VZCZCXRO0993
OO RUEHPW
DE RUCNDT #1163/01 3462310
ZNY CCCCC ZZH ZDK (COR COPY)
O 112310Z DEC 08
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5508
INFO RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 USUN NEW YORK 001163 
 
///// C O R R E C T E D  C O P Y (ADDED SIPIS CAP) ///// 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/10/2018 
TAGS: KRAD PREL ENRG SENV ZK AF
SUBJECT: UN PREVENTIVE DIPLOMACY FOR CENTRAL ASIA SRSG 
JENCA BRIEFS AMBASSADOR KHALILZAD AND SECURITY COUNCIL ON 
UNRCCA INITIATIVES 
 
REF: TASHKENT 1291 
 
USUN NEW Y 00001163  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad for reasons 1.4(b) and (d) 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Head of the Ashgabat-based UN Regional Center for 
Preventative Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA) Ambassador 
Miroslav Jenca delivered a well-received statement on 
December 10 to the Security Council on UNRCCA activities and 
outlined plans for the future.  In response to questions from 
Belgium and Italy on UNRCCA's coordination with other UN 
bodies, Jenca described his recent coordination meeting with 
UNDP regional directors in Almaty, but noted that "enormous 
space" for improvement existed.  France brought up UNRCCA's 
potential role in resolving the Afghanistan conflict, to 
which Jenca expressed concern over Afghanistan's failure to 
participate in regional negotiations on rights over the Amu 
Darya, central Asia's largest river. 
 
¶2.  (C) Summary continued:  Prior to the Council meeting, 
Jenca, in a December 9 meeting with Ambassador Khalilzad, 
requested US support for UNRCCA, and previewed the same 
themes he discussed in the Security Council.  Ambassador 
Khalilzad welcomed UNRCCA engagement on resolving border and 
regional infrastructure concerns in Afghanistan, but 
emphasized UN SRSG Eide's lead role in coordinating UN 
efforts.  Khalilzad also noted that the central Asian states 
must work with President Karzai rather than around him as 
suggested by the Uzbeks.  Jenca said he will not attend the 
informal ministerial-level Neighbors of Afghanistan meeting 
in Paris on December 14.  End Summary. 
 
Jenca to Security Council: UNRCCA's way forward 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) In his briefing to the Security Council, Jenca 
described his first six months on the job as dedicated to 
identifying challenges to peace and security in Central Asia 
and developing a two-year workplan for UNRCCA.  He said 
UNRCCA should be viewed as a neutral forum, designed to help 
prevent and resolve conflict through coordination and 
provision of specialized technical assistance.  Laying out 
three potential areas of conflict, -- cross-border threats 
from terrorism, organized crime, and drug trafficking; 
environmental degradation such as the Aral Sea disaster and 
radioactive contamination; and the regional ripple effect 
caused by Afghanistan's instability --  Jenca concluded that 
UNRCCA was well-placed to push for UN political engagement to 
ensure contentious issues do not boil over.  He highlighted 
recent UNRCCA activities, including the facilitation of 
Central Asian political discussions at the deputy foreign 
minister level, and the preliminary agreement on water and 
energy management reached on the sidelines of the October 10 
CIS summit held in Bishkek.  Jenca touched briefly on the 
small staff size of UNRCCA, but made no specific requests for 
additional support. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Several Security Council members gave brief 
statements in support of UNRCCA.  Russia emphasized the 
importance of coordination with regional bodies such as the 
Shanghai Cooperation Organization, while Italy and Belgium 
pinpointed the importance of cooperation with other UN 
programs in the region.  Italy added that conflict prevention 
initiatives such as UNRCCA should be a priority for the UN's 
Department of Political Affairs.  France asked about UNRCCA's 
role in Afghanistan, noting that the situation required 
complete transparency, and highlighting the upcoming 
minsterial-level Friends of Afghanistan meeting in Paris 
December 14 (Note:  Jenca told Ambassador Khalilzad that he 
would not attend the Paris conference.  End Note).  Jenca 
responded that to avoid duplicating existing efforts, he had 
recently organized a meeting with UNDP regional coordinators, 
but added that given UNDP's country-specific programming, an 
"enormous space" for improvement in coordination existed. 
Jenca said he had also met with NATO, EU, OSCE, the Shanghai 
Cooperation Organization and CIS, among others, and outlined 
his plans to travel to Tehran in the near future to meet with 
the Economic Cooperation Organization. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Jenca also told the Security Council that he is 
focused on the regional dimension of the conflict in 
Afghanistan, in particular infrastructure projects that 
require regional cooperation such as roads, railways, and 
electricity lines.  He expressed concern about Afghanistan's 
failure to coordinate with central Asian countries on 
management of the Amu Darya river, which he fears would 
negatively impact Afghanistan in the future.  He said he 
supported and respected SRSG Eide's mandate, and understood 
that all Afghan-related initiatives needed to be coordinated 
through him. 
 
USUN NEW Y 00001163  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
 
Jenca's Meeting with Amb. Khalilzad 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (C) In his December 9 discussion with Ambassador 
Khalilzad, Jenca said Eide told him during their December 4 
meeting in Ashgabat that he was disappointed by his meetings 
in Tashkent, noting that the Uzbeks were not ready to move 
forward with the 6 plus 3 initiative (reftel), and that it 
would be impossible to focus on internal factions in 
Afghanistan without Karzai's involvement.  Jenca said he is 
in constant contact with Eide, however disagreement exists 
amongst the central Asians on dealing with Afghanistan, 
hindering UNRCCA's involvement.  He said that while 
Turkmenistan was ready to assist Afghanistan through 
subsidized electricity and debt reduction, Uzbekistan 
appeared unwilling to take such steps.  He told Khalilzad 
that he expects UNRCCA could be most effective in advocating 
for regional infrastructure projects to encourage 
stabilization in Afghanistan. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Ambassador Khalilzad noted that the US 
co-sponsored, along with the four other central Asian 
countries and Afghanistan, Turkmenistan's resolution on 
energy transit and security.  The resolution, which reached 
consensus in the 2nd Committee November 25 and is expected to 
be adopted by the General Assembly next week, welcomes a 
Turkmenistan initiative to hold an international conference 
on energy transportation in 2009.  Jenca said that UNRCCA 
planned to provide experts to assist in drafting the 
multilateral legal framework for energy transportation he 
hoped would result from the 2009 conference. 
 
Khalilzad