ITALY AVIATION ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS: ENGAGING

UNCLAS ROME 003593 SIPDIS STATE FOR EB/TRA STATE FOR EUR/WE STATE PASS TO NTSB WASHDC BRUSSELS FOR FAA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAIR IT AVIATION FAA SUBJECT: ITALY AVIATION ACCIDENT INVESTIGATIONS: ENGAGING THE MFA REF: A. ROME 3060 ¶B. STATE 194638 ¶1. Summary: EcMin presented MFA officials with Ref. B diplomatic note seeking better cooperation on aviation incident investigations and laid out possible operational solutions. MFA officials noted that the independence of the Italian judiciary made it difficult for the MFA to prescribe a specific course of action in investigations. MFA officials agreed to review with the Ministry's legal affairs office, the GOI's obligations under ICAO's Convention on International Civil Aviation. End Summary ¶2. On September 13, Economic Minister-Counselor presented Ref. B diplomatic note on the need for improved cooperation on aviation accident investigations to Foreign Ministry Director General for Multilateral Economic and Financial Cooperation, Giandomenico Magliano, and Luigi Teodorani, action officer on transportation safety and security. Magliano noted that the independence of the Italian judiciary made it difficult for the Ministry to prescribe a specific course of action for magistrates investigating aviation incidents. Economic Minister-Counselor replied that the U.S. fully recognized the judiciary's right to pursue its own investigations, but that such investigations should not jeopardize U.S. investigators' right of access to incident investigations under Annex 13 of ICAO's Convention on International Civil Aviation. ¶3. Magliano asked whether the four incidents over the last year represented a new, or longstanding, difficulty in obtaining cooperation with local magistrates on access to incident investigations. EcMin noted that there had been no other problematic incidents in recent years, but that these recent incidents involved different judicial authorities in different jurisdictions, which implies a systemic issue. Magliano thought that it would be worthwhile to determine if a recent change in legislation or judicial procedures could possibly have led magistrates to be less cooperative. ¶4. EcMin suggested two possible ways to improve cooperation: 1) in the case of future aviation incidents, the MFA could make it standard practice to advise the responsible magistrate of Italy's obligations under ICAO; and 2) when magistrates appoint a technical expert in such cases, they could ensure that the expert is from the Italian Air Safety Board (ANSV, the Italian NTSB counterpart). ¶5. Teodorani acknowledged that he was new to this portfolio, but expressed doubt that the MFA could approach magistrates on their choice of experts. He said that he would consult with the Diplomatic Dispute Service (the Foreign Ministry legal office) about Italy's obligations under ICAO conventions and would contact the Embassy by phone in advance of a formal response to our diplomatic note. Visit Rome's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/rome/index.cf m SEMBLER NNNN 2004ROME03593 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED