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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ASHGABAT 001053 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, EUR/ACE, EEB, DRL, ECA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/01/2017 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ECON EPET SCUL KPAO KIRF TX
SUBJECT: TURKMENISTAN PRESIDENT PLEASED WITH NEW YORK TRIP; 
NEXT STEPS 
 
 
Classified By: CHARGE RICHARD E. HOAGLAND FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D) 
 
¶1.  (C) SUMMARY:  According to Foreign Minister Meredov, 
President Berdimuhamedov left New York with a strongly 
positive reaction to his bilateral, business, and UN 
meetings.  Meredov said the president asked him to thank the 
United States for its high level of professionalism in 
organization and protocol.  The president,s two events at 
Columbia University further cemented his view of the value of 
educational exchanges and his desire for a U.S. university 
presence in Ashgabat.  One unplanned meeting Meredov singled 
out was with a senior executive from Midland Oil.  As a 
result of te trip, Meredov said, we have two deliverables to 
work on:  the president,s proposal to Secretary Rice, to 
which she had agreed, to establish a bilateral energy working 
group of legal and technical experts; and the possibility of 
establishing a U.S.-Turkmenistan business council as a result 
of the president,s business luncheon sponsored by the 
Eurasia Group.  Action Request:  Please see para 14.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Charge met with Foreign Minister Rashit Meredov 
September 28 for a read-out of President Gurbanguly 
Berdimuhamedov,s September 23-27 visit to New York for the 
UN General Assembly.  Meredov passed along the president,s 
thanks to the U.S. side for the excellent organization and 
protocol of the visit.  Meredov said, "We learned a lot from 
it."  The respectful and positive atmosphere, especially in 
the meeting with Secretary Rice, "will lead to the further 
development of relations and will advance legal and 
democratic reform in Turkmenistan."  Meredov judged the most 
important result of the visit is that the president is more 
than ever convinced of the value of educational exchanges. 
 
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY:  THE VALUE OF EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGES 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Meredov reported Berdimuhamedov was especially 
pleased with his program at Columbia University and truly 
enjoyed the exchange of views.  Meredov commented the 
president was initially taken aback by some of the direct and 
difficult questions from the academic audience -- for example 
about the status of the imprisoned former Foreign Minister 
Shihmuradov and former Ambassador to OSCE Berdiyev -- but 
allegedly commented later that he wished students in 
Turkmenistan would be so bold. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Following his speech at Columbia University, 
Berdimuhamedov participated in a round-table discussion at 
the university,s Harriman Institute.  Meredov said the 
president was impressed by the detailed knowledge of the 
American intelligentsia and commented again on the value of 
"open dialogue."  Meredov said Berdimuhamedov,s main message 
for both Columbia events was "our door is open to the world" 
and his desire for more educational exchanges. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Further on educational exchanges, Meredov said the 
president repeated his desire to establish an American 
University in Turkmenistan.  If not that -- and he realizes 
it may not be possible in the short term -- he would like to 
have a U.S. university open a branch (filial) or specialized 
study center in Ashgabat.  Meredov commented the first step 
might be to establish a university linkage for exchange of 
students and professors. 
 
¶6.  (C) COMMENT:  We are struck by the difference between the 
president,s views and the roadblocks thrown up by the 
Ministry of Education, specifically by the Director of 
International Relations, Nury Bayramov.  We have raised the 
Bayramov problem twice with Foreign Minister Meredov, noting 
specifically that Bayramov is blocking the president,s 
intentions.  We are now beginning to work with the EU and 
 
ASHGABAT 00001053  002 OF 003 
 
 
other like-minded ambassadors to consider the possibility of 
a joint demarche on this problem.  END COMMENT. 
 
