US embassy cable - 05HELSINKI160

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 HELSINKI 000160 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/03/2015 
TAGS: PREL, XF, AF, ID, CH, MARR, CASC, KIPR, FI, EUN, Government Leaders 
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S LUNCH WITH FM: MIDDLE EAST IS "NUMBER 
ONE ITEM" FOR PRESIDENT'S MEETING WITH THE EUROPEAN 
COMMISSION 
 
REF: HELSINKI 137 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Earle I. Mack for reasons 1.4(B) and (D) 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
1. (C) Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja invited the 
Ambassador to a working lunch February 2.  Tuomioja was more 
relaxed and upbeat than we have seen for some time; the 
Ambassador was received unusually warmly and a cordial 
atmosphere existed throughout.  The FM welcomed the 
President's February 22 visit to Brussels, and said he 
thought the first priority on the agenda should be the Middle 
East.  The U.S. and EU should not allow the momentum 
generated by the Palestinian election and the Gaza withdrawal 
plan to dissipate, he said.  He argued that Abbas has done 
"all the right things" and needs to see Israeli reciprocity, 
and said a good reciprocal gesture would be the elimination 
of the settlers' outposts in the West Bank.  Tuomioja will 
visit the region in April (clearly with Finland's 2006 EU 
presidency in mind). 
 
2. (C) Tuomioja said he hopes to pay an introductory call on 
the Secretary during a visit to the United States in April, 
and he invited the Secretary to visit Finland, suggesting 
that cooperation within the Partnership for Peace could be a 
theme for such a visit.  The Ambassador raised the question 
of the EU's China arms embargo, stressing the U.S. belief 
that lifting it would send the wrong signal at the wrong 
time.  Tuomioja asserted that the Code of Conduct would be a 
more effective instrument than the embargo if it is 
strengthened and made legally binding, and the GoF sees this 
as an opportune moment to win EU agreement to such changes. 
The Ambassador thanked Finland for its contributions to 
reconstruction in Afghanistan; Tuomioja said the GoF 
recognizes that its commitment there -- as in Kosovo -- is 
long-term, with no pre-set timetable.  On the Aceh talks 
mediated by former President Ahtisaari, Tuomioja opined that 
at the first meeting there were more problems on the 
Indonesian government side than with the GAM; at any rate, it 
is a positive sign that the talks are continuing.  Tuomioja 
seemed comfortable with the proposed expansion of Finland's 
peacekeeping law to allow troops to be deployed based on an 
EU mandate -- an expansion that President Halonen has 
questioned.  The Ambassador said the issue of protecting the 
intellectual property rights of pharmaceutical companies 
seems to be headed in the right direction; Tuomioja 
acknowledged its importance, remarking that the GoF invests 
public money in R&D funding.  The FM said that with the 
Rogers child custody case having reverted to U.S. courts, he 
hopes the children's mother will be allowed a fair hearing. 
(Note: The Iraq portion of the conversation was reported 
reftel.)  End Summary. 
 
The President's Brussels Visit, and Meetings 
-------------------------------------------- 
with the Secretary 
------------------ 
 
3. (C) FM Tuomioja invited the Ambassador to a working lunch 
at the MFA on February 2.  The FM was joined by Markus Lyra, 
Under Secretary for Political Affairs, Marianne 
Huusko-Lamponen, advisor to the Minister, and Leena Liukkonen 
of the USA desk.  The Ambassador was accompanied by the DCM 
and POL chief.  The Minister began the conversation by 
expressing his pleasure that the President is coming to 
Brussels February 22.  This will be a "symbolic event," he 
commented, in that the President is meeting with the European 
Commission -- a recognition of the EU's involvement in many 
items of immediate trans-Atlantic interest, especially trade. 
 Tuomioja said it was his understanding that the Secretary 
might have a separate meeting with the assembled heads of 
government while the President is meeting with the 
Commission; the FM supported this approach as being the most 
productive use of time. 
 
4. (C) The Minister reported that he will be in New York at 
the end of April for the "final meeting" of the Helsinki 
Group on globalization, which he co-chairs with the Tanzanian 
FM.  While in the U.S., Tuomioja would like to pay an 
introductory bilateral call on the Secretary, and he hopes a 
date can be found in her busy schedule for such a meeting. 
In addition, he said, "We would very much welcome a visit by 
the Secretary to Finland."  He suggested that she might want 
to consider including Helsinki in a future European visit, or 
might want to visit the European members of the Partnership 
for Peace.  Tuomioja commented ruefully that visits to 
Finland by U.S. Secretaries of State have become fewer in 
recent years: "The world doesn't need neutral meeting places 
so much any more.  It's a gain for the world, but a loss for 
us." 
The Middle East 
--------------- 
5. (C) The Ambassador asked what Tuomioja thought should be 
the focus for the President's visit to Brussels.  The FM said 
"the number one item" for the U.S. and the EU now is the 
Middle East.  "We have a real opportunity for the first time 
to move forward, and everyone needs to be on board." 
Tuomioja said that so far Mahmoud Abbas has done all the 
right things.  There is much still to be done, but the FM 
argued that Abbas has tackled some of the most difficult 
issues already, and Israeli reciprocity is needed.  The 
Middle East is a minefield -- one misstep, and hard-won 
progress can disappear.  But still, he said, the GoF is very 
hopeful, and he stressed the importance of the U.S. and EU 
working together to keep things moving in the right 
direction.  "All of us have to be involved on the ground" to 
keep up the momentum generated by the Palestinian election 
and the Gaza withdrawal plan. 
 
