COUNTER-TERRORISM ACTION GROUP DISCUSSES STATE OF

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VILNIUS 001568

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

STATE FOR S/CT, INL/AAE, AND DS/IP/EUR

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PTER ASEC PREL LH
SUBJECT: COUNTER-TERRORISM ACTION GROUP DISCUSSES STATE OF
PLAY IN LITHUANIA

REF: STATE 14279


1. (SBU) Summary. Embassy Vilnius convened a meeting of
the Counter-Terrorism Action Group (CTAG) in Lithuania on
December 9. Representatives from the French, German,
Canadian, Japanese, Spanish, Italian, British, and Russian
Embassies, as well as EU and UN representatives, compared
notes on counter-terrorism assistance to Lithuania. The
CTAG agreed that the threat of terrorism in Lithuania is
low. Some participants noted new risks, such as the
possibility that terrorists would exploit Lithuania's EU
membership by using it as an entry point into the rest of
the EU. End Summary.

Training for Lithuania
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2. (SBU) During a round table discussion, the participants
discussed their past counter-terrorism and general law
enforcement assistance to Lithuania. No one had any
specific plans for future counter-terrorism assistance.
The participants reported the following counter terrorism
assistance and training for Lithuania:

-- France: France has provided two small seminars on
Threat Assessment and Crisis Management and one training
exercise at the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant.

-- Germany: Germany has a Police Attach, assigned to its
Embassy. The representative explained that Germany had
funded many projects, but none were related to counter-
terrorism. German training focuses on organized crime,
witness protection, and undercover operations. Germany has
also provided DNA database equipment for the Police
Forensics Laboratory. Germany said that its assistance and
investigation priorities in Lithuania involved trafficking
in persons, counterfeit Euros, illegal drugs, and
trafficking in stolen cars. The Germany representative
stated that they prefer to deal with a specific unit and
provide assistance directly to that unit. Germany said
that bilateral assistance would decrease because Lithuania
was now an EU member. Instead, Lithuania can seek EU
funding for assistance. According to Germany, Finland and
Sweden have also provided a variety of law enforcement
assistance.

-- Russia: Russia has provided no assistance to Lithuania.
The Russians stated that Lithuania had never asked for its
help, and there were no issues that concerned Russia.

-- Japan: Japan supported the need for cooperation in
fighting terrorism, but said that it was the policy of
Japan to provide counter-terrorism assistance only to the
Asian countries that surround Japan.

-- United Kingdom: The UK rep stated that it was difficult
to obtain counter-terrorism assistance for Lithuania
because of the low terrorism threat. The UK provides
assistance in other areas. The British representatives
highlighted their assistance in fighting financial crime
with training and the donation of special software for
tracking financial transactions. Great Britain said that
two legal experts had reviewed Lithuanian law and
determined that it was appropriately crafted to facilitate
terrorism investigations.

-- EU (Dutch Presidency): A representative for the Dutch
Embassy attended to represent the EU. He said that there
had been no specific EU assistance for counter-terrorism.
He did not have any information about general law
enforcement assistance. He also said that the Netherlands
had provided no assistance, but emphasized that counter-
terrorism was now a priority for the Netherlands.

-- Italy: Italy reported that they had provided no
counter-terrorism assistance, but had a Memorandum of
Understanding for Judicial Assistance with Lithuania that
will be updated in the near future to include terrorism.

-- UNDP: The UN has no counter-terrorism programs, but
does have trafficking in persons and drug trafficking
programs with Lithuania.

-- Spain: Spain has provided no counter-terrorism
assistance and has no counter-terrorism agreements. They
are working towards an agreement on fighting organized
crime and terrorism. Spain said they would cooperate with
Lithuania in this and all issues within the framework of
the EU. The representative from Spain is the Resident
Twinning Advisor to the Ministry of the Interior.

-- Canada: Canada, which just opened its mission here, has
provided no assistance yet. Its representative said that
Canada will start up in this area in 2005, and will be
looking to work with other countries to support counter-
terrorism assistance.

Areas of Risk
--------------


3. (SBU) The Italian representative noted that, while the
terrorism threat in Lithuania was low, Lithuania was now
part of the external border of the EU. The other
participants agreed that this could create the potential
for terrorists to use Lithuania as an entry point into the
rest of the EU. France raised the concern that terrorists,
using organized crime resources in Lithuania, could obtain
items such as forged documents, and emphasized the
importance of maintaining a counter-terrorism perspective
when dealing with such crimes.

Conclusion: Low Risk, Little Assistance
--------------


4. (SBU) CTAG participants share the view that the current
terrorism threat in Lithuania is low. The modest support
provided by CTAG governments to the GOL reflects this
assessment.

KELLY