VZCZCXYZ0014
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBU #1444/01 2961432
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 221432Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2288
INFO RUCNMER/MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 1892
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 0772
RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO 1119
RUEHSI/AMEMBASSY TBILISI 0005

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 001444 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: MARR PREL PGOV ECON RU AR
SUBJECT: ARGENTINA: RUSSIAN DELEGATION PROMOTES DEFENSE 
TIES AND "MULTIPOLARITY" IN LEAD-UP TO CFK VISIT TO RUSSIA 
 
REF: BUENOS AIRES 1442 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Argentine Defense Minister Nilda Garre 
hosted the Secretary of Russia's National Security Council, 
Nikolai Patrushev, on October 15, entertaining Russian 
proposals for military sales, training, and non-military 
cooperation including in the field of nuclear energy. 
Although potential military sales and commercial ties 
received significant press attention, the central theme 
emphasized by the Russian delegation was that Russia and 
Argentina share, according to Patrushev, "a multipolar 
vision" and that Russia seeks enhanced ties with partners in 
Latin America.  The Russian Delegation also expressed 
interest in an observer role at the newly-forming Union of 
South American Nations (UNASUR).  An Argentine MOD spokesman 
announced that Russia had offered flexible financing for a 
discussed sale of heavy helicopters suitable for use in 
Antarctica, where Argentina maintains scientific bases 
(managed by the military) and a territorial claim.  GOA 
officials have told us that purchases of helicopters and 
nuclear technology are currently not in the budget, but MOD 
Garre's public commitment to prepare for a successful visit 
by President Fernandez de Kirchner (CFK) to Russia in 
December suggests that politics and diplomacy might overcome 
budget shortcomings.  We have even heard one rumor of a 
multi-year barter arrangement to cover an MI 17 helicopter 
purchase.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (U) A delegation headed by Nikolai Patrushev, Secretary of 
the Russian National Security Council, visited Argentina on 
October 15, during a three-nation South American tour. 
Russian Ambassador to Argentina Yuri Korchagin stressed 
Patrushev's high station in the Russian foreign policy 
hierarchy, describing him as a "man of Vladimir Putin's 
trust."  Patrushev met with Minister of Defense Nilda Garre 
and also with Foreign Minister Jorge Taiana and Cabinet Chief 
Sergio Massa.  Press coverage of the visit focused on 
potential military sales but also on the visit's function as 
a challenge to alleged U.S. hemispheric hegemony.  Writing in 
daily paper Clarin on October 18, columnist Raul Cardoso 
described the Russian message as "we are back" on the 
international power map. 
 
¶3. (U) Official communications from the MOD-Patrushev 
consultations focused on the geopolitical issues and on 
possible areas of cooperation between the two countries.  On 
the former, Patrushev said that the talks "affirmed that both 
countries share a multipolar vision of the world" and that 
there were no "contradictions" in the bilateral relationship. 
 In an October 20 interview with daily Ambito Financiero, 
Ambassador Korchagin put heavy emphasis on Russia's readiness 
to partner with Latin America, a region with which it shared 
perspectives and had "never had any conflict," and a region 
that would be important in the emergent multipolar world. 
Korchagin said that Russia was considering an invitation to 
be an observer at the Argentina-based Latin American 
Association of Peacekeeping Centers (ALCOPAZ), where the 
United States is also an observer.  The Russian delegation 
had expressed an interest as well in observing UNASUR, 
something that Korchagin repeated while noting that this was 
not a formal request given that UNASUR was still being 
created and defined. 
 
¶4. (SBU) In a separate conversation, the Russian Ambassador 
told Ambassador Wayne that commercial issues had been a big 
part of the Argentine Foreign Minister's late September visit 
to Moscow.  He said the Russians are buying much more fruit 
from Argentines but that some shipments have had very high 
pesticide levels.  The Foreign Minister agreed on a system 
for Russian food safety inspections in the context of rapidly 
rising Argentine sales to Russia. 
 
¶5. (U) In terms of Russian sales, an Argentine defense 
ministry spokesman described Argentina's interest in 
obtaining heavy helicopters that could operate well in the 
harsh climate of Antarctica.  He said that the Russian 
delegation had offered flexible financing for a potential 
sale of helicopters as well as training in space flight for 
Argentines.  Korchagin confirmed that the Russians were 
interested in selling the Mi-17 helicopter to Argentina but 
emphasized this was not an aggressive expansion into Latin 
America given that Mexico, Peru, Venezuela, and Colombia had 
already purchased them.  Other areas of potential cooperation 
announced by the delegations included energy development and 
offshore hydrocarbons exploration, nuclear energy 
development, nanotechnology, counter-drug cooperation, and 
space exploration.  Commentators noted that some of these 
 
were traditionally areas of U.S. leadership (and some, 
including nanotechnology, are in fact on the agenda for 
U.S.-Argentina Bilateral Consultations). 
 
¶6. (U) Minister of Defense Nilda Garre described herself as 
pleased with the visit.  The two delegations agreed that 
specialists from both Ministries would meet November 4 in 
Buenos Aires in preparation for the first meeting of a 
bilateral Mixed Commission on Military-Technical Cooperation, 
to be held November 17 and 18 of the month.  The commission 
was established under an MOU signed by Minister Garre in 
Moscow in 2006. 
 
¶7. (SBU) During October 16 consultations with U.S. Ambassador 
to UN Institutions in Vienna Greg Schulte, the MFA's Director 
for International Security, Nuclear and Space Affairs Elsa 
Kelly addressed prospects for a Russian nuclear reactor 
construction in Argentina, noting that the country's budget 
had been strained by efforts to complete a current reactor 
long under construction.  The next project was to be a 
Canadian model reactor, after which, she said, it was 
possible that a Russian reactor might be considered.  She 
implied that this was a long way off.  The MOD is also 
without a budget for new heavy helicopters.  One mid-level 
MOD official involved in the Russian talks told PolMil 
Officer October 21 "we shall see" about the purchase but said 
that the current 2009 budget did not have funding for this 
type of helicopter.  The Turkish Ambassador to Argentina told 
Ambassador Wayne last weekend with some confidence that there 
was an agreement whereby Argentina would purchase fifteen 
military helicopters capable of use in ground attack 
operations in exchange for wheat, apples, and honey provided 
over fourteen years, but we are not aware of how the 
financing of such a deal would work. 
 
¶8. (SBU) The Argentines are seen as trying to curry favor 
with Russia in the run-up to CFK's visit to Moscow.  The 
Ukranian Ambassador complained bitterly to Ambassador Wayne 
that Argentina completely reversed its promise to support a 
Ukranian-sponsored UN resolution in this year's UNGA about a 
massacre of Ukranians during WWII.  Not only did they not 
vote for it, they voted against it at the request of Russia, 
he said.  The Ukranian expressed gratitude for U.S. support 
of the resolution and said he had tried to mobilize the local 
Ukranian community to pressure the government, but he said he 
was not optimistic given the GOA desire to make the 
President's visit to Russia a success. 
 
¶9. (SBU) Comment: The Russian visit generated significant 
attention here, and in their heavy emphasis on multipolarity 
the Russians did clearly invite interpretations of their 
activity as a counterweight to the U.S. role in the 
hemisphere.  Given President Kirchner's upcoming visit to 
Moscow, we anticipate more plans, pronouncements, and even 
potentially some new substance in Russian-Argentine mil-mil 
cooperation.  That said, the Argentine defense budget remains 
a sharply limiting factor that will constrain the scope of 
collaboration, though the government's decision to 
nationalize private pension funds could effect that (reftel). 
WAYNE