US embassy cable - 05SOFIA1675

C O N F I D E N T I A L  SOFIA 001675 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/29/2015 
TAGS: MARR, MOPS, PREL, BG, IZ, LY, Bulgaria-Iraqi Freedom 
SUBJECT: BULGARIA PUSHING TO RESOLVE IRAQ & SHARED BASES 
FOR BUSH-PURVANOV MEETING 
 
Classified By: Amb. John Beyrle for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
1. (C) Summary.  Foreign Minister Kalfin told Amb. Beyrle 
September 28 that Bulgaria intends to have selected a 
follow-on mission in Iraq prior to the October 17 
Bush-Purvanov meeting in Washington.  He said that Bulgaria 
wishes to focus on the draft Defense Cooperation Agreement 
during next week's negotiations with Amb. Loftis in Sofia. 
Kalfin also previewed President Purvanov's agenda for his 
meeting with President Bush and updated us on his planned 
meeting with Qadhafi's son next week in Paris to discuss the 
Bulgarian medics.  End Summary. 
 
FOLLOW-ON MISSION IN IRAQ 
------------------------- 
 
2. (C) Following up on the Iraq Contact Team visit to Sofia 
last week, Kalfin reiterated Bulgaria's intention to remain 
involved in Iraq, but noted, "it should be in a form that can 
get political support," stressing "we cannot continue the 
current type of mission."  He recognizes the value to Iraq's 
stability of having the Bulgarian contingent remain through 
the October referendum and the December elections.  He was 
disappointed that the MOD did not ask more questions about 
the mission at Camp Ashraf during talks last week, but 
indicated that training Iraqi security forces headquarters 
units is "a good option."  Kalfin said that the GOB is also 
considering other options, like medical and engineering 
units, that were not part of the U.S. contact team's briefing. 
 
3. (C) Kalfin explained that the Bulgarian interagency group 
that participated in last week's discussions would send a 
report to the Council of Ministers by September 30 with 
recommended options.  Reiterating a deadline that President 
Purvanov had described earlier to the Ambassador, he said, 
"We want to have a decision made" prior to the Bush-Purvanov 
meeting.  Kalfin said he would like to get political backing 
for a follow-on mission from the Parliament through either a 
resolution or a committee decision. 
 
JOINT MILITARY FACILITIES 
------------------------- 
 
4. (C) Kalfin told Ambassador that the MFA will take the lead 
in next week's negotiations on joint military facilities, and 
Lubomir Ivanov, Bulgaria's ambassador to NATO, will lead the 
Bulgarian delegation.  This is a change from the previous 
negotiating session, which was led by former Deputy Minister 
of Defense Ilko Dimitrov.  Kalfin suggested that negotiations 
focus on the Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) instead of 
the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA).  (Note: The MFA has 
since agreed to focus on the SOFA as planned).  Kalfin agreed 
with Ambassador's suggestions to hold a joint Loftis-Ivanov 
press conference in Sofia and have Ambassador Loftis brief 
senior members of the Parliament's foreign affairs and 
defense committees.  Ambassador and Kalfin agreed that these 
outreach efforts could help counteract misinformation that 
has recently appeared in the Bulgarian press. 
 
PURVANOV'S WHITE HOUSE VISIT 
---------------------------- 
 
5. (C) Kalfin said that Purvanov's agenda for his meeting 
with President Bush will include: Iraq, joint military 
facilities, trade and investment, the double taxation treaty, 
the Bulgarian medics in Libya, and the visa waiver program. 
Kalfin promised to coordinate in advance with Post on the 
Bush-Purvanov agenda. 
 
BULGARIAN MEDICS IN LIBYA 
------------------------- 
 
6. (C) Kalfin thanked Ambassador for U.S. assistance and 
stressed the strength of U.S. influence with Libya. 
Ambassador assured Kalfin that the U.S. is ready to help push 
any agreement with Libya, but stressed that Bulgaria and 
Libya must work out the details in advance through bilateral 
discussions.  Ambassador informed Kalfin that Secretary of 
State Rice would not be visiting Libya as had been 
erroneously reported here.  Kalfin said that he plans to meet 
Qadhafi's son in Paris next week to "finalize communication 
channels with Libya" and then make a proposal based, in part, 
on USG recommendations.  Minister Kalfin said that he would 
keep Post fully informed. 
 
COMMENT 
 
------- 
 
7. (C) Kalfin understands the importance of Bulgaria's 
follow-on mission and the deadline for decision imposed by 
the White House visit.  His comments indicate a preference 
for a training mission, even if it puts Bulgarian soldiers at 
greater risk.  We will continue to try and provide additional 
information to the Bulgarians regarding follow-on missions as 
requested. 
BEYRLE