DELEGATION PROPOSES HSPD-6 INFO SHARING WITH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BERLIN 003435 SIPDIS SIPDIS ALSO FOR NCTC, TSC USEU FOR MRICHARD E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/06/2016 TAGS: PTER KHLS CVIS GM SUBJECT: DELEGATION PROPOSES HSPD-6 INFO SHARING WITH GERMANY REF: A. BERLIN 2058 ¶B. BERLIN 2785 Classified By: Minister-Counselor for Economic Affairs Robert F. Cekuta for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. An interagency U.S. delegation presented German officials with a proposal to share terrorist screening data as called for in HSPD-6. The meeting between the U.S. delegation and the German side, headed by the Interior Ministry, November 8 in Berlin followed previous bilateral discussions (ref A) and Interior Minister Schaeuble's September visit to Washington (ref B). During that visit, the German minister proposed a U.S.-German Working Group on sharing counterterrorism data. German officials see the HSPD-6 proposals as among the options they could consider in the context of the Working Group. (Note: the Working Group is to hold its first meeting December 12 in Berlin. End Note.) The German officials were in "listening mode" as they had promised, but indicated willngness to positively consider HSPD-6, presumablywith a hit / no hit inquiry system, as part of a U.S.-German "Pruem"-style agreement. End Summary. -------------- INTERIOR MINISTRY -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The Federal Ministry of the Interior hosted the delegation's principal meeting November 8 in Berlin, which representatives of the Justice and Foreign Ministries as well as the Federal Office for Criminal Investigation (BKA) also attended. A representative from the independent Office of the Federal Commissioner for Data Privacy and Freedom of Information was present as well, potentially signaling the importance of those issues for the German side. Terrorist Screening Center Acting Director Rick Kopel gave a presentation that described the benefits to Germany of terrorist information data sharing and also stressed U.S. sensitivity to tailoring an information sharing program to meet German legal and regulatory concerns. State S/CT Advisor Fred Vogel gave a presentation on the PISCES border screening program in place in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, not as an example of what the U.S. envisions for Germany, but to illustrate the value and breadth of data U.S. terrorist databases receive. The U.S. presenters also discussed the introduction of biometric, not just biographic, data into the Terrorist Screening Database (TSDB). ¶3. (C) Questions from the nearly twenty German officials present were diverse: Would the U.S. use any data Germany provided for renditions? Why had so many travelers complained about U.S. port of entry systems? With what other countries did the U.S. have HSPD-6 agreements? Head of the German delegation Interior Ministry Office Director for Police Information Systems, the BKA Law, and Data Privacy in Security Affairs Andreas Schultz explained Minister Schaeuble had tasked him to establish the U.S.-German Working Group. Germany would need a new law to enable some of the programs the U.S. envisions; EU mechanisms enable German authorities to share with EU partners but do not envision sharing the data with non-EU countries, according to Schultz. Germany cannot "just give you everything we have," Schultz said, but Germany is prepared to discuss a program to enable initiating inquiries and providing information pursuant to a request, e.g., in a hit / no hit system. Germany could also share data in the event of a threat or if a crime was going to be committed. He explained that EU Data Privacy regulations prevent the broad sharing of lists even within the EU, which is why Germany created the Pruem agreements. Pruem is a new road, envisioning a hit / no hit system for DNA and fingerprint data. If there is a hit, only then, with both sides processing information about a subject and having identified a reason to share the data, would the two sides exchange information via existing channels. Germany is aware of the threat it faces, Schultz continued, and does not want only to dwell on impediments and the possible difficulties facing a U.S.-German agreement. The two sides are embarking on a "promising path," but Germany will need a legal basis for whatever the two sides agree. -------------- FOREIGN MINISTRY -------------- BERLIN 00003435 002 OF 002 ¶4. (C) Office Director for Counterterrorism Cooperation Matthias Sonn explained German laws have evolved after 9/11. Broader U.S.-German data sharing is needed, Sonn noted, but there is a certain level of distrust in the German media toward the U.S. As a result, it will be easier for the German side if no existing German laws are changed; the more the U.S.-German agreement looked like Pruem, the better, he said. If the U.S.-German agreement looked like Pruem, it would "insulated from the headlines," according to Sonn. He urged the U.S. over the next weeks -- before the December launch of the U.S.-German Working Group -- to establish its counterterrorism data sharing priorities. ¶5. (U) This message was cleared by the U.S. delegation subsequent to their return to Washington. KOENIG