session with select heads of missions.  State 
television aired in full a statement in English, with largely 
accurate Russian voice-over, by Charge, in which she reiterated U.S. 
condolences over the loss of President Niyazov, U.S. hopes for a new 
relationship and for a peaceful and democratic transition of power. 
 
 
Foreign Ministry Rebukes Russian Media 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶3.  (U) Foreign press reacted swiftly and negatively to the December 
26 meeting, particularly the constitutional changes granting the 
Interim President the right to run in elections, and the staged 
endorsement of Berdimuhammedov for the presidency.  Russian press 
carried interviews with members of the opposition, including threats 
of a coup by Kyiv-based opposition leaders when it was clear that 
the opposition would play no role in the election.  (Note:  Since 
2003, the constitution of Turkmenistan has required that aspiring 
presidential candidates be resident in Turkmenistan for 10 years 
prior to nomination -- a fact the opposition has not contested in 
the past.  This requirement bars any of the expatriate opposition 
leadership from running in the February 11 election.  End Note.) 
Russian political analysts also suggested that Akmyrad Rejepov, the 
head of the Presidential Security Forces, held the upper hand in 
behind the scenes political maneuvering in Ashgabat. 
 
¶4.  (U) On December 28, Turkmen State Television went to the unusual 
step of airing Foreign Minister Rashit Meredov making a statement, 
read in Russian and Turkmen, rebuking Russia for "the insulting 
statements and articles of the so-called political scientists on the 
alleged military coup in Turkmenistan and illegitimate transfer of 
power" and for allowing its media to print "explicitly provocative 
reports."  The statement, printed in the December 29 editions of 
major dailies Neutral Turkmenistan and Turkmenistan, went on: "The 
situation all over the country is calm and stable.  All enterprises 
and organizations are functioning normally.  The population of the 
country is provided with food, medicines and other necessary 
conditions for normal life.  The welfare payments, salaries and 
pensions are being paid in full and on time, and social service is 
available to all."  According to Interfax, Turkmenistan's Ambassador 
to Russia delivered that message to the Russian Foreign Ministry on 
December 28 in a meeting between Turkmenistan's Ambassador to 
Russian and the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister.  Turkmenistan's 
Ambassador emphasized that the criticism was directed at Russian 
media: "some Russian outlets are not objective in covering the 
events in today's Turkmenistan, they manifestly violate norms of 
journalistic ethics commenting on moments concerning the private 
lives of Turkmen leaders."  Interfax and Itar-Tass carried the 
conciliatory response from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
that Russia was a "reliable friend" of Turkmenistan, and that 
Russian media does not reflect the official views of the Russian 
government. 
 
¶5.  (U) The local stringer for Itar-Tass played down the the 
statement, saying it had been prepared prior to the December 26 Halk 
Maslahaty session and that it mirrored messages delivered to 
individual journalists and the Russian government during Niyazov's 
reign.  However, this was the first time such a rebuke appeared in 
 
ASHGABAT 00001322  002 OF 002 
 
 
Turkmenistan's state press.  The local stringer for Agence France 
Presse told PD FSN that the statement was inevitable; a lack of 
response would indicate weakness on the part of the Government of 
Turkmenistan. 
 
Some Criticize USG as "passive" 
------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (U) Although most U.S. media outlets reported the events of the 
Halk Maslahaty accurately, a couple of outlets printed stories 
accusing Washington of inaction over -- or complicity in -- 
Turkmenistan's flawed electoral process.  The Florida-based Online 
Journal ran the story "Washington's Game in Turkmenistan," in which 
the author wildly speculated about the USG's role in engineering 
Niyazov's death in order to consolidate control over the region's 
energy supplies.  The Washington Post ran a story by Peter Finn 
reiterating opposition leader Khudaiberdy Orazov's complaints over 
Western passivity:  "The E.U. and the United States imposed 
sanctions on Belarus after flawed presidential elections there last 
year.  Turkmenistan, which is rich in natural gas and offers a 
potential alternative to supplies from Russia, has escaped that kind 
of collective action." 
 
¶7.  (U) Coverage of the United States' December 27 statement in 
support for a free and fair election was scant, but Voice of America 
summarized the statement and and stated that the U.S. was avoiding 
direct criticism of the elections process. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶8.  (U) International media coverage of the December 26 Halk 
Maslahaty session and news of a February 11 presidential election 
was relatively accurate but Russian media provided conspicuously 
heavy coverage of conspiracy theories and reprinted inflammatory 
statements by members of Turkmenistan's exiled opposition groups. 
Turkmenistan's public criticism of Russia was significant and a 
positive sign; though the new government cannot afford to alienate 
the main customer for Turkmenistan's gas.  End Comment. 
 
BRUSH