US embassy cable - 03ROME1992

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 001992 
 
SIPDIS 
 
EUR FOR PDAS RIES, EUR/ERA, EUR/WE, EUR/RPM 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/06/2013 
TAGS: PREL, EU, EU, IT, NATO, ITPREL, NATO 
SUBJECT: IMPROVING TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONS TOP PRIORITY FOR 
ITALY'S EU COUNCIL PRESIDENCY 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
 
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CLASSIFIED BY: POL MINISTER COUNSELOR TOM COUNTRYMAN.  REASON: 1.5 (B)( 
D) 
 
1.  (C)  SUMMARY:  DURING A WIDE-RANGING CONVERSATION ON MAY 
2 ABOUT THE CURRENT - AND FUTURE - STATE OF US/EU RELATIONS 
AND PRIORITIES FOR THE UPCOMING ITALIAN EU PRESIDENCY, MFA 
DIRGEN GIANCARLO ARAGONA TOLD VISITING USEU AMBASSADOR 
SCHNABEL THAT HE IS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE FUTURE OF US/EU 
RELATIONS.  HIS VIEW IS THAT EUROPE'S BIGGEST WORRY IS THAT 
THE US BECOMES "INDIFFERENT" TOWARDS TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONS. 
 HE ENCOURAGED WASHINGTON TO USE EXCELLENT GOI/USG RELATIONS 
TO ITS ADVANTAGE DURING THE ITALIAN EU PRESIDENCY.  END 
SUMMARY 
 
2.  (C)  ARAGONA SAID THAT THE STATE OF TRANSATLANTIC 
RELATIONS WAS UPPERMOST ON HIS AGENDA RECENTLY, NOTING 
RECENT PHONE CONVERSATIONS WITH U/S GROSSMAN AND A/S JONES ON 
JUST THAT SUBJECT; MORE SPECIFICALLY, ON HOW TO USE THE 
ITALIAN EU PRESIDENCY TO PUT TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONS BACK ON 
THE RIGHT TRACK.  "IT WON'T BE EASY" ADMITTED ARAGONA.  ALL 
EU MEMBER STATES AGREE IN PRINCIPLE THAT RELATIONS BETWEEN 
AMERICA AND EUROPE CAN'T CONTINUE AS THEY EXIST NOW.  BUT 
HOW, IN PRACTICE, TO ACHIEVE THE OBJECTIVE OF MORE AMICABLE 
RELATIONS IN THE POLITICAL ARENA IS LESS CLEAR.  ARAGONA 
SUGGESTED STARTING WITH THE AREAS WHERE THE EU AND US ALREADY 
SHARE COMMON GOALS - A NATO ROLE IN AFGHANISTAN AND IRAQ, FOR 
EXAMPLE, AND CONCURRENT "LOOSENING" OF NATO'S GEOGRAPHIC 
FOCUS. 
 
3.  (C) AMBASSADOR SCHNABEL OBSERVED THAT THE VIEW AMONG SOME 
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IN EUROPE, PARTICULARLY IN FRANCE, WAS THAT THE NEW US POLICY 
TOWARDS EUROPE IS "DIVIDE AND CONQUER."  ARAGONA DISAGREES 
WITH THIS VIEW.  HE OPINED THAT THE TRUE PROBLEM WAS A 
PERCEPTION AMONG EUROPEANS THAT THERE HAS BEEN A DECREASE IN 
THE "CENTRALITY" OF EUROPE IN US FOREIGN POLICY PRIORITIES, 
AN OUTGROWTH OF POST-COLD WAR REALITIES, WHICH HAS CREATED A 
DISTANCE BETWEEN THE EU AND US. ARAGONA SURMISED THAT THE 
GREATEST FEAR IN EUROPE WAS NOT GROWING ANTI-EUROPEAN 
SENTIMENT IN THE US, BUT RATHER "INDIFFERENCE," THE FEAR THAT 
EUROPE WILL LOSE ITS IMPORTANCE THROUGH "POLITICAL NEGLECT" 
IN THE US, MAKING IT IMPOSSIBLE FOR RELATIONS TO GET BACK TO 
NORMAL AFTER AMERICANS OVERCOME THEIR PRESENT RESENTMENT 
TOWARDS EUROPE. 
 
4.  (C) AMB. SCHNABEL OBSERVED THAT THE US/EU SHOULD FOCUS ON 
TRADE/ECONOMY, AS EACH OTHER'S LARGEST TRADING PARTNERS, 
WHERE THERE WAS FAR MORE TO AGREE UPON THAN NOT - FOR 
INSTANCE, ECONOMIC AND TRADE COMPETITION FROM CHINA, WHERE 
THERE IS FAR LESS OVERHEAD AND REGULATION.  ARAGONA AGREED, 
BUT INSISTED THAT THE POLITICAL FRAMEWORK IS FUNDAMENTAL. 
CONFLICT MAY BE SEEN AS HEALTHY AND NORMAL WITHIN A 
PARTNERSHIP, BUT IF THAT PARTNERSHIP WEAKENS, CONFLICT 
THREATENS ITS EXISTENCE.   EACH SIDE MUST ENCOURAGE EUROPEAN 
GROWTH, BUT NOT AT THE EXPENSE OF THE TRANSATLANTIC ALLIANCE. 
 ITALY HAS A LONG COMMITMENT TO EUROPEAN DEVELOPMENT IN A 
MANNER THAT PRESERVES AND ENHANCES TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONS. 
THIS WILL BE A PRIORITY OF THE ITALIAN PRESIDENCY. 
 
