US embassy cable - 05PRAGUE870

UNCLAS PRAGUE 000870 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/NCE AND EUR/ERA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON, PREL, EZ, EUN 
SUBJECT: CZECH REPUBLIC NOT SUPPORTIVE OF SEPARATE IPR OR 
ENERGY DECLARATIONS AT U.S.-EU SUMMIT 
 
REF: STATE 106113 
 
1.  (SBU) Post delivered reftel points to oficials at the 
Ministry of Trade and Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  The 
Czechs are sending Ivana Holubkova (Deputy Director of the 
Americas Department in the MFA) and Zuzana Skalna (of the MFA 
trade and agriculture policy section) to Brussels on June 7 
to deal with preparations for the Summit.  Also key to the 
discussion will be Blanka Fajkusova of the Czech Mission to 
the EU. 
 
2.  (SBU) Ladislava Votavova, Director of the Department of 
Multilateral Trade Policy and the EU Common Trade Policy at 
the Ministry of Industry and Trade is the Czech Republic's 
new 133 Committee titulaire, replacing Otomar Louda, who has 
reluctantly retired from the Ministry.  Votavova shared with 
us Czech Republic's agreed position on the Summit 
declaration, prepared for use by Votavova in the 133 
Committee and in COTRA.  The text of this document has been 
e-mailed to USEU and EUR/ERA. 
 
3.  (SBU) The Czech position does not support the two 
supplemental declarations sought by Washington. 
Nevertheless, we have urged their inclusion to Votavova, 
Holoubkova and Skalna.  We also urged the deletion of 
references to investment and the like, and emphasized the 
U.S. desire to keep the tone of the final document as 
positive as possible.  Skalna said that there is very little, 
if any, support among the member states for the separate IPR 
document.  The Czechs want the document to be unified, action 
oriented and concise. 
 
4.  (SBU) The most important thing to the Czechs is as usual 
their desire for a waiver of visas, as applies to some other 
EU countries.  The Czechs support the creation of a 
Regulatory Cooperation Forum, so long as it allows for 
significant input from the member states.   They also support 
continued negotiations for an air transport services 
agreement, EU efforts to remove perceived market access 
barriers at the U.S. state and local level, and strengthening 
of the U.S.-EU Financial Markets Regulatory Dialogue.  The 
Czechs view IPR and energy cooperation as important, but 
apparently not sufficiently so that they automatically 
support separate declarations on those subjects. 
 
CABANISS