Cablegate: Gaerc Demarche: Bulgaria Agrees with U.S.

VZCZCXRO8288
RR RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLZ RUEHROV
DE RUEHSF #1227 2851516
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 121516Z OCT 07
FM AMEMBASSY SOFIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4409
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUEHGB/AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD 0145
RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT 0067
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS 0090
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 0595
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI

UNCLAS SOFIA 001227

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV RS LY IR SY LE BG
SUBJECT: GAERC DEMARCHE: BULGARIA AGREES WITH U.S.
POSITIONS

REF: STATE 141316

1. (SBU) We delivered reftel demarche to MFA head of office
for EU affairs Sergey Tassev on October 10. Tassev said
there were "no disagreements" with the US positions in the
non-paper. Kosovo and Libya were the most important issues
for Bulgaria. There were rumors that there was a new U.S.
position paper on Kosovo, and possibly a new Russian paper as
well. Would the Troika be making its own proposal to the
Serbs and Kosovars? We replied that we had no information on
the above papers and proposal and undertook to look into it.
Tassev said his government was for strong EU engagement on
Kosovo and supported going ahead with the ESDP Rule of Law
mission after December 10.

2. (SBU) On Libya, Tassev said Bulgaria wanted to normalize
relations between Libya and Europe, though Libya liked to
think of itself as "unique" and not lumped in with "other
Euro-Med" relations. On Iraq, Tassev said there was a new
mood in the EU to be more involved on the humanitarian side
and this would be discussed at the conference. He said
Bulgaria intends to join in EU humanitarian efforts but had
no specifics. On the EU Syria-Lebanon border mission, Tassev
said Bulgaria favors the EU sending a fact finding mission to
the border region before taking a decision to send an EU
border mission.

Karagiannis

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