OTHER MEETINGS AND EVENTS 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Meredov reported the president thought his luncheon 
with U.S. business leaders sponsored by the Eurasia Group was 
a success, as was his side meetings with specific businesses. 
 One concrete result is that the government will give Chevron 
permission to open its offices in one of the now under-used 
hotels on Niyazov,s "hotel row" that he had ordered 
constructed in the 1990s across the ring road from the U.S. 
Embassy housing compound, a prestigious location. 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Meredov said he,d heard that the going rate for 
the luncheon was $10,000 and $25,000, and wanted to know if 
that was per person.  Charge explained that corporate 
sponsorship of the event, a common practice in the U.S. 
business world, was at $10,000 per table, and $25,000 to be 
seated at the head table, and that the income is used to pay 
for the event and to fund Eurasia Group activities and 
programs.  (COMMENT:  To the Turkmenistanis, this looked like 
the familiar bribes-for-access common in Central Asia.  END 
COMMENT.) 
 
¶9.  (SBU) Berdimuhamedov visited the New York stock exchange 
where his interlocutor was the Vice President for 
International Relations whom Meredov said was "your former 
lady ambassador to Morocco."  (NOTE:  We believe this is 
Margaret Tutwiler.  END NOTE.)  Meredov commented the 
president was impressed by her knowledge of current 
conditions in Turkmenistan, and especially enjoyed his tour 
of the trading floor. 
 
¶10.  (SBU) Meredov judged that the president,s many 
bilateral and official UN meetings had been successful.  He 
singled out Berdimuhamedov,s bilateral meeting the UNICEF 
Executive Director and former Secretary of Agriculture Ann 
Veneman, saying that she had charmed and delighted the 
president with her warm attitude and encyclopedic knowledge 
of conditions in Turkmenistan. 
 
APOLOGY FOR THE MISSED MEREDOV-BOUCHER MEETING:  "BLAME 
MIDLAND OIL" 
 
¶11.  (C) Meredov asked that his sincere apology be passed to 
Assistant Secretary Richard Boucher for their missed 
meetings. He explained he had had to cancel the first 
late-afternoon meeting because the president had called a 
snap briefing to prepare him further for his attendance at 
the UN Secretary General,s reception later that evening. 
Meredov had had to cancel the rescheduled meeting the next 
morning, much to his dismay, he said, because "a high level 
on your side (NFI) requested an urgent and unscheduled 
meeting" with Berdimuhamedov for a senior executive of 
Midland Oil (Texas), Roger Murphy (name as received). 
Meredov declined to be drawn out on the content of the 
meeting. 
 
SUMMING UP:  BE PATIENT, AND NEXT STEPS 
 
¶12.  (C) Summing up, Meredov said, "Be patient, and we will 
get to where we both want to go."  Specifically on religious 
freedom, he repeated his and the president,s message to the 
U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom:  "If 
there are individual religious groups you want registered, 
tell us.  Of course we will investigate first to ensure they 
are not radical, extremist, or plan to violate the rights of 
others, but we are serious about working with you on this 
issue." 
 
 
ASHGABAT 00001053  003 OF 003 
 
 
¶13.  (C) Meredov said he saw two "next steps" from the visit. 
 Establish the bilateral energy working group of technical 
and legal experts Berdimuhamedov had proposed to Secretary 
Rice, and to which she had agreed.  He clarified this means 
U.S. legal experts and Turkmenistani technical experts.  And 
consider establishing a U.S.-Turkmenistan business council, 
an idea that developed from the Eurasia Group luncheon with 
U.S. business leaders, and to which Berdimuhamedov had agreed. 
 
¶14.  (U) ACTION REQUEST:  If possible, please provide a 
front-channel read-out of President Berdimuhamedov,s 
meetying with Secretary Rice. 
 
¶15.  (SBU) COMMENT:  We are struck by the positive and 
business-like read-out Meredov provided of Berdimuhamedov,s 
visit to New York.  We judge the Turkmenistani side is 
sincere in its desire to build on this visit to accomplish 
"next steps."  END COMMENT. 
 
HOAGLAND