VZCZCXRO3445
OO RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHROV RUEHSL
DE RUEHSF #0538/01 2671457
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
O 241457Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY SOFIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6347
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHUNV/USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA IMMEDIATE 0039
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS IMMEDIATE
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 SOFIA 000538 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DOE FOR JELKIND, TCUTLER, PYOSHIDA, KTHOMPSON, DEPT FOR 
AMB. MORNINGSTAR, JNEISHWAT, S/ES-CR, S/ES-O AND EUR/CE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/24/2019 
TAGS: ENRG IAEA PREL PGOV BU
SUBJECT: BULGARIA: PM BORISSOV SEEKING WHITE HOUSE 
ENGAGEMENT ON STRATEGIC ENERGY DECISIONS 
 
REF: A. ADAMS-SMITH E-MAIL 9/24/09 
     ¶B. SOFIA 507 
     ¶C. SOFIA 499 
     ¶D. SOFIA 0363 AND PREVIOUS 
 
Classified By: CDA John Ordway for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
¶1.  (S) SUMMARY: A letter from Prime Minister Boyko Borissov 
to President Obama dated September 24, 2009, was 
hand-delivered to the Embassy the same day with an urgent 
request to transmit it to the White House.  In the letter, 
the PM asks for advice on strategic decisions in the energy 
sector to achieve his goals of rooting out corruption, 
enhancing transparency and reducing reliance on Russia.  The 
Prime Minister asked for direct interaction with the U.S. to 
assist in improving European energy security by diversifying 
supplies and transit routes.  Text of the letter is provided 
in para 2 and ref A emails.  End Summary. 
 
TEXT OF PRIME MINISTER BORRISOV LETTER 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  BEGIN TEXT OF THE LETTER 
 
Barack H. Obama 
President of the United States of America 
The White House 
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW 
Washington, DC 20500 
 
Sofia, 24 September 2009 
 
 
Mr. President, 
 
When my party won the clear electorate mandate in the 
parliamentary elections in July 2009, Bulgaria entered the 
first economic downturn in a decade, compounded by urgent 
need for reforms in key policy areas.  With such a clear 
victory came also high expectations and responsibility. 
Since taking office in July 2009, my government has 
implemented concrete actions in eradicating corruption and 
organized crime that have significantly slowed down the 
reform process in Bulgaria for the past several years and 
have tarnished Bulgaria's reputation. 
 
My country faces formidable challenges requiring strategic 
decisions with long term implications for Europe.  Nowhere 
else are these challenges more complex and important than in 
the energy sector.  In order to ensure the economic and 
social well-being of my people, Bulgaria must have a strategy 
that targets safe, affordable, and reliable supplies of 
energy.  We need to maintain diversity of fuels from a 
multiplicity of sources ) we must not depend on a single 
supplier.  The gas crisis of early 2009 affected the whole 
Europe but Bulgaria suffered the most with a direct and 
severe impact on its citizens and its economy.  The crisis 
further enforced the need for diversification and 
alternatives. 
 
Bulgaria's energy sector has been plagued with corruption, 
inefficiency and lack of strategic planning.  I am committed 
to change the practice of "business as usual" in the 
Bulgarian energy sector to provide my people with stable and 
reliable sources of energy.  My country being at the cross 
roads of major transit routes, I want to ensure that Bulgaria 
will play a role in the realization of alternative transit 
infrastructure for diversified energy supplies for Europe. 
 
My government is ready to implement strategic decisions to 
create a transparent, diversified, and efficient energy 
sector.  As a first step, we are currently evaluating the 
large-scale Russian-proposed projects in the gas and oil 
transit and nuclear energy production, to which the previous 
government had committed.  These projects have strategic 
implications for Europe, the Black-sea-Caspian Region, and 
Eurasia. 
 
I would very much like to meet with you and your 
representatives in the near future to discuss details of 
these important projects and reforms in the energy sector of 
my country.  I want to move forward immediately to implement 
 
SOFIA 00000538  002 OF 002 
 
 
a change -- a change that is good for Bulgaria, Europe and 
the Black Sea -- Caspian Region.  I sincerely believe that 
our meetings will help my government achieve one of its top 
priority objectives that will support diversified energy 
sources in Europe. 
 
/Signed/ 
 
Boyko Borissov 
 
Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria 
 
END OF THE TEXT OF THE LETTER 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶3.  (S) Borissov wants visible engagement with us to 
counter-balance tough Russian pressure. PM Putin told 
Borissov that he expects answers from Bulgaria on 
large-scale, Russian-backed projects in November.  Although 
they are dependent on Russia for the bulk of their energy 
supply, Borissov and his young, pro-western, Russia-skeptic 
team are searching for better options.  We should seize this 
opportunity to provide them strategic and technical advice 
and show our engagement at the highest possible level.  Our 
aim should be to bolster the government's confidence to 
continue Bulgaria's strong engagement in Nabucco, make a 
decision on South Stream participation that is in Bulgaria's 
long-term interests, and rethink the Belene Nuclear Project. 
While we are moving forward with working-level engagement, 
including briefings by American companies and U.S. think tank 
experts, top Russian government officials are visiting Sofia 
to follow up on Putin's personal engagement with Borissov. 
With a November deadline for decision-making looming, we have 
a narrow window of opportunity to help the government make 
tough technical, economic and political decisions on issues 
critical for our own policies on European energy security. 
End comment. 
ORDWAY