5. (C)  ARAGONA SAID THAT OVERALL HE WAS OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE 
FUTURE, BUT ADMITTED THAT THIS WAS "NOT AN EASY MOMENT" IN 
EU/US RELATIONS. THE GOI INTENDED TO DO WHAT IT COULD DURING 
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ITS PRESIDENCY TO ADDRESS THE SITUATION, AND HE ASKED FOR A 
STRONG US RESPONSE AND INPUT TO THE PROCESS.  HE ENCOURAGED 
WASHINGTON TO USE EXCELLENT US/ITALIAN BILATERAL RELATIONS TO 
ITS ADVANTAGE DURING THOSE SIX MONTHS. 
 
6.  (C) ON THE CONVENTION/CONSTITUTION, ARAGONA SAID THAT THE 
GOAL OF ALL EU MEMBER STATES IS TO OPEN THE 
INTER-GOVERNMENTAL CONFERENCE DURING THE ITALIAN PRESIDENCY, 
AND TO CLOSE IT AS WELL, BUT ADMITTEDLY TIME IS TIGHT.  THE 
GOI WANTS TO AVOID JUDGING THE SUCCESS OF ITS PRESIDENCY 
SOLELY ON COMPLETING A CONSTITUTION.  EVEN IF DELIBERATIONS 
CARRY OVER INTO THE IRISH PRESIDENCY, ARAGONA CLAIMED THAT 
THERE WERE GROWING SIGNALS FROM OTHER EU MEMBERS THAT THERE 
COULD STILL BE A SIGNING CEREMONY IN ROME. 
 
7.  (C)  ARAGONA SAID THAT THE GOI WAS SATISFIED WITH THE 
CONVENTION DEBATE THUS FAR, BUT THERE WAS SOME ROOM FOR 
IMPROVEMENT.  THE GOI IS STRONGLY COMMITTED TO EUROPEAN 
INTEGRATION.  IT REJECTS DOMESTIC CRITICISM (NOTE: MOSTLY 
EMANATING FROM THE ITALIAN LEFT AND AIMED AT THE CURRENT 
GOVERNMENT) THAT EQUATES DEFENDING NATIONAL POSITIONS WITH A 
WEAKENING COMMITMENT TO EUROPE.  NO ONE CRITICIZES FRANCE, 
THE UK OR GERMANY FOR ASSERTIVE DEFENSE OF THEIR INTERESTS 
WITHIN THE EU FRAMEWORK.  "THIS IS POLITICAL BLACKMAIL," SAID 
 
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                           CONFIDENTIAL     PTQ1900 
 
PAGE 01        ROME  01992  02 OF 02  090728Z 
ACTION EUR-00 
 
INFO  LOG-00   NP-00    AID-00   CIAE-00  INL-00   DODE-00  SRPP-00 
      DS-00    EAP-00   VC-00    TEDE-00  INR-00   IO-00    LAB-01 
      L-00     VCE-00   AC-01    NRRC-00  NSAE-00  NSCE-00  OIC-02 
      PA-00    PM-00    PRS-00   ACE-00   P-00     SCT-00   SP-00 
      SSO-00   SS-00    TRSE-00  T-00     USIE-00  SSD-00   PMB-00 
      DSCC-00  PRM-00   DRL-01   G-00     SSR-00   NFAT-00  SAS-00 
        /005W 
                  ------------------62567A  090729Z /38 
O 090727Z MAY 03 
FM AMEMBASSY ROME 
TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9756 
USEU BRUSSELS IMMEDIATE 3219 
INFO EU CANDIDATE STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY 
EU INTEREST COLLECTIVE PRIORITY 
EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY 
AMCONSUL FLORENCE PRIORITY 
AMCONSUL MILAN PRIORITY 
AMCONSUL NAPLES PRIORITY 
 
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 02 OF 02 ROME 001992 
 
SIPDIS 
 
EUR FOR PDAS RIES, EUR/ERA, EUR/WE, EUR/RPM 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/06/2013 
TAGS: PREL, EU, NATO, IT 
SUBJECT: IMPROVING TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONS TOP PRIORITY FOR 
ITALY'S EU COUNCIL PRESIDENCY 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
PAGE 02        ROME  01992  02 OF 02  090728Z 
 
ARAGONA  "WHICH WE WILL NOT ACCEPT." 
SEMBLER 
 
                       CONFIDENTIAL 
 
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 2003ROME01992 - Classification: CONFIDENTIAL