DISCUSSIONS WITH BAHRAIN REGARDING CONCLUSION OF A

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANAMA 000116 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/24/2016 TAGS: PARM PREL MARR BA BILAT SUBJECT: DISCUSSIONS WITH BAHRAIN REGARDING CONCLUSION OF A CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION (CWC) HOST COUNTRY AGREEMENT (HCA) Classified by DCM Susan L. Ziadeh for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) On December 11, 2005, a U.S. delegation led by OSD Director for Nonproliferation Policy Dr. David Cooper met with Bahraini officials to work towards conclusion of a Host Country Agreement. Due to the Bahraini officials' apparent lack of familiarity with CWC challenge inspection procedures and provisions, including the purpose and intent of the HCA, the U.S. delegation's efforts to conduct a line-by-line review of the text (with hopes of achieving an ad ref agreement with Bahrain) were resisted by Bahraini officials. Following a thorough explanation of the HCA, the senior MFA official participating in the session said he believed that Bahrain could "work something" to conclude an agreement with the U.S. End Summary. -------------- BAHRAINI COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS -------------- ¶2. (C) Much of the time available to conclude the agreement was spent explaining in detail to the Bahraini delegation the purpose and intent of the agreement, as well as Article IX of the CWC, the CWC's challenge inspection provisions, and the relevance of the HCA to a challenge inspection venue. Bahrain's specific questions and comments focused on: (a) Sovereignty concerns and implications if a challenge inspection is directed against U.S. assets in Bahrain. In response, the U.S. delegation made reference to Part II of the Verification Annex, para. 19, which contemplates situations in which facilities or assets of an inspected State Party are located in the territory of a Host State Party. The U.S. delegation also noted the provisions regarding sovereignty in the HCA. (b) Procedures for concluding the agreement. The U.S. noted that it was flexible in its approach, stating that the U.S. Ambassador could sign for the U.S. with Bahrain choosing any appropriate counterpart to sign on its behalf. (c) Inquiries as to whether other Gulf Countries were negotiating HCAs with the U.S. The U.S. explained that the agreements are negotiated in confidence and such confidence must be respected. The U.S. also noted that it was visiting other countries in the region and that other negotiations were in more mature stages. The U.S. also pointed out that other countries besides the U.S. were seeking to negotiate HCAs. ¶4. (C) Bahrain's delegation stated that it was satisfied with the answers provided to them by the U.S. delegation and noted that it would study the proposed HCA text further. Bahraini officials said they would inform the United States of its review and believed that it could "work something" to conclude an agreement with the U.S. ¶5. (U) The Bahraini delegation included: a. Mr. Ghassan Shaikho, MFA. b. Brigadier Yusuf Manalah, MOD. c. Mr. Fouad Al Moawadah, MFA. d. Ms. Fatima Al Dhaen, MFA. ¶6. (U) The U.S. delegation included: a. Dr. David Cooper, Director, Nonproliferation Policy, International Security Policy, OASD. b. COL Rick Smart, Special Assistant & Senior Policy Analyst, Nonproliferation Policy for Chemical and Biological Weapons. c. Dr. Deborah Ozga, J5 (WTO),Joint Staff. d. Ms. Christine Choi, DoD Office of General Counsel, International Affairs. e. Embassy Manama Pol/Econ Chief. MONROE