CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION (CWC): WRAP-UP FOR THE

UNCLAS THE HAGUE 002445

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR ISN/CB, VCI/CCB, L/ACV, IO/S
SECDEF FOR OSD/ISP
JOINT STAFF FOR DD PMA-A FOR WTC
COMMERCE FOR BIS (GOLDMAN)
NSC FOR DICASAGRANDE
WINPAC FOR WALTER

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PARM PREL CWC
SUBJECT: CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION (CWC): WRAP-UP FOR THE
47TH SESSION OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL, NOVEMBER 7-10, 2006

REF: STATE 182993 (NOTAL)

This is CWC-103-06.

--------------
SUMMARY
--------------


1. (U) It was not possible to reach agreement at EC-47 on
the U.S. request for an extension of the 100% destruction
deadline, as details could not be ironed out regarding visit
to the U.S. and Russia in connection with both extension
requests. There also was no agreement on the 2007 OPCW
budget, where the major stumbling block was the Chinese
insistence that the number of OCPF inspections could not
exceed 108 (instead of the 130 proposed by the Director
General). As a result, both issues will be addressed at an
EC meeting to be held on December 4, immediately before the
December 5-8 Conference of the States Parties.


2. (U) There was consensus on a document extending the
follow-up to the action plan on implementation of Article VII
obligations after Iran indicated its willingness at the last
minute to do a deal. The EC managed to take decisions on a
number of issues, most notably, the Director General's
proposal regarding tenure policy. In addition, the EC
approved the Albanian intermediate destruction deadlines, a
mechanism for states Parties to regularize their arrears and
have voting rights restored, a number of facility agreements
and verification plans, measures regarding the transfer of
Schedule 3 chemicals to States not party, and establishment
of a Host Country Committee (fully supported by the Dutch
government). End Summary.

--------------
EXTENSION REQUEST
--------------


3. (U) There was no agreement on the U.S. and Russian
requests to establish dates for the 100 percent CW
destruction deadline (i.e., April 29, 2012),and the issue
was deferred to a Dec. 4 EC meeting. The focus of discussion
during the week, both in open meetings and in closely held
meetings between the U.S., UK and Russia, was on the issue of
visits by Council representatives to CW destruction
facilities and narrowing the difference over the details.
The U.S. del, on a bilateral basis, also discussed possible
changes to the preambular section of the U.S. decision
document, primarily to address concerns about U.S.
projections of not meeting the 2012 deadline.


4. (U) Wishing to avoid the perception that accepting visits
would reflect a skeptical assessment on Russian progress made
on CW destruction, Russia reiterated that it cannot accept
any reference to site visits in the decision document
establishing the 100 percent deadline, and continued to push
for the concept of visits to be applied, if only in
principle, to all possessors receiving extensions beyond
April 2007. Russia also continued to push back on making
visits automatic, arguing that they should be triggered by
specific conditions on the ground or concerns raised by
States Parties at that time.


5. (U) Trilateral negotiations concluded with the U.S. and
UK providing Russia with a revised proposal on specific visit
parameters (forwarded to Washington) which targets having
each CW destruction facility being visited at least once
during the extension period (2007-2012),but does not
explicitly require that these visits occur annually. It
further implies that some sites may not need to be visited if
the conditions do not warrant (e.g., hypothetically, if a
facility is operating on schedule, per TS reporting, and
completes operations well in advance of 2012). It was
communicated to the Russian del that if agreement can be
reached on appropriate conditions for carrying out visits
that gives confidence to the U.S., UK and others, then there
could be flexibility on format, with the likely result being
separate decisions on the extension requests and site visits,
to be approved at the same time. The three delegations

agreed to meet the week of November 13, at which time Russia
would respond to the U.S./UK proposal based on inputs from
Moscow.


