EGYPT: SUA CONVENTION AND NONPROLIFERATION

UNCLAS CAIRO 002801 SIPDIS SENSITIVE FOR NEA/ELA, NP, NP/RA, T, L/NP, L/LEI, WHA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EWWT KNNP MNUC MX PARM PGOV PHSA PREL EG SUBJECT: EGYPT: SUA CONVENTION AND NONPROLIFERATION AMENDMENTS REF: STATE 64395 Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect accordingly. ¶1. (SBU) Poloff discussed reftel demarche April 11 with Adel Ibrahim, Director of the Office of Arms Control and Disarmament at the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Ibrahim was generally familiar with U.S. goals pertaining to nonproliferation aspects of the SUA convention (Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation). He said there were aspects of the demarche which should not present a problem. However, Ibrahim said the GOE had "many reservations" on Article 8, including concerns that agreement with ship boarding provisions in Article 8 would constitute support for the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI),which the GOE was not yet prepared to endorse. ¶2. (SBU) Ibrahim said the GOE had formed an inter-ministerial committee dealing with the International Maritime Organization (IMO),which was addressing legal issues and preparations for the upcoming IMO meetings. Reading the non-paper carefully, he asked for time to review the most recent committee decisions before conveying a definitive GOE position. Ibrahim noted the time-sensitive nature of this request and promised to reply on April 12. Visit Embassy Cairo's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/cairo You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. GRAY