CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION (CWC): URGING CANADA

UNCLAS OTTAWA 002690

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

THE HAGUE FOR CWC DEL, ALSO FOR EMBASSY

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PARM PREL CA
SUBJECT: CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION (CWC): URGING CANADA
TO RECONSIDER ITS POSITION ON CAPTIVE USE OF SCHEDULE 1
CHEMICALS

REF: (A) AC/BC - EMBASSY E-MAILS (B) SECSTATE 158292

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. HANDLE ACCORDINGLY.


1. (U) Following ref A exchanges, and modified guidance,
polmiloff met on September 6 with Canadian National Authority
Coordinator for the CWC, Bob Brooks, and Senior Advisor
Adrian Ghita-Duminica, to discuss USG concerns regarding
captive use of Schedule I chemicals. Polmiloff left revised
points as a non-paper.


2. (SBU) Duminica, who had just returned from The Hague, said
he was "very familiar" with the U.S. position. He noted that
some of the points made were overtaken by events. The UK
proposal cited in our demarche, for example, was being
"rewritten." Duminica reaffirmed the Canadian position
described in refs, including his perception that a
case-by-case approach to reviewing exemption requests a)
could take a dozen years or longer and b) raises concerns
about protecting business "confidentiality" (e.g. disclosure
of r&d information by a pharmaceutical company to potential
competitors),as well as the "legal issue" of how to grant an
exemption without a technical change to the Convention.


3. (SBU) Brooks and Duminica regretted the "impasse" over the
Captive Use issue and mused that it might be useful to
consult bilaterally in Washington prior to the next Executive
Council Meeting (EC 42) at the end of September. At such a
time, they said, the U.S. and Canada might also discuss other
issues, such as "schedule 2A/2A star low concentration
limits."

Visit Canada's Classified Web Site at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/ottawa

WILKINS