6. (U) In wider discussions, general support for conducting
site visits remained strong and widespread, particularly
among the WEOG. Informal consultations were held to allow
delegations to express views on possible elements of such
visits (e.g., purpose, composition, frequency, cost,
reporting, etc.),given the multiple proposals/papers that
had been previously distributed by the U.S., UK, and Russia.
South Africa and Turkey raised the issue of cost of
participation and its relationship to gaining widespread
regional representation (i.e., developing countries might not
be able to participate in visits because of costs). Germany,
affirmed by France, indicated that the EU was considering a
provision in its next Joint Action Plan that would help cover
the costs of participating in site visits.


7. (U) Russia and India emphasized the need to clarify what
conditions would prompt conducting a specific visit, with the
latter likely motivated by concerns about Russia's proposal
to apply visits to all possessors. Iran offered that the
visits should not only be to destruction sites (i.e., should
include capitals) and emphasized the importance of visit
reporting, particularly the role of the EC as a whole. The
UK, drawing upon proposed text, responded that as long as the
opportunity for discussions with senior government officials
exist, it should be left to the host country to determine how
that takes place (i.e., who, when and where).

--------------
2007 BUDGET
--------------


8. (U) The EC deferred action on the 2007 Program and Budget
until an EC meeting to be held on Dec. 4. In the interim,
consultations will be held in an attempt to resolve the major
outstanding issue - the distribution of Article VI Industry
Inspections, specifically OCPF inspections. China remains
the major stumbling block on this issue insisting that no
more than 108 OCPF inspections can be budgeted for in 2007.
Other delegations, such as Iran, Mexico, and India, had
questioned the DG's proposal for 130 OCPF inspections right
from the start of the budget consultations in July. China,
however, apparently focused on this matter recently, and was
vehement in its opposition to the 130 number, claiming it
represented not just an increase, but so sharp an increase
that it amounted to a change in policy without time for
discussion in order to reach consensus. Indeed, the Chinese
Ambassador personally made the objections to the 130 number
in last-minute budget consultations.


9. (U) In response, the DG made a strong statement at the
consultations explaining the justification for the 130 OCPF
inspections. Ambassador Javits expressed strong support for
the DG's proposal, as did a number of delegations (Australia,
Switzerland and a number of other WEOG delegations were
particularly outspoken). However, China refused to move
higher than 108. In the run-up to the Dec. 4 meeting, the TS
will produce a paper on the need for substantially more OCPF
inspections and the co-facilitators will continue to seek to
reach agreement on a number. With regard to other minor
considerations, agreement was reached on some textual changes
sought by Iran. The only other outstanding issue is an
apparently resolvable concern among NAM delegations for more
ICA spending.

--------------
ARTICLE VII
--------------


10. (U) The EC adopted the decision, "Sustaining Follow-Up
to the Plan of Action Regarding the Implementation of Article
VII Obligations." Key elements were the EC recommendation
that the Conference extend the Follow-On Plan for another
year, that the EC Chairperson contact the states that had yet
to establish National Authorities and to report on these
contacts to EC-50, and that the TS report to the EC on the

phase of the legislative process that implementing states
have achieved.

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DIRECTOR GENERAL'S STATEMENT
--------------


11. (U) DG Pfirter stated that the EC should support the
extension requests of the U.S. and Russia. He spoke at
length about the status of destruction of various nations
including India, Albania, a State Party, and the U.S. He
noted that Russia's estimates of quantity destroyed differed
from the TS and they hoped to reconcile this soon. He asked
for continued international assistance to the Russian
destruction program. The DG highlighted the proposed
increase in OCPF inspections and said it is predicated on CWC
requirements and the TS assessment of what needs to be done
in each category. He emphasized that not enough has been
done in relation to Schedule 3 plants sites and OCPFs The TS
has identified some 4,600 OCPFs of relevance and in 10 years
has only inspected 8% of them. If the proposal of 130
inspections is approved, they will still have only inspected
10%. He said most SPs are supportive, but some are concerned
this will lead to a higher number of inspections for them.
He noted the reason OCPFs are declared in the first place is
their relevance to the CWC, and they should expect them to be
inspected.


