US embassy cable - 05VIENNA3157

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 VIENNA 003157 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/ERA AND EUR/AGS - VIKMANIS-KELLER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/22/2015 
 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, AU, EUN 
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S SEPTEMBER 22 MEETING WITH CHANCELLOR 
 
 
SCHUESSEL -- AUSTRIA STILL CALLS FOR CLEAR LANGUAGE ON 
 
TURKEY 
 
REF: A. (A) STATE 174901 
 
     B. (B) VIENNA 2994 
 
     C. (C) VIENNA 2944 
 
     D. (D) VIENNA 2827 
 
     E. (E) VIENNA 2752 AND PREVIOUS 
 
Classified By: Ambassador W.L. Lyons Brown.  Reasons:  1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
1.  (C) Summary:  Ambassador Brown paid his farewell call on 
 
Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel on September 22. 
 
Discussion focussed on Austrian views of Croatian and Turkish 
 
accession to the European Union.  Schuessel thanked the 
 
Ambassador profusely for his work in Austria over the last 
 
four years.  End Summary. 
 
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Croatia 
 
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2.  (C) Schuessel said it was important to Austria that the 
 
EU begin accession talks with Croatia.  Croatia is the Balkan 
 
country most ready to start the accession process, and this 
 
was the beginning of the process of bringing stability to the 
 
region.  This was very much in the interest of the U.S., he 
 
said.  In the end, Schussel said, it was hard for Austrians, 
 
who knew Croatia well and had long cultural, ethnic and 
 
commercial ties to that country, to understand how accession 
 
talks could begin with Turkey before there was any prospect 
 
of them beginning with Croatia.  However, Schuessel confirmed 
 
that Austria sought no conditionality between the start of 
 
the Turkish talks and the beginning of the accession process 
 
with Croatia. 
 
3.  (C) The Ambassador pointed out that there was no great 
 
disagreement between Austria and the United States on the 
 
strategic importance of Croatia.  However, the fact was that 
 
Croatia had flaunted the international community's call for 
 
justice by hiding Ante Gotovina for years.  If Croatia had 
 
changed its position, it would have to show this to the 
 
world, and that should mean that Gotovina went to the Hague 
 
for trial before the International Criminal Tribunal for the 
 
former Yugoslavia (ICTY).  Schuessel indicated that he was in 
 
communication with the British presidency on a way forward. 
 
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Turkey 
 
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4.  (C) The Ambassador said it was important to understand 
 
Austria's position on the start of the EU's accession 
 
negotiations with Turkey.  We understood from Foreign 
 
Minister Ursula Plassnik's discussion with the Secretary in 
 
Washington (ref a) that Austria would not veto the start of 
 
negotiations with Turkey on October 3, and would not link 
 
Turkey and Croatia.  Schuessel said it was important to 
 
improve the language in the negotiating framework.  Clearly, 
 
Schuessel said, the goal of the talks is full EU membership 
 
for Turkey.  However, if this is "not possible," there should 
 
be a fall back position.  The Ambassador acknowledged that 
 
Plassnik had spelled this out in her letter to British 
 
Foriegn Secretary Straw (ref c).  We were all aware, the 
 
Ambassador said, that public opinion in Austria and other 
 
countries opposed Turkish membership in the EU.  However, 
 
there should be no suggestion that Austria would block the 
 
start of talks on October 3.  The Ambassador noted that 
 
Turkey had made huge progress in reforms because of its 
 
desire to enter the EU.  The continuation of Turkey's reform 
 
process, and the stability membership in the EU would bring, 
 
were of tremendous strategic importance.  Schuessel 
 
acknowledged these points, but highlighted continuing human 
 
rights problems in Turkey. 
 
5.  (C) Note:  The Austrian press has highlighted the fact 
 
that Austria now stands alone in maintaining reservations 
 
concerning the start of talks on October 3.  The spokesperson 
 
of the Austrian mission to the EU has said, as Plassnik had 
 
done earlier, that it is "one against 24."  The British 
 
presidency will reportedly enter into bilateral talks with 
 
Austria on Monday, September 26.  One Austrian journalist 
 
wrote, "Austria's maneuvers in Brussels are meant for the 
 
domestic policy stage."  Be that as it may, Schuessel was 
 
unwilling to tip his hand just yet on his negotiating 
 
strategy.  End note. 
 
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Meeting Requests 
 
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6.  (SBU) In a discussion with the Ambassador, the Chancellor 
 
indicated his understanding for the fact that he had not yet 
 
received answers to his requests for a meeting with the 
 
President in December and for a date for the U.S.-EU Summit. 
 
Brown