6. (C) The Ambassador asked what the Minister thought the 
next steps should be.  Tuomioja said he feared that "some in 
the GoI feel it should be Gaza first and last."  The Israelis 
could make a start in the West Bank by removing the outposts, 
which the international community agrees are not legal. 
Doing so is one of the steps in the Road Map.  The Road Map 
may be imperfect, he added, but it's the only game in town, 
and Finland supports it.  The Ambassador thanked Tuomioja for 
that support.  The FM urged the U.S. to make the maximum use 
of its influence with Israel; "We have slightly more 
influence with the Palestinians, which we are using to the 
full," he said. 
 
7. (C) The Ambassador noted that the FM will be going to the 
region in April, visiting both Israel and the Palestinian 
Authority.  Tuomioja acknowledged that this will be his first 
visit to Israel since he became Foreign Minister in 2000, 
although he had been there in earlier years.  The DCM, 
referring to Finland's upcoming EU presidency (July-December 
2006), asked if Tuomioja is going in his national capacity, 
or as an EU representative.  Tuomioja essentially answered, 
both.  The EU "has a coordination process that works very 
well.  I will check in with Solana before I go, and report 
back afterwards."  He added that some in the EU question 
whether the European Union truly has a Common Foreign and 
Security Policy.  On the Middle East, the answer is yes.  No 
matter what differences exist within the EU on this question 
-- and there are some -- all member countries understand that 
if they are to have any influence on the Middle East they 
must work together. 
 
8. (SBU) Under Secretary Lyra called our attention to the 
fact that Finland will host a February 7-9 seminar on 
hazardous waste disposal in the Middle East, which will be 
attended by representatives of the Israeli Government and the 
Palestinian Authority, as well as Egypt and Jordan.  He said 
that former Finnish Environment Minister Pekka Haavisto, 
working on behalf of UNEP, which will co-chair, "has been 
very helpful in moving this forward through thick and thin." 
 
9. (C) The Ambassador and DCM asked the Minister for his 
concept of the future architecture of the Middle East: what 
should it include?  Tuomioja said the reality is that we 
cannot hope for an ideal solution, but it would have to 
include Israel and an independent Palestinian state, both as 
viable nations, with more or less normal relations with each 
other, and some form of international guarantees.  The 
Minister noted that final status issues have not yet begun to 
be addressed, but the Geneva Accord provides some interesting 
proposals and shows that no issue is intractable if the 
parties have the will to resolve it.  The Ambassador stressed 
that whatever we might hope for in a final agreement, the 
Palestinians must assume their share of responsibility for 
security -- the bloodshed must stop.  The international 
community should help them accomplish that. 
 
10. (C) Tuomioja commented that the Palestinians are the 
number one candidate for a real model of a functioning Arab 
democracy.  The DCM mentioned the Embassy's outreach to 
Finland's Muslim population; at one reception an Iraqi 
immigrant had pointed out to his fellow Muslims that Yassir 
Arafat was the only democratically-elected Arab president. 
 
Aceh 
---- 
 
11. (C) The Ambassador expressed our sympathies to the nation 
of Finland and to the bereaved families over the deaths of 
Finnish citizens in the tsunami disaster.  The DCM added that 
Embassy Helsinki will continue to support in any way we can 
former President Ahtisaari's efforts to bring together the 
Indonesian government and GAM rebels.  Tuomioja thanked us 
for U.S. condolences and disaster assistance on the ground. 
As far as the first round of GoI/GAM talks, his sense was 
that "there were more problems on the Indonesian government 
side" than with the GAM, but at any rate it is a good sign 
that the talks will continue. 
 
EU China Arms Embargo 
--------------------- 
 
12. (C) The Ambassador referred to the Administration's 
strong views about the prospect that the EU will lift the 
China arms embargo.  Tuomioja said Finland supports lifting 
the embargo because "conditions have changed."  For Finland 
the key point is that this is a chance to strengthen the Code 
of Conduct and make it legally binding: "We see (the current 
discussion within the Union) as an opportunity to get EU 
decisions that would otherwise take a long time."  The 
embargo, Tuomioja said, "is either on or off.  And when it's 
on, we have no leverage."  He maintained that the Code of 
Conduct would provide leverage with the Chinese on each 
individual item.  Under Secretary Lyra asserted that the 
Finns see the Code of Conduct as more effective in 
controlling the kinds of non-weapon, dual-use technology the 
Chinese are most apt to want. 
 
13. (C) The DCM asked whether there is EU unanimity to lift 
the embargo.  Tuomioja said yes, in principle, but the 
outstanding issues are the timetable, revising the Code of 
Conduct, and consulting with the United States, "because we 
don't want any misunderstanding." 
 
