US embassy cable - 05HELSINKI75

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HELSINKI 000075 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR EUR A/S JONES AND DAS CONLEY FROM AMBASSADOR 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/14/2014 
TAGS: AMGT, Government Leaders 
SUBJECT: OFFICIAL-INFORMAL 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Earle I. Mack for reasons 1.4(B) and (D) 
 
1. (C) Beth, I would like to ask for your support and 
assistance in requesting that the President meet bilaterally 
with Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen on February 22 on 
the margins of the U.S.-EU meeting in Brussels. 
 
2. (C) To the best of our knowledge, the two leaders have 
never met -- and certainly not since Vanhanen became Prime 
Minister in June, 2003.  Vanhanen has requested a meeting 
repeatedly since he was newly elected, and it has been 
discussed frequently at Embassy levels.  A bilateral meeting 
would help establish a relationship that could pay off 
handsomely in the months to come.  Finland will assume the EU 
presidency in July of next year, and if the Constitution 
Treaty takes effect as planned in November 2006 the Finns 
will be the transition team that guides the Union into the 
EU's new structure.  PM Vanhanen will likely head that team 
and the presidency of the EU during that period.  Thus it 
would be extremely beneficial for the President to have met 
with him early on, to cement a relationship.  In addition, 
Vanhanen has given indications, publicly and in private 
conversations with me, that if prospects look favorable, he 
would like to run for the Finnish presidency in 2006.  As you 
know, he represents the Center Party, while Tarja Halonen is 
SDP, and Vanhanen's popularity rating is second only to 
Halonen's.  It is possible Halonen may not even run, in favor 
of a high-profile world humanitarian post (such as UN 
Secretary General). 
 
SIPDIS 
 
3. (C) If a President-PM meeting were held, it should focus 
on shared values.  These shared values have given rise to 
U.S.-Finnish cooperation in many of the areas highest on the 
U.S. agenda: 
 
-- The two nations' commitment to democracy in Iraq.  Finland 
does not have troops on the ground, but they were the first 
to pledge support for the UN protection force, and made good 
on their one-million-euro pledge as soon as the trust fund 
was set up last month.  They also have police trainers in 
Amman (they started with five and increased it to ten), and 
they have told us that if the EU were to establish an office 
in Baghdad to assist the Iraqis with building the 
institutions of civil society, they might be able to 
contribute civilian experts. 
 
-- The two nations' shared dedication to reconstruction in 
Afghanistan.  The Finns have made clear they are in for the 
duration.  They have done a considerable amount, given the 
size of their resources.  They have 20 troops and three 
civilians in the UK/Finnish/Norwegian Provincial 
Reconstruction Team in Meymaneh in the north, 60 CIMIC troops 
in Kabul, and even a half-dozen firefighters in the Nordic 
team at Kabul airport.  They have contributed ten million 
euros to humanitarian assistance, and will contribute ten 
million more this year, making Afghanistan one of the single 
largest country recipients of their humanitarian aid. 
 
-- Worldwide resolve in the face of international terrorism. 
When the U.S. embassies in this region issued their warden 
messages last October 30 -- an extraordinary event in this 
neighborhood, where people still believe 'it can't happen 
here' -- Vanhanen told the press that "warnings of this kind 
are always taken very seriously."  Combating terrorism is one 
of the themes of the new GoF white paper on security policy 
that was issued to great fanfare in September and endorsed by 
Parliament last month. 
 
-- Support for Turkish EU accession.  Enlargement 
Commissioner Olli Rehn is also Center Party, and was 
appointed by Vanhanen; former President Ahtisaari, who 
chaired the independent commission that did the study of 
Turkey and the EU, is a vocal proponent of Turkish 
membership.  Finland took an early, proactive position on the 
issue, and will remain a key player in EU deliberations and a 
natural U.S. ally. 
 
-- Stability in the Balkans.  The Finns were the first 
non-NATO nation to lead a regional contingent in KFOR, and 
will be playing an important role in EUFOR.  In doing so, 
they acknowledge the importance of the U.S.  (In an April 
speech to Center Party colleagues, Vanhanen said, "We should 
remember how toothless Europe stood ten years ago when 
Yugoslavia fell apart.  Without the U.S. the conflicts of 
former Yugoslavia could not have been handled.") 
 
-- Our shared commitment to progress in human rights, 
including in battling trafficking in persons.  The Finns 
currently hold the de facto Nordic seat on the UN Commission 
on Human Rights, and consult closely with us on UNCHR issues. 
 They are working their way back from the debacle of being 
the only EU nation placed in Tier 2 of the 2003 TIP Report, 
and have in place a new anti-trafficking law, with penalties 
that have real bite, and a government working group on TIP. 
A meeting could acknowledge this progress. 
-- Cooperation on nonproliferation.  The Finns quickly signed 
onto the Global Partnership (which the G-8 acknowledged at 
Evian), and firmly support the Proliferation Security 
Initiative.  As Russia's neighbors, they are as concerned as 
we by the environmental and security risks of the decaying 
post-Soviet Russian nuclear establishment. 
 
4. (C) We have told the Finns, with no minced words, that 
they would have to bring deliverables to such a meeting.  We 
know they have gotten the message.  From our side, we believe 
that a meeting would pay dividends during the Finnish EU 
presidency and for some time to come.  Of all of Finland's 
senior leadership, PM Vanhanen has been the most consistent 
in support of the American agenda, and he places strong 
emphasis on the critical importance to Finland and Europe of 
trans-Atlantic relations.  Recognizing this fact could reap 
significant rewards.  If you agree, I hope you will recommend 
such a meeting to the White House. 
 
5. (U) With warmest regards -- Earle 
MACK