VZCZCXRO6804
OO RUEHBW RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHC #8065/01 1272059
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O P 062053Z MAY 08
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO RUEHRA/AMEMBASSY RIGA IMMEDIATE 9992
INFO RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 3720
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 4050
EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 STATE 048065 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/01/2028 
TAGS: OVIP RICE CONDOLEEZZA MARR PREL PINS NATO
CVIS, LG, AF, IZ, RS, GG, UP 
SUBJECT: (U) Secretary Rice's April 25, 2008 
Conversation with Latvian President Zatlers 
 
¶1. (U) Classified by:  KURT VOLKER, ACTING ASSISTANT 
SECRETARY FOR EUROPEAN AND EURASIAN AFFAIRS, REASONS: 
1.4(b) and (d). 
 
¶2. (U) April 25, 2008, 9:20 - 10:50 a.m., Washington, 
D.C. 
 
¶3.  (U) Participants: 
 
U.S. 
The Secretary 
Ambassador Charles W. Larson, Jr. 
Acting Assistant Secretary Kurt Volker, EUR 
Sean McCormack, PA 
Steve Beecroft, S 
Carol Beilman Werner (EUR/NB Notetaker) 
 
Latvia 
President Valdis Zatlers 
State Secretary Normans Penke 
Ambassador Andrejs Pildegovics 
Eduards Stiprais, Chief of Staff 
Andris Pelss, Foreign Policy Advisor 
Inata Lase, Press Secretary 
Edgars Trumkalns, Embassy Latvia Notetaker 
 
¶4.  (C) SUMMARY. The Secretary met with Latvian 
President Valdis Zatlers on April 25, 2008 at the 
Department of State.  They discussed potential Georgia 
and Ukraine  NATO Membership Action Plans (MAPs). 
Zatlers hoped that Latvia was close to gaining entry 
into the Visa Waiver Program.  The Secretary expressed 
her appreciation for Latvia's contributions to 
Afghanistan and noted that what was most needed at 
this point was increased assistance for Afghan 
citizens.  Zatlers agreed, saying that Latvia had 
committed to sending an OMLT to Afghanistan this fall. 
On Russia, while the Secretary was optimistic about 
the effect of confidence building measures related to 
the proposed U.S. missile defense system in Poland and 
the Czech Republic, she felt that the Russians would 
not maintain their participation in the Treaty on 
Conventional Armed Forces in Europe.  Zatlers 
mentioned that Russia had been seeking improved 
relations with Latvia while fortifying its border. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
---------------- 
NATO Enlargement 
---------------- 
 
¶5.  (C) The Secretary said that although Georgia and 
Ukraine had not been granted MAPs at the NATO Summit 
in Bucharest, she was quite pleased with the official 
declaration promising they would join NATO one day. 
Zatlers responded that Russia wanted to prevent 
Georgia from getting a MAP to influence the upcoming 
Parliamentary elections there, adding that Latvia 
would do all it could to help the Georgians with the 
electoral process.  As for Ukraine, he said that the 
meaning of NATO membership needed to be explained to 
the population so that they would be more favorable 
towards it.  The Secretary agreed, saying that such 
information was especially needed in eastern Ukraine, 
where much of what the population knows of NATO comes 
from Russian TV.  The Secretary mentioned that the 
Georgians were worried about how not receiving MAP at 
the NATO Summit would affect Russia's involvement in 
Abkhazia.  She and Zatlers agreed that a MAP is not a 
promise of NATO membership, but rather a device to 
encourage development and promote reform so that a 
country will one day be eligible to join the Alliance. 
 
