VZCZCXRO9025
OO RUEHDBU
DE RUEHEK #1733/01 3411300
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 071300Z DEC 06 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY BISHKEK
TO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING IMMEDIATE 1838
RUEHDBU/AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE IMMEDIATE 1411
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL IMMEDIATE 0289
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8678
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE IMMEDIATE 2250
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK IMMEDIATE 1635
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO BRUSSELS BE IMMEDIATE
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS IMMEDIATE
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP IMMEDIATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BISHKEK 001733 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/09/2015 
TAGS: PGOV PREL MARR KG
SUBJECT: PRESIDENT CALLS IN AMBASSADOR OVER 12/6 SHOOTING 
INCIDENT 
 
REF: A. A) BISHKEK 1732 
     ¶B. B) BISHKEK 1722 
 
BISHKEK 00001733  001.4 OF 002 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch, for reasons 1.4 (c) AND 
 (d). 
 
¶1.    (C) Summary.  On December 7, President Bakiyev called 
in the Ambassador to discuss the December 6 shooting incident 
at the Manas Air Force Base.  He requested that the U.S. keep 
the Airman who shot the Kyrgyz national in the country until 
the end of the investigation and that no constraints be put 
on the investigation.  The President said he wants to amend 
the bilateral MOU so that U.S. airmen no longer have 
immunity, but are subject to Kyrgyz law.  Later the MFA sent 
a diplomatic note "demanding" the U.S. government lift the 
immunity of the Airman who shot the Kyrgyz truck driver.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.    (C)  On December 7, President Bakiyev called in the 
Ambassador to discuss the December 6 shooting incident at the 
Manas Air Force Base (ref A).  Ambassador was accompanied by 
Commander of the Base, Colonel Scott Reese.  The President 
was accompanied by Presidential Chief of Staff Abdyldayev and 
Foreign Policy Advisor Ibragimov.  The meeting was 
approximately 40 minutes and media was present for the first 
fifteen minutes 
 
PRESIDENT WANTS TO CHANGE MOU; MFA WANTS USG TO LIFT AIRMAN's 
IMMUNITY 
--------------------------------------------- ----------------- 
 
¶3.  (C) The President opened by asking the Ambassador to 
explain what had happened.  He requested that the U.S. keep 
the Airman who shot the Kyrgyz national in the country until 
the end of the investigation and that no constraints be put 
on the investigation.  The President said he had asked 
Abdildayev and the Foreign Ministry to review the 2001 
Diplomatic Exchange of Notes (which constitutes our MOU) with 
a view to changing the terms of the presence of the military 
at the Air Base.  Specifically, he said Kyrgyzstan wants the 
U.S. military to be subject to Kyrgyz law.  Although the 
President did not raise this, later the Embassy received a 
diplomatic note "demanding" the U.S. government lift the 
immunity of the Airman, and retaining the right to full 
compensation (Bishkek 1732). 
 
FRUSTRATION OVER LACK OF PROGRESS ON AIR COLLISION 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶4.  (C) The President noted that this is not the first 
incident and recalled that several years ago, Base personnel 
were involved in a car accident in which two Kyrgyz women 
died.  He raised the September airplane collision and noted 
that the U.S. has not provided its report and "nothing has 
happened."  At this point, the media departed and the 
President acknowledged that all of the incidents were 
accidents, but stated that when there is a crime, people need 
to answer for it.  Bakiyev said the public would not 
understand what happened in the shooting incident and that 
the Kyrgyz government has "no control" and "cannot influence" 
the process. 
 
