VZCZCXRO5553
OO RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHAK #0541 1001549
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 101549Z APR 09
FM AMEMBASSY ANKARA
TO RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9395
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L ANKARA 000541 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/SE DAS BRYZA, EEB AMB. MORNINGSTAR 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/10/2019 
TAGS: PREL ENRG EPET ZJ ZK TU
SUBJECT: TURKEY INSISTS ON EASTERN PARTNERSHIP SUMMIT INVITE 
 
REF: DIXON/GARBE APRIL 9/10 E-MAIL (NOTAL) 
 
Classified By: Ambassador James F. Jeffrey, reasons 1.4 (b,d) 
 
¶1. (C) MFA U/S Apakan told Ambassador April 10 that Ankara's 
position is firm:  Turkey needs to get an invitation to 
observe at the EU Eastern Partnership (EP) Summit May 7. 
Apakan argued that Turkey, as a member of the European 
Customs Union and a major partner of the Caucasus states in 
various endeavors, simply needs to play in the EP for its own 
sake. 
 
¶2. (C) This tracks with and complements what we have heard 
(ref) about the Turks refusing to go to the Southern Corridor 
Summit at a senior level without an invite to the EP. 
 
¶3. (C) COMMENT:  Turkey's EU candidacy, geography and 
influence in the region justify its participation at the EP, 
not least at a time when Turkey is on the cusp of an historic 
agreement to normalize relations and open the border with 
Armenia that could have a catalytic impact on resolving the 
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.  Progress on either front, and 
especially on both, will enhance considerably the EU's 
ability to make progress on its EP objectives.  Second, we 
absolutely need the Turks at the Southern Corridor Summit, 
now held hostage by an EP invite.  At this critical juncture, 
we must seek to take advantage of any and all opportunities 
to bring Turkish, Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders together 
bilaterally and, as appropriate, trilaterally.  The EP and 
the Southern Corridor Summit present an opportunity to do 
that, and the EU should be supportive.  Excluding Turkey will 
only cause it to seek to exclude the EU, and by extension the 
U.S., from alternative regional mechanisms it is actively 
seeking to promote, such as the Caucasus Stability and 
Cooperation Platform (CSCP) and the Black Sea Defense 
Ministerial.  Furthermore, with the Turks threatening to stay 
away from the Southern Corridor Summit without an EP invite, 
we should urge the EU to take the steps necessary to ensure 
that Turkey attends Southern Corridor Summit at a senior 
level.  Absent Turkish participation, that summit is unlikely 
to be successful. 
 
Visit Ankara's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Turk ey 
 
Jeffrey