----------- 
Afghanistan 
----------- 
 
¶6.  (C) The Secretary said that she appreciated 
Latvia's help in Afghanistan and the statement 
that Zatlers had made about Afghanistan at NATO.  She 
had recently met with UN Special Envoy to Afghanistan 
Kai Eide, who had noted the need for an increase in 
contributions for civilian assistance.  Zatlers 
responded that Latvian troops had told him that the 
 
STATE 00048065  002 OF 002 
 
SUBJECT: (U) Secretary Rice's April 25, 2008 
Conversation with Latvian President Zatle 
key to their security lay in increasing such 
assistance, as it was the Afghan civilians who could 
identify the enemy among them.  The Secretary pointed 
out the poverty of Afghanistan, comparing its annual 
budget of $670 million with Iraq's $49 billion.  She 
said that our commitment to the citizens of 
Afghanistan must be long-term.  Zatlers agreed, saying 
that Latvia had committed to sending an OMLT to 
Afghanistan this fall.  The Secretary stressed the 
importance of countries such as Latvia providing 
troops without caveats.  Ambassador Pildegovics noted 
that Latvia would like to offer its ports for the 
transit of supplies to Afghanistan. 
 
------ 
Russia 
------ 
 
¶7. (C) The Secretary reviewed the discussions between 
Presidents Bush and Putin in Sochi, Russia, which, she 
said, were generally non-confrontational.  She felt 
that the outcome of the talks on missile defense was 
better than the final document indicated.  The 
Russians would continue to negotiate the transparency 
and confidence-building measures related to the 
missile defense system in Poland and the Czech 
Republic until the last moment.  On the other hand, it 
appeared that they did not want to maintain their 
participation in the Treaty on Conventional Armed 
Forces in Europe (CFE Treaty).  The Russians seemed to 
view the CFE Treaty and related Istanbul commitments 
as a "colonial treaty," signed in a moment of 
weakness.  Putin was calm when discussing all issues 
in Sochi save those related to the CFE Treaty regime. 
The Secretary assured Zatlers that the United States 
would continue to negotiate a resolution to the treaty 
impasse with Russia so as not to be accused of walking 
away but would remain resolute on the flank 
agreements. 
 
¶8. (C) Zatlers said that Russia had started to seek 
contacts at all governmental levels in Latvia.  The 
Latvian government did not know what Russia's long- 
range plan was in this regard, but it felt it had to 
react in kind without sacrificing its or its allies' 
values.  At the same time, Russia was fortifying its 
border with Latvia.  The Secretary noted that it is 
not easy for Russia to deal with its position in the 
post-Soviet world.  Offering improved relations with 
Latvia indicated that Russia knew that it couldn't go 
back.  In contrast, its relationship with Georgia and 
Ukraine showed an inability to recognize that reality. 
Russia was not yet ready to believe that the rest of 
the world respected it as it is now.  The Secretary 
added that despite anger with Russian behavior 
at times, it must be fully included in international 
organizations and processes, as exclusion would only 
lead to worse behavior. 
 
¶9. (C) Zatlers replied that Russia respected order. 
When Medvedev was asked who would be responsible for 
Russian foreign policy, he said he would be, using 
every means possible to support Russia, only after a 
pause adding: according to international laws and 
treaties.  Zatlers commented that the Russians were 
also masters of the "divide and rule" principle, which 
made NATO unity difficult for them. 
 
------------------------- 
Visa Waiver Program (VWP) 
------------------------- 
 
¶10.     (SBU) Zatlers pointed out the recent progress 
that Latvia had made towards gaining entry into the 
VWP, emphasizing how important it is to Latvian 
citizens.  He said that the visa refusal rate for 
Latvia had dropped and that the first four months of 
Latvia's inclusion in the Schengen zone had gone 
smoothly.  Asked by the Secretary where Latvia stood 
with regard to meeting the technical security 
requirements, Zatlers said that all requirements had 
been met, including the use of e-passports.  The 
Secretary commented that after 9/11, we realized that 
we did not really know who was in the United States 
and that we needed to increase our security with 
regard to entry visas.  She welcomed the news that 
U.S. allies such as Latvia were now moving towards 
membership in the VWP. 
RICE