VZCZCXRO6766
OO RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHROV RUEHSL RUEHSR
DE RUEHSM #0756/01 3371612
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 031612Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY STOCKHOLM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4960
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 STOCKHOLM 000756 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/03/2019 
TAGS: PREL PGOV EUN SW
SUBJECT: SWEDEN ON DECEMBER GAC/FAC AGENDA 
 
REF: A. A. STOCKHOLM 751 
     ¶B. B. STOCKHOLM 754 
     ¶C. C. STOCKHOLM 738 
 
Classified By: PolCouns Marc Koehler for reasons 1.4 (B) & (D). 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Poloff discussed the December 7-8 GAC/FAC 
agenda with Deputy EU Correspondent Jonas Wendel on December 
¶3.  The General Affairs Council (GAC) will discuss 
enlargement problems regarding Turkey (slow progress on 
Ankara), Macedonia (name problem), and Serbia (Serbian 
authorities tracking down war criminals).  The Foreign 
Affairs Council (FAC) will discuss ending the EUFOR Althea 
Mission in Bosnia by November 2010, Middle East Peace 
Process, Iran sanctions (wait for UNSC discussions) and maybe 
Burma sanctions (no need to change them).  The Swedes will 
chair the GAC and FAC for the last time.  EU Minister Cecilia 
Malmstrom will chair the GAC, but hand it over to FM Bildt to 
give a "lengthy intervention."  Baroness Ashton will be 
present at the FAC, but Bildt will lead it.  End Summary. 
 
Big-Time Enlargement 
-------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) Enlargement will be the major item of the GAC with 
discussion of Turkey, Macedonia, and Serbia. 
 
-- Turkey: Wendel said the Swedes are trying to find a way to 
criticize Turkey's failures to meet the terms of the Ankara 
Protocol that is "confrontational-enough" to satisfy the 
Greeks, but doesn't upset the Turks. 
 
-- Macedonia: Sweden wants to the Council to give a clear 
mandate to start accession negotiations in 2010.  However, 
the name issue is still problematic and some Member States 
want a caveat put in to the statement saying once the name 
issue is resolved, negotiations can begin.  The text is still 
being debated and foreign ministers will make the final 
decision at the GAC. 
 
-- Serbia: ICTY Chief Prosecutor Brammertz will attend this 
session and give his report, which will likely state that 
although Serbia has not arrested the two outstanding war 
criminals, the Serbian authorities are doing their best to 
find the individuals.  Most Member States agree with this 
assessment, he said, but the Dutch still need to be 
convinced.  If the Dutch agree with the report, then the EU 
can start to implement the association agreement with Serbia. 
 Bildt has been in close contact with the Dutch FM Verhagen. 
 
Ending Althea 
------------- 
 
¶3. (C) Wendel said there will be conclusions on ending the 
EUFOR Althea mission to Bosnia.  The Swedish proposal is to 
set the end date for November 2010, to coincide with the end 
of the UN mandate.  Most Member States agree, but the British 
are worried about delinking Althea from the closure of the 
Office of the High Representative.  Sweden understands the 
reasoning, said Wendel, but no longer sees a need for the EU 
troop contingent, as violence has abated.  Sweden supports 
the idea of keeping Althea trainers in Bosnia, but Bildt says 
the Bosniaks need to take care of their own security (ref A). 
 Sweden also supports an EU rapid reaction force to deploy to 
Bosnia should the need arise.  The PSC Ambassadors will 
debate the issue Friday, December 4. 
 
MEPP Conclusions 
---------------- 
 
¶4. (C) Deputy Director of the Middle East Department Fredrik 
Floren told poloff on December 3 that the Swedish-authored 
draft conclusions on the Middle East Peace Process should 
"not be dramatized" and the media has exaggerated the 
content.  He claimed the draft reflects numerous discussions 
among EU Member States and the has wide support within the 
EU, including from "Germany, France and Britain."  Parts of 
the text are taken from the 2008 EU Action Strategy and also 
previously drafted EU positions on MEPP, which were not 
publicly distributed (ref B).  Wendel said there will be two 
Troikas with each the Palestinian Authority and Israel 
surrounding the GAC/FAC. 
 
Iran: still waiting 
------------------- 
 
¶5. (C) There will not be conclusions on Iran, but the FMs 
will discuss it in more depth at the European Council Meeting 
December 10.  Sweden is disappointed with the Commission's 
draft on sanctions (ref C).  Wendel said it was purely 
descriptive with no analysis or evaluation of the feasibility 
and applicability of different sanctions regimes.  Many 
Member States want to wait until after the UNSC to push 
 
STOCKHOLM 00000756  002 OF 002 
 
 
autonomous measures.  Wendel lamented that if the Commission 
paper had been more analytical, the EU would be much closer 
to being ready to adopt EU autonomous measures. 
 
Burma: Never-ending story 
------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) This agenda item might be dropped, Wendel said, 
because the EU has already developed a "successful" paper 
outlining a "calibrated" approach towards Burma.  The 
internal paper (not to be made public) outlines needed EU 
steps and Burmese steps and possible outcomes.  It will be 
used in all EU dealings with Burma, including any meetings 
between EU Ambassadors and Aung San Suu Kyi.  The Swedes do 
not want to reopen discussion that could revert the process 
made with the internal paper.  Wendel said some Member States 
had a hard time agreeing to the paper for domestic political 
reasons and want the paper to remain internal.  Under the 
paper's guidelines, there is a chance the EU will engage with 
Burma at COP 15 and "make a point of it."  There is also 
discussion of a high level visit to Burma, maybe at the 
Troika level during the Spanish Presidency. 
 
Informal Dinner 
--------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Bildt will use this opportunity to present his 
report "EU as a Global Actor" to Lady Ashton and maybe table 
the text.  If the text is tabled, then the Council will adopt 
it the following day.  Wendel said Bildt and Ashton have 
already discussed the report and Ashton was involved in 
drafting some of the text related to duties of the High Rep. 
Bildt views the report as game plan for the High Rep, but 
there are economic challenges related to the required travel 
budget. 
 
Lisbon-Induced Perfidy! 
----------------------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) Wendel predicts the Spanish will return to the 
traditional pre-Bildt GAERC format in order to maximize their 
influence during their presidency.  This means that the 
Spanish FM would preside over the GAC and intentionally 
prolong it to allow for maximum discussion time.  At the FAC, 
when Ashton would take over, most of the important 
discussions and work will have been completed and the 
groundwork laid for any conclusions. 
BARZUN