VZCZCXRO7306
PP RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLZ RUEHROV
DE RUEHHE #0137 0881116
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 281116Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY HELSINKI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4186
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUEHBW/AMEMBASSY BELGRADE 0001
RUEHPS/USOFFICE PRISTINA 0044

UNCLAS HELSINKI 000137 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV EU FI
SUBJECT: FINNISH VIEWS ON THE MARCH 28-29 GYMNICH 
 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED -- PLEASE HANDLE ACCORDINGLY. 
 
¶1. (U) PolChief delivered subject demarche to Finnish MFA EU 
Correspondent Leena-Kaisa Mikkola March 26.  Mikkola 
highlighted the following: 
 
¶2. (SBU) WESTERN BALKANS: EU leadership is very concerned 
about Northern Kosovo, and Mikkola said she expected a 
discussion of recent developments there to dominate the 
Western Balkans discussion.  There is a general fear that, 
given the serious challenges UNMIK is facing, KFOR is "not 
enough" to ensure security at all levels and that a "power 
vacuum" may be forming, she added.  PM Kostunica's 
nationalism may be transforming into "hardline extremism" as 
regards Kosovo, and the ministers are likely to brainstorm on 
how to "bring him back," she said.  FM Jeremic is expected to 
attend a separate GYMNICH breakfast on March 30.  While this 
offers the EU a good opportunity to urge restraint and to 
remind Jeremic of his government's legal and moral duty NOT 
to encourage violence in Mitrovica, the questions of how much 
influence and how long he might remain as foreign minister 
remain. 
 
¶3. (SBU) SYRIA: Mikkola said that a divide is widening 
between US Member States that seek more dialogue and outreach 
to Syria and those who favor a strategy along the US line of 
isolating the SARG.  In addition, among those that favor more 
engagement, there is a second smaller divide between MS that 
want to expand bilateral-level contacts with the SARG and 
those that prefer all or most contact to be via High Rep 
Solana.  Finland's national position is as yet undecided, but 
Mikkola opined that while FM Ilkka Kanerva does not have 
extensive experience in the Middle East, he may be leaning 
toward a bit more -- albeit very cautious -- engagement. 
(COMMENT: Kanerva's cautious stance is a marked contract to 
that of his predecessor, Erkki Tuomioja, who was one of the 
EU's strongest proponents of active engagement with Syria.) 
Mikkola said she expected the informal GYMNICH discussions to 
be as much a debate over strategy as a discussion of how to 
address the SARG's unhelpful role in Lebanon or its 
troublesome relationship with Iran. 
 
¶4. (SBU) RUSSIA: Finland welcomes the progress that had been 
made toward securing a mandate for negotiation of a new 
EU-Russia Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) -- an 
issue that has languished since the Finnish EU Presidency in 
¶2006.  She noted that Finland will also push for a wider 
discussion of the EU-Russia relationship, in part to avoid 
the discussion degenerating into a debate simply about 
Lithuania's outstanding concerns in regard to the PCA. 
 
¶5. (SBU) ISRAEL-PALESTINE: Many EU foreign ministries were 
surprised and encouraged by recent tough statements from the 
Bush Administration criticizing the expansion of Israeli 
settlements in the Occupied Territories, Mikkola said. She 
said that these statements may well embolden EU leaders to 
make stronger statements (publicly or privately) urging 
Israel to scale back. 
WARE