12. (U) The DG reported on the courses and other activities
during the intersessional period. He referred to regional
meetings of National Authorities held in Indonesia and
Tanzania, as well as courses co-hosted by Spain, France. He
also reported that with the addition of the Central African
Republic and Comoros, there are 180 SPs, an important
milestone of the universality action plan. The DG noted that
there remain only 15 states not-party, and the TS is working
with Congo, Iraq, Lebanon, Montenegro and Myanmar with the
hope that they will join soon. He also noted the effort made
on universality in the Caribbean, and in the Mediterranean
Basin at the Rome conference.


13. (U) The DG expressed support for the counter-terrorism
efforts of the OPCW and consideration of an OPCW office in
Africa. He noted the work and planning for the various
events related to the 10th anniversary of the CWC. He
referred to the proposed (less than) zero nominal growth 2007
budget as balanced, allowing for the growth in expenditures
and additional inspections, as well as an increase in the ICA
division. He also noted with satisfaction the agreement on
regularizing payment of contributions to the OPCW. Finally,
the DG referred to his note on the future implementation of
the tenure policy and stressed that its fine tuning is
essential to avoid a major disruption for the TS. The DG's
statement is on the OPCW website.

--------------
GENERAL DEBATE
--------------


14. (U) Predominant topics during the general debate were the
U.S. and Russian extension requests, the 2007 budget and
Article VII. All statements on the extension request
generally echoed the view that possessor states should do
their best to complete destruction by April 29, 2012. Some
expressed the view that missing the 2012 date would adversely
affect the CWC itself. Others, including South Africa and
Iran, were concerned about the terminology in the U.S.
detailed destruction plan (which refers to destruction past
2012),as it indirectly says the U.S. will not make the 2012
deadline. Many, though not all, statements referred to the
visits to the possessor states. Mexico and Russia advocated
making the extension requests and visits separate decisions.
The EU and Ireland were the only statements to specifically
mention annual visits; the EU and Iran had the only mention
of visits to capital as well as to sites. Russia gave
figures on how much has been spent for destruction activities
and stated its belief they can achieve 20% destruction by

2007.


15. (U) Delegations were generally supportive of the 2007 ZNG
budget. Some pushed for more funding for International
Cooperation and Assistance. Many expressed concern about the
additional OCPF inspections and some felt this should be
discussed in wider consultations. On Article VII, all
parties were pleased that the program of assistance from
CSP-10 had achieved solid results and most stated this
decision should be extended for another year. The EU
statement linked implementation of Article VII with UN
resolution 1540. Delegates were pleased at the achievement
of 180 signatories, and expressed pleasure at the success of
the Rome workshop. Most statements mentioned and supported
the DG's note on tenure, and some mentioned the need for more
geographic and gender distribution of OPCW jobs.


16. (U) Establishment of a Host Country Committee met with
approval. General agreement on the establishment of an
Africa Office was also mentioned in some statements. In
particular, the Africa Group and South Africa urged the TS to
work harder to get the requested information on opening an
office in different locations within Africa. On abandoned
Japanese CW in China, Japan stated it has recovered over
1,300 so far and China urged Japan to intensify efforts.
Cuba as the chair of the Nonaligned Movement gave the NAM
statement, and later took the floor to give its own national
statement -- the main focus of which was to link the blockade
of Cuba by the U.S. to lack of implementation of Article XI.

--------------
OTHER AGENDA ITEMS
--------------


17. (U) Other items at EC-47 are listed below, with the
numbering used in the annotated provisional agenda.

(U) Item 5.1: Indian CWDF. The EC approved the verification
plan for the CWDF in India. A corrigendum was issued that
captured previous U.S. concerns. As a result, the U.S. was
able to join consensus on the associated facility agreement
that was also approved.

(U) Item 5.2: Pine Bluff. The EC approved the amendments to
the agreed detailed plan for verification of the destruction
of CW at the Pine Bluff Chemical Agent disposal facility.

