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.


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GRAY