US embassy cable - 03ROME931

C O N F I D E N T I A L ROME 000931 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT. FOR EUR/RPM AND EUR/WE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/04/2013 
TAGS: EU, MARR, MK, PREL, NATO, EUN 
SUBJECT: GOI DISAPPOINTED WITH DELAY IN EU TAKEOVER OF 
ALLIED HARMONY 
 
REF: A) STATE 57448 B) USNATO 228 C) USNATO 170 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: POLMINCOUNS T. COUNTRYMAN FOR REASONS 1.5 (B) AND (D) 
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1.  (C)  SUMMARY:  ON MARCH 5, ITALIAN MFA DEPUTY HEAD OF 
MULTILATERAL AFFAIRS CLAUDIO BISOGNIERO EXPRESSED SURPRISE TO 
POLMIN AT THE US INTERVENTION (REF A) DURING THAT MORNING'S 
NAC IN BRUSSELS DEALING WITH THE EU'S PROPOSED TAKEOVER OF 
OPERATION ALLIED HARMONY.  RATHER THAN FULLY CONCURRING WITH 
THE END OF THE NATO MISSION AND THE BEGINNING OF AN EU 
MISSION, BISOGNIERO LAMENTED THAT THE UNITED STATES APPEARED 
TO BE REASSESSING THE EU'S ROLE IN MACEDONIA AND DELAYING 
DISCUSSION OF AN EU ROLE IN BOSNIAN SECURITY UNTIL THE END OF 
2003.  GIOVANNI BRAUZZI, DIRECTOR OF THE MFA NATO AFFAIRS 
OFFICE, STRESSED THE IMPORTANCE OF NOT PLAYING INTO THE HANDS 
OF "OTHERS" WHO SAY THE U.S. HAS MISGIVINGS OVER ESDP.  IN A 
FOLLOW UP CONVERSATION WITH BISOGNIERO, POLMIN UNDERLINED 
THAT OUR CONCERNS HAD BEEN RAISED CONSISTENTLY BY USNATO AT 
VARIOUS MEETINGS IN BRUSSELS, AND SHOULD NOT HAVE CAUGHT THE 
ITALIAN MISSION BY SURPRISE.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2.  (C)  ACCORDING TO BISOGNIERO, IT APPEARED AS IF THE U.S. 
WAS REASSESSING THE EU'S POTENTIAL TAKEOVER OF THE MACEDONIA 
MISSION.  READING FROM MEETING NOTES, BISOGNIERO NOTED WITH 
PUZZLEMENT THE ASSERTION FROM THE U.S. SIDE THAT IT WOULD BE 
PREMATURE TO DISCUSS PASSING RESPONSIBILITY FOR BOSNIAN 
SECURITY FROM SFOR TO THE EU BEFORE THE END OF THE YEAR.  HE 
EXPRESSED THE GOI'S CONCERN THAT SMALL DETAILS WERE NOW 
THREATENING TO STOP A PROCESS THAT WAS IN THE COMMON INTEREST 
OF ITALY AND THE US.  BISOGNIERO ALSO STATED THAT HE HAD 
BELIEVED THERE WERE ONLY TWO ISSUES PENDING -- THE RELEASE OF 
NATO ASSETS TO THE EU AND MODALITIES FOR A POSSIBLE NATO 
INTERVENTION. 
 
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3. (C)  POLMIN EMPHASIZED THAT OTHER ALLIES, NOT JUST THE 
UNITED STATES, WERE BEING CAUTIOUS IN DISCUSSING THE EU 
TAKEOVER OF SFOR IN BOSNIA.  MACEDONIA IS A RELATIVELY SMALL 
JOB COMPARED TO BOSNIA.  BISOGNIERO NOTED THAT THE GOI HAD 
NOT TABLED ANYTHING RELATED TO BOSNIA, AND WAS WELL AWARE OF 
ITS GREATER COMPLICATIONS.  HAVING ALWAYS TRIED TO HARMONIZE 
EU DEFENSE POLICY WITH NATO, THE GOI WAS DISAPPOINTED THAT 
THE MARCH 5 MEETING, WHICH THEY HAD EXPECTED TO CONFIRM THE 
EU'S ASSUMPTION OF ALLIED HARMONY FROM NATO, WITH FULL U.S. 
CONCURRENCE, HAD NOT PRODUCED THE DESIRED OUTCOME. 
 
4. (C)  BRAUZZI STATED THAT HE HAD THOUGHT ALL THE DETAILS OF 
THE HANDOVER WERE FINISHED, AND RAISED TWO POINTS: THE 
IMPORTANCE OF THE EU'S FIRST MISSION GOING WELL; AND THAT THE 
U.S. SHOULD BE CAREFUL NOT TO PLAY INTO THE HANDS OF "OTHERS" 
(READ FRENCH) WHO SAY THE U.S. HAS MISGIVINGS OVER ESDP. 
 
5.  (C)  IN A FOLLOW UP CONVERSATION WITH BISOGNIERO, 
COUNTRYMAN EMPHASIZED THAT THE GOI SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN 
SURPRISED THAT AMBASSADOR BURNS HAD LAID OUT US CONCERNS AT 
THE NAC.  USNATO HAD CONSISTENTLY STRESSED IN VARIOUS FORA 
THE NEED TO AVOID MAKING ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT MACEDONIA, LET 
ALONE TO LEAPFROG TO THE LARGER BOSNIA MISSION, BEFORE TAKING 
CARE OF THE BERLIN PLUS ARRANGEMENTS (REFS B, C).  FURTHER, 
THE CONDITIONS FOR THE MACEDONIA OPERATION LAID OUT BY THE 
U.S. IN BRUSSELS WERE REASONABLE AND ACHIEVABLE WITHIN A 
RELATIVELY SHORT TIMEFRAME.  IT WOULD ONLY BE WISE TO SEE HOW 
IT GOES IN MACEDONIA BEFORE MAKING DEFINITE DECISIONS ON A 
BOSNIA MISSION. 
 
6. (C) COMMENT: IT'S NOT CLEAR WHY THE ITALIANS WERE SUPRISED 
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BY THE US POSITION IN YESTERDAY'S NAC, BUT ..... THEY WERE. 
THIS APPROACH BY BISOGNIERO SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN AS A 
COMPLAINT ABOUT OUR POSITION, BUT INSTEAD AS A DESIRE TO BE 
KEPT CLOSELY INFORMED. 
SEMBLER 
 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
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 2003ROME00931 - Classification: CONFIDENTIAL