NETHERLANDS: SUPPORT ISAF UN MANDATE, LEERY OF

C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 002272

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/17/2015
TAGS: AF MARR NL PREL NATO UNSC
SUBJECT: NETHERLANDS: SUPPORT ISAF UN MANDATE, LEERY OF
MANDATE REVISION

REF: STATE 146276

Classified By: DCM Chat Blakeman; reasons 1.4 (b, d)


1. (C) DCM and Polmiloff met August 15 with Director Robert
de Groot and Section Head Hans Sandee of the Security and
Defense Policy Division at the Dutch MFA regarding the
expiration of ISAF,s U.N. mandate. De Groot noted that the
Dutch are satisfied with the U.N. mandate as it currently
stands; the mandate is sufficiently broad enough to permit
the integration of ISAF and Coalition forces.


2. (C) De Groot further expressed concerns regarding the
willingness to revise ISAF,s mandate. He explained that the
Dutch government will present to Parliament in early
September preliminary plans for Dutch involvement in ISAF
Stage III. Parliament will discuss these plans for several
months, with a decision expected in December on whether to go
through with Stage III. De Groot suggested that opening up
negotiations on a revised mandate might lead to delays and
could harm efforts to persuade Parliament to support Dutch
ISAF Stage III plans. He was not/not aware of any Allied
misgivings regarding the broad language in the U.N. mandate,
but suggested that opening negotiations in the U.N. might
lead to a "Pandora's Box" of problems that the Dutch would
rather not face.
SOBEL