14. (C) The Ambassador said the EU should make no mistake: 
the United States opposes lifting the embargo.  It would send 
the wrong signal at the wrong time as regards China's human 
rights record.  The DCM asked what Finland is hearing from 
Chinese dissidents about the embargo.  The FM answered 
obliquely, saying that the Chinese would never accept 
explicit linkage between lifting the embargo and improvement 
in human rights, but understand that the linkage is there. 
He added that in his own most recent visit to Beijing, he had 
pressed the question of human rights with (then Vice FM) Li 
Zhaoxing.  The latter launched into a tirade against human 
rights NGOs, charging that they wished to undermine the 
Chinese government.  Tuomioja said he had replied that Li 
misread the NGOs' position -- to which Tuomioja could attest 
first-hand, since he is a member of Amnesty International. 
This reply, he said, seemed to leave the minister nonplussed. 
 
Afghanistan 
----------- 
 
15. (C) The Ambassador thanked Finland for its ongoing 
contributions to rebuilding civil society in Afghanistan, and 
to peacekeeping in Kosovo.  Tuomioja replied that the Finns 
recognize Afghanistan -- like Kosovo -- is a long-term 
commitment, without a pre-set timetable.  Things do seem to 
be getting better, he said: conditions in Afghanistan, 
including the drug situation, have improved even in 
comparison with six months ago. 
 
16. (C) Tuomioja told us that he will be traveling to 
Afghanistan himself soon, a trip that has been scheduled and 
postponed several times in the past.  The Ambassador said he 
hoped the FM would be able to meet with Ambassador Khalilzad 
while in Kabul.  Under Secretary Lyra said that unfortunately 
Ambassador Khalilzad had been away from the city during 
Lyra's own visit to Kabul last May.  Lyra said he had heard a 
lot about the Ambassador: "He is an impressive figure, and 
has a specific background ideal for his position." 
 
EU Defense Cooperation 
---------------------- 
 
17. (C) The Ambassador referred to domestic debate over 
whether Finland should expand its peacekeeping legislation -- 
which currently allows the GoF to contribute only to forces 
with a UN or OSCE mandate -- to include missions with an EU 
mandate.  (Note: President Halonen, who, like Tuomioja, comes 
from the left wing of the SDP, has expressed reservations 
about such an expansion, one of the few instances in which 
she has parted company with the Center/SDP governing 
coalition.)  Tuomioja said that Finland plans to contribute 
to two battle groups, and is looking at several possible 
changes to the legislation, which may be renamed the "crisis 
management" law.  For one thing, the Finnish decision-making 
process must be streamlined, since it involves the President, 
the GoF, and Parliament, and occasions may arise when 
decisions have to be taken swiftly.  The GoF does favor 
allowing for an EU mandate, he said: as a general rule, the 
battle groups should be deployed on a UN mandate, but there 
may be occasions when that is not possible yet action is 
called for.  Tuomioja maintained, however, that this question 
of an EU mandate is not a major issue, since no EU operation 
would be undertaken without consensus within the Union. 
 
Rogers Child Custody Case 
------------------------- 
 
18. (SBU) The Ambassador thanked the Minister for the MFA's 
assistance in resolving the child custody case of the 
dual-national Rogers children, who are now back in the United 
States with their father, in accordance with the terms of the 
Hague Convention.  Tuomioja, in a reference to the domestic 
controversy over the case within Finland, said, "It wasn't an 
easy thing."  Finland has an independent judiciary, he said, 
but that judiciary obeys international law.  The FM did note 
that the Rogers case has reverted to a U.S. court, and said 
he hoped the children's Finnish mother would have a chance to 
put her case before that court. 
 
Intellectual Property Rights 
---------------------------- 
 
19. (SBU) The Ambassador said he had had a useful 
conversation with Minister of Social Affairs and Health 
Sinikka Monkare on the question of pharmaceutical patent 
protection.  Events seem to be moving in the right direction. 
 The chairmen of both Merck and Pfizer have told the 
Ambassador that they respect Finnish brainpower, and would 
like to invest more in R&D in Finland, were there adequate 
patent protection.  It would help Finland, he added, to be 
seen as a leader in the biotechnology industry.  The DCM 
noted that only three EU members -- Portugal, Austria, and 
Finland -- are not in line with EU standards on length of 
patent protection.  The FM replied that he was happy this 
matter hasn't landed on his desk, but he recognized its 
importance -- "We've invested a lot of public money in R&D 
financing." 
 
The Environment 
--------------- 
 
20. (U) The Ambassador thanked the FM for Finland's vote to 
extend the methyl bromide convention.  The U.S., said the 
Ambassador, is an environmentally conscious nation, and even 
if it is not possible for the U.S. to sign the Kyoto 
Protocol, he hoped some future agreement can be crafted that 
is acceptable to all sides.  The Minister (who had said much 
the same thing to Under Secretary Dobriansky during her 
October, 2002 visit to Helsinki) acknowledged this without 
comment. 
 
MACK