FRUSTRATION OVER INABILITY TO BRING AIRMAN TO JUSTICE 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶5.  (C) The President said that the knife that the victim had 
was small, and he could not understand why it was necessary 
to shoot him.  He continued that he would understand the 
victim's death if Kyrgyzstan was at war, but the Kyrgyz are 
not fighting.  The Kyrgyz have provided a Base to help the 
U.S. in the fight against terrorists in Afghanistan, but 
"what happens is that a Kyrgyz citizen dies."  "I am the 
President, and I cannot allow this," he said.  Acknowledging 
that the investigation continues, he said he still doesn't 
understand why two shots were necessary, and wondered why the 
Airman did not shoot to wound.  He concluded that there is a 
sense in Kyrgyzstan that U.S. military members believe they 
can do whatever they want, and that they are unaccountable. 
 
BISHKEK 00001733  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
 
AMBASSADOR RESPONDS 
------------------- 
 
¶6.    (C)  Ambassador conveyed her regret that the incident 
took place and her condolences to the President and the 
family.  She said that OSI and MVD had established a joint 
investigation and were working together cooperatively.  She 
said that the Airman falls under the Military Code of Justice 
and there would be a courtmartial if there is reason to 
believe that the Airman acted improperly.  She noted that the 
Base would be reviewing its procedures.  When the media 
departed, she provided a description of the self-defense 
shooting incident.  Regarding the air collision, she said the 
Accident Investigation Board(AIB) is finalizing its report; 
the process is detailed and in-depth, and therefore 
time-consuming.  Ambassador said that she had not seen the 
AIB report, but understood there might be discrepancies with 
the Kyrgyz report; the U.S. would seek to present a 
constructive way forward when we share the AIB report with 
the Minister of Transportation. 
 
¶7.  (C) Ambassador noted that the Air Force is committed to 
safety and over the years has made substantial improvements 
at the Manas Airport with safety in mind.  After the 
collision, the working level immediately made certain 
changes, she said.  In addition, Base leadership and Kyrgyz 
counterparts were slated to meet to discuss safety issues 
later in the day, and on December 11 the Head of CENTAF 
Safety would meet with MIA and KAN. Ambassador thanked the 
President for his partnership in the fight against terrorism 
and his partnership in the investigation.  She concluded that 
the U.S. wanted to be a good partner to Kyrgyzstan and a good 
guest in Kyrgyzstan. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶8.  (C) The President focused on two issues.  One is cultural 
and reflects the difference in how Americans and Kyrgyz fight 
and train.  The Kyrgyz - from the President on down - do not 
understand why a warning shot wasn't fired, why two shots 
were necessary, why deadly force was used at all.  In this 
incident, Americans perceive that the victim posed a threat; 
to the Kyrgyz, the shooting incident demonstrates that it is 
Kyrgyz civilians who are at risk by having armed U.S. service 
members at the airport. 
 
¶9.  (C) The second issue is  frustration at what the Kyrgyz 
perceive to be U.S. lack of cooperation on issues related to 
the base, and the Kyrgyz inability to influence our 
processes.  In this shooting incident, Kyrgyz lack of 
sovereignty is clearly also a factor.  The President's 
discussion of the air collision incident, which we were led 
to believe would be a central part of the conversation, 
turned out to be more of an aside and was cited as an example 
of a pattern of U.S. behavior that the Kyrgyz perceive to 
demonstrate U.S. indifference to Kyrgyz concerns. 
 
¶10.  (C) The President called in the Ambassador at least in 
part to demonstrate that he is on top of things and defending 
Kyrgyz citizens.  However, it is unlikely that the issue will 
fade away, especially since a sharply worded diplomatic note 
"demands" that we revoke the Airman's immunity, and "insists" 
that the Airman not leave Kyrgyzstan.  While the former is a 
non-starter, we can appear responsive by not transferring the 
Airman from Manas for at least the next 2-3 weeks, by which 
time the OSI anticipates having completed their interviews 
and all the investigative work except for the lab analyses 
that will need to be conducted in the U.S.  Longer term, we 
are expecting the MFA to follow up soon with a request to 
amend the MOU on the question of immunity.    How we respond 
to each of these issues will do much to shape our further 
engagement. 
YOVANOVITCH