(U) Item 5.3: Umatilla. At the request of the U.S., the
amendments to the agreed detailed plan for verification of
the destruction of CW at the Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal
Facility were deferred until the Dec. 4 EC meeting. Russia
had indicated that Moscow needs more time to study the
document, which was distributed somewhat late by the TS.

(U) Item 5.4: Aberdeen (HD facility). The EC approved the
combined plan for the destruction and verification of the HD
Production, Distillation, and Fill Facility, Aberdeen Proving
Ground-Edgewood.

(U) Item 5.5: U.S. extension request. Discussed above.

(U) Item 5.6: Russian extension request. Discussed above.

(U) Item 5.7: Albania. With no debate, the EC approved the
recommendation to the CSP that it revise Albania's
intermediate destruction deadlines.

(U) Item 5.8: Russian paper on visits. The Russian national
paper on visits was discussed as part of the extension
request deliberations.

(U) Item 5.9: Aberdeen (HD Facility). The EC approved the
facility agreement of the HD Production, Distillation and
Fill Facility at Aberdeen Proving Ground-Edgewood.

(U) Item 5.10: Indian CWDF. The EC approved the facility
agreement for the CWDF in India.

(U) Item 5.11 and 5.12: Pine Bluff. The EC approved the
related amendments to the facility agreement regarding
on-site inspections at the Pine Bluff Chemical Agent Disposal

Facility and the related amendments to the agreed detailed
plan for verification of the destruction of CW.

(U) Item 5.13 and 5.14: Umatilla. At the request of the
U.S., the note and associated amendments to the facility
agreement regarding on-site inspections at the Umatilla
Chemical Agent Disposal Facility was deferred until the Dec.
4 EC meeting. Again, this was due to the Russian request as
a result of late distribution of the document by the TS.

(U) Item 5.15: Article VII. Discussed above.

(U) Item 5.16: Universality. The EC considered the annual
report on the implementation of the action plan on
Universality. The facilitator for Universality, Said Moussi
(Algeria),briefed the Council on recent activities related
to Universality, and the EC noted with satisfaction the
progress made at the recent workshop on Universality in the
Mediterranean region and the Middle East. Several
delegations, including the U.S., thanked Italy for its
sponsorship of the event.

(U) Item 5.17: Optimization of Verification. With no debate,
the EC noted a Note by the TS on optimization and efficiency
of verification activities in the U.S., Russia, India,
Albania, and a State Party. The TS note included a
classified annex with details on each State Party that the
del will forward to Washington.

(U) Item 5.18: Challenge Inspection. The EC noted the DG's
Note on Readiness of the TS to conduct a Challenge
Inspection. Switzerland emphasized the importance of
continued exercises to maintain readiness.

(U) Item 5.19: Schedule 3 Transfers. Due to some editorial
mistakes by the TS, the decision language had to be modified
slightly to correctly reflect the language that achieved
consensus in the consultation. With those corrections in
place, the EC approved the decision. For SPs like the U.S.,
that have adopted the necessary measures to ensure that
Schedule 3 chemicals transfers to non-SPs are for
non-prohibited purposes (i.e., via end-use certificates),
this decision makes no change to current practices.

(U) Item 5.20: Schedule 2A/2A*. Steve Wade (UK) briefed the
EC on progress made on low-concentration limits for Schedule
2A/2A* chemicals. His report included work to date, the fact
that two options (his October 2005 option and the current
one) had received endorsement of the Legal Advisor's Office,
and that his current option was in his opinion the closest he
had gotten to consensus. Many delegations, including the
U.S., expressed thanks to the facilitator, along with regrets
on failure to reach consensus and support for future work.
The DG thanked Wade for his effort and announced his new
position within the TS (Head of Declarations Branch),which
he will begin in December. The report language for this
issue places a marker in calling for a consensus decision to
be reached before the Second RevCon. If consensus is not
achieved, which is very likely, this allows this item to be
readily addressed during the RevCon.

