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