Wikileaks - DCXXXII

96915 2/15/2007 16:17 07ATHENS342 Embassy Athens UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY 06SECSTATE162288 VZCZCXRO9155 OO RUEHIK RUEHYG DE RUEHTH #0342 0461617 ZNR UUUUU ZZH O 151617Z FEB 07 FM AMEMBASSY ATHENS TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8144 INFO RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 4610 RUEHKB/AMEMBASSY BAKU PRIORITY 0108 RUEHBW/AMEMBASSY BELGRADE PRIORITY 0718 RUEHBM/AMEMBASSY BUCHAREST PRIORITY 0928 RUEHCH/AMEMBASSY CHISINAU PRIORITY 0202 RUEHKV/AMEMBASSY KYIV PRIORITY 0007 RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PRIORITY 0787 RUEHSF/AMEMBASSY SOFIA PRIORITY 1509 RUEHSI/AMEMBASSY TBILISI PRIORITY 0360 RUEHTI/AMEMBASSY TIRANA PRIORITY 1194 RUEHYE/AMEMBASSY YEREVAN PRIORITY 0098 RUEHDA/AMCONSUL ADANA PRIORITY 0040 RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL PRIORITY 1800 RUEHIK/AMCONSUL THESSALONIKI PRIORITY 0890 UNCLAS ATHENS 000342

SIPDIS

SIPDIS SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SENV, ECON, PGOV, PREL, GR SUBJECT: BSEC: GREEKS URGE HASTE ON U.S. ENVIRO PROJECT

REF: A. 06 SECSTATE 162288

B. ANKARA 58

1. (U) This is an action request. See paragraph 3.

2. (SBU) In a meeting with DepPolCouns on the Black Sea Economic Cooperation organization (BSEC), Greek MFA Bilateral Economic Relations Directorate Counselor Ionnis Metaxas said Greece supported the U.S. proposal for an environmental workshop and urged the United States to move as quickly as possible to submit its written proposal, preferably at the March 12-13 Belgrade session of the environmental working group. Metaxas explained that BSEC was very strict about its rules of procedure and that the timing of the U.S. proposal, therefore, was critical. If the U.S. did not submit its proposal at the March 12-13 meeting, it would have to wait until the next environmental working group meeting this summer. Since the working group met only every six months, action on a proposal submitted next summer would likely not take place until 2008.

3. (SBU) Metaxas noted that BSEC SecGen Ambassador Leonidas Chrissanthopoulos was in Athens until late next week and urged us to speak to him about the project as well. Embassy requests further Department guidance on the workshop project that we could pass to Chrissanthopoulos. RIES