US embassy cable - 05BRATISLAVA804

C O N F I D E N T I A L  BRATISLAVA 000804 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
STATE FOR EUR/ACE TOM ADAMS AND LIANE DORSEY 
USAID FOR EE/AA THOMAS MEFFORD, EE/ECA, MARILYN SCHMIDT, 
AND PPC/SPP GARRET HARRIES 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/03/2015 
TAGS: EAID, PREL, KDEM, PGOV, LO, BO 
SUBJECT: SLOVAKIA: BELARUS IS DETERIORATING, NEEDS 
COORDINATED APPROACH 
 
REF: STATE 168836 
 
Classified By: DCM Lawrence R. Silverman for Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D). 
 
1.  (C)  SUMMARY:  On September 30, DCM and Poloff 
(notetaker) delivered reftel demarche to Stefan Rozkopal, MFA 
Director for CIS and Balkan Peninsula Countries.   Rozkopal, 
who had met the day before with two opposition politicians 
from Minsk, offered Slovakia's support for democratization 
efforts in Belarus, and noted that despite Slovakia's limited 
finances, "if we see a way ahead, we can figure something 
out."  Rozkopal told us that he believes that Lukashenko has 
the opposition infiltrated and that he thinks an AM radio 
station in the local language would be most beneficial, but 
recommended that action be taken "quickly" to maximize impact 
on the 2006 elections.  Post notes Slovakia's continued 
emphasis on Belarus as a foreign policy "niche capability," 
and Rozkopal told us that the MFA will send its PolDir to 
Minsk in the near future for consultations.  The MFA 
continues its active engagement and coordination with Slovak 
NGOs, a sensitive subject that Rozkopal says he is forced to 
frequently deny in conversations with the "brainwashed" 
Ambassador of Belarus in Bratislava.  Rozkopal went on to 
present DCM with a copy of a three page document on 
"Contribution of Slovakia to the policy paper on Belarus," 
which he said had just been approved for delivery in 
Brussels.  Among other things, the policy statement calls for 
cooperation and coordination with the USG on democratization 
activities in Belarus.  END SUMMARY. 
 
BELARUS NEEDS RADIO IN ITS OWN LANGUAGE 
--------------------------------------- 
 
2.  (C)  During a September 30 courtesy call with MFA 
Director for CIS and Balkan Peninsula Affairs Stefan 
Rozkopal, DCM again presented reftel points on coordinating 
Belarus assistance.  Rozkopal, who had received a copy of the 
points in advance of the September 23 TACIS meeting, noted 
that he had raised the issue of radio broadcasting with two 
opposition politicians from Minsk who had been visiting 
Bratislava the day before, and that they were very receptive. 
 They said that while FM radio would be "perfect," it is not 
possible to transmit FM radio signals to Minsk from abroad; 
AM radio is not as popular in Minsk.  However, they believed 
that a radio station in Belarussian would be "something 
special," as there are several stations already that 
broadcast in Russian (including Deutsche Welle).  While the 
Russian language is widely spoken in Belarus, the MPs 
believed that having a radio station in Belarussian would 
help it "stand out," as one noted that people would 
understand that it was intended "for us." 
 
3.  (C)  As far as funding was concerned, Rozkopal noted that 
Slovakia's funds are "limited," but that if they saw a "way 
ahead" with definitive international consensus, Slovakia 
would "figure something out."  Even though such a Slovak 
contribution would likely be symbolic, he felt that a truly 
multilateral approach would be more beneficial than having 
efforts directed at Minsk funded "50 percent by the U.S. and 
50 percent by Poland." 
 
SLOVAKIA WORKS WITH NGO COMMUNITY 
--------------------------------- 
 
4.  (C)  Rozkopal said that in the wake of his meetings with 
the opposition politicians and in advance of the upcoming 
opposition party congress in Belarus, he fears that the 
Lukashenko will "use" the congress to his own gain by citing 
it as evidence of democracy at work in Belarus.  Highlighting 
the strong coordination between Slovak NGOs and the MFA on 
Belarus issues, Rozkopal said that they work closely with the 
Pontis Foundation (a group which Belarus has "blacklisted," 
but which remains active in Belarus and which sponsored the 
travel of the two opposition MPs on September 29) and others, 
as they have "access to people and areas" that the MFA does 
not.  Although Lukashenko has never complained directly about 
Slovakia's activities, the MFA frequently "pretends" it has 
no influence on NGOs when asked by Belarus' Ambassador in 
Bratislava.  While there is no high-level contact between the 
GOS and the GOB, Rozkopal did say that the MFA would be 
sending Miro Lajcak, their PolDir, to Minsk in the future for 
consultations.  Slovakia is also be trying to engage Russia 
"as a way to influence the situation in Belarus."  Rozkopal 
said that Russia could be "tough" with Belarus in a more 
effective way than other states. 
 
MINSK'S AMBASSADOR: WE'LL GET TOUGHER 
------------------------------------- 
 
5.  (C)  Rozkopal did mention one chilling message from his 
 
 
recent meeting with Belarus Ambassador to Slovakia.  During 
their meeting, the Ambassador told Rozkopal that "the closer 
we come to elections, the stronger the tools we will use." 
Rozkopal said he was concerned with the use of such "tough 
and open" language, but noted that it reiterates the need for 
quick action on a "broadcasting timetable" that could be used 
to bolster democracy in the advance of the elections. 
Waiting until next year to begin broadcasting, he fears, 
could be "too late." 
 
SLOVAKIA ON BELARUS: THE OFFICIAL STANCE 
---------------------------------------- 
 
6.  (SBU)  During the courtesy call, Rozkopal gave us a 
document entitled "Contribution of Slovakia to the policy 
paper on Belarus" that he said had just been finalized for 
presentation in Brussels.  Rozkopal said that the document 
reflects the cleared, official stance of Slovakia towards 
Minsk.  In sum, it notes that the "political situation in 
Belarus with regard to the human rights and democracy (sic) 
is deteriorating" as "Lukashenko's regime escalates its 
repression against democratic forces in the country." 
According to the document, Slovakia expects the pressure on 
opposition and NGO groups to continue in advance of the 
Presidential election, and urges the EU to establish a 
Commission presence in Minsk as soon as possible (again, 
before the 2006 elections) to increase the EU's visibility in 
Minsk and contribute to more effective coordination of 
democratization efforts. 
 
7.  (SBU)  The document also notes that, "in order to achieve 
progress in the democratization of Belarus" Slovakia fully 
supports coordination with the United States, and dedicates a 
paragraph to the need for the immediate development of 
"alternative TV and radio broadcasting as well as print 
media" outside the realm of the current state-controlled 
media. 
 
VALLEE 
 
 
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