DEMARCHE DELIVERED: PAKISTAN WILL SEND OBSERVERS

C O N F I D E N T I A L ISLAMABAD 020835 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/23/2016 TAGS: PK KNNP EG KE MNUC PARM PREL SUBJECT: DEMARCHE DELIVERED: PAKISTAN WILL SEND OBSERVERS TO PSI EXERCISE REF: STATE 174281 Classified By: Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) On October 19, PolCouns delivered reftel points to MFA (Disarmament) Director Mohammad Kamran Akhtar, along with a copy of the letter from General Abizaid inviting the Government of Pakistan (GOP) to participate in Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) Exercise "Leading Edge." The Office of Defense Representative - Pakistan (ODRP) forwarded General Abizaid's invitation to the Ministry of Defense and Joint Staff Headquarters on the same day. ¶2. (C) On October 20, MFA Additional Secretary (UN/Policy Planning) Tariq Usman Hyder contacted PolCouns to say that the GOP would like to send an observation team to this exercise, as it did with previous exercises in Singapore and Australia. (Note: The GOP has not/not changed its position on endorsing PSI principals and is therefore not/not eligible to be a full participant in Exercise Leading Edge. End note.) The MFA proposes sending two observers to this exercise: BG Ausaf Ali, Strategic Plans Division, an observer at the earlier PSI exercise in Australia, as well as a naval officer to be identified in coming days. ¶3. (C) POL has shared this information with ODRP, which will coordinate arrangements with CENTCOM for the Pakistani observers' travel to Bahrain. CROCKER