(U) Item 5.21: Revisions to Specifications. The EC
considered and noted a Note by the DG on further revisions to
the specifications for two items of approved inspection
equipment: (1) the sample-collection kit, and (2) the GC-MS
sample-preparation kit.

(U) Item 5.22: VIR. The EC noted the 2005 Verification
Implementation Report and the supplement. At the request of
the FRG, the report also notes the Chairperson's summary of
the consultations on the VIR and that the EC decided to
consider further the issues identified in para 4 of the
summary. Iran commented on an export to Israel from India,
and reported that it had addressed the issue with India. Iran
went on to say that more pressure should be applied to Israel
to join the Convention. Per guidance, del rep thanked the TS
for its continuing efforts to give SPs timely information on
verification activities.

(U) Item 6: Lists of New Validated Data. Before this issue
could be discussed, the Chair reminded delegations that the
TS was to have prepared a Note laying out the implications of

SIPDIS
the inclusion of these new data. She informed them that the
Note had not yet been prepared, and asked that this agenda
item be deferred. The DG intervened to say that they are
awaiting input from delegations before the Note can be
prepared. Del will investigate what information the TS needs
to complete this work and from whom they are expecting it,
with the goal of getting these data approved at the next EC.

(U) Item 7: OPCW Office in Africa. The facilitator briefed
the EC on the progress that has been made during the
intersessional period. While the facilitator's initial focus
had been on a UN office in Lome, much of the African Group
had been pushing for consideration of African Union
facilities in Addis Ababa. The Sudanese Ambassador notably
said that the Africa Group hoped the facilitator would
examine all worthwhile options.

(U) Item 8.1: 2007 budget. Discussed above.

(U) Item 8.2: Medium-Term Plan. The EC also deferred action
on this item until the Dec. 4 EC meeting.

(U) Item 8.3-8.5: Arrears. The EC approved a decision
recommending that CSP-11 approve a mechanism for SPs to
regularize their arrears and have their voting rights
restored. The German delegation requested that the DG notify
SPs that are in arrears of approval of the plan and encourage
them to regularize their arrears with a view to restoring
their voting rights.

(U) Item 8.6: The EC noted the DG's Note on Implementation of
the Office of Internal Oversight Recommendations.

(U) Item 8.7: The EC noted the DG's note on Implementation of
External Auditor's Recommendations. The new facilitator for
the External Auditors report and the OIO report, (Rick
Snelsire, U.S.) announced that he would hold consultations on
both of these reports prior to CSP-11.

(U) Item 8.8: Tenure Policy Modification. The EC considered
the DG's Note on the future implementation of the OPCW policy
on tenure and approved a recommendation for consideration at
CSP-11. The DG provided assurances that he will publish a
note by mid-2007 regarding the loss of experience due to the
age restriction as well as information on difficulties in
hiring technical specialists.

(U) Item 8.9: The EC noted the DG's Note on the Report of
Security Audit Team IV.

(U) Item 8.10: The EC noted the DG's Report on Income and
Expenditure for the period up to June 30.

(U) Item 8.11: The EC noted the DG's report on Income and
Expenditure for the period up to September 30 and use of the
Working Capital Fund.

(U) Item 9: The EC approved a decision recommending that
CSP-11 establish a Committee on Relations with the Host
Country. The Netherlands expressed its clear support for the
proposal and then fought off a request by Iran to specify
that there be "high" representation on the committee.

(U) Item 10.1: The EC concluded a privileges and immunities
agreement with Burkina Faso. On 10.1 and 10.2, del rep made
the intervention as per reftel guidance that the U.S. does
not believe that these establish a precedent.

(U) Item 10.2: The EC concluded a P&I agreement with Uruguay.


(U) Item 11: The EC approved its report on the performance of
its activities from July 2005 to July 2006.

(U) Item 12: EC Sessions in 2007. The EC