SPANISH MOD POLICY DIRECTOR ON NATO RIGA SUMMIT

C O N F I D E N T I A L MADRID 003059 SIPDIS SIPDIS NOFORN E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/18/2016 TAGS: PREL MARR NATO SP SUBJECT: SPANISH MOD POLICY DIRECTOR ON NATO RIGA SUMMIT REF: MADRID 3048 Classified By: DCM Hugo Llorens for reasons 1.4 (b) & (d). ¶1. (C/NF) SUMMARY. MOD Policy Director Torrente told DCM on December 12 that President Bush's remarks had helped make the NATO Riga Summit more successful than he'd expected. He said that the Summit had achieved important political ends related to future expansion and the Alliance's commitment to Afghanistan. Torrente downplayed Spain's remaining caveats, saying that if an ally gets into trouble, the Spanish government could quickly authorize its troops to help. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C/NF) DCM met with MOD Secretary General for Policy Francisco Torrente and Director General for Policy Benito Raggio on December 12 to get the Spanish reaction to the recently concluded NATO Summit in Riga and to discuss the status of the NCIS/OSI MOU (reftel). Torrente said that the Summit was more successful than he'd expected, thanks largely to the President's remarks, which he said focused participants on what unites NATO allies, as well as the useful discussion at the Heads of State/Government dinner. He said that the Summit took important political steps related to enlargement and that while the Summit communique was very long, it also presented an important message about the future of the Alliance. He said that this message will help NATO to move past recent problems, including the divisions brought about by the "hasty" decision to move into Stage IV and subsequent public disputes about troop shortfalls. ¶3. (C/NF) On Afghanistan, Torrente emphasized the Spanish view that the eventual success of the ISAF mission will be determined by the Allies' political and development efforts to help the Kabul government extend its reach into the provinces and to make a difference in the everyday lives of people, rather than by troop levels per se. He noted that the Soviets had more than 150,000 soldiers in Afghanistan and controlled all key population centers but still lost. He said that Afghanistan needs more economic assistance from the EU, the World Bank, and NGOs. Torrente said that Spain is doing what it can to make Afghanis feel improvement in their lives, using its PRT in Qal-i-naw to provide water, electricity, medical care, roads, an airport, and other services that eventually must come from the government. ¶4. (C/NF) The DCM raised US concerns about Spanish restrictions on the deployment of Spanish troops to the south in support of other countries' units deployed in more threatening situations. By way of example, the DCM noted that if the campaign intensified in the south in the coming spring, the ISAF commander might request assistance for Spanish troops to head south and engage in the military action in support of an ally involved in a heavy engagement with the Taliban. Torrente said that while Spanish forces would not permanently deploy outside of the region to which they had been assigned, Spanish troops would assist an ally in need. He said that, thanks to a permanent video conference link, Spanish field commanders could get the permission from Spanish command authorities in Madrid within two hours to deploy their forces south and engage in the fight. Torrente reiterated that Spain would continue to resist the idea that Spanish troops would be reassigned outside the western zone for any length of time or would serve as a permanent maneuver force outside of its zone. He also harshly criticized the ISAF military plan for lacking a tactical reserve. ¶5. (C/NF) COMMENT. While it appears that Afghanistan has quieted down a bit with the onset of winter, it will be interesting to learn next spring whether Spain will honor this commitment to move its troops south if they are needed. Meanwhile, Torrente and other GOS officials continue to insist that Spain has a long-term commitment to Afghan reconstruction and say that the GOS will continue to work to build support for ISAF and NATO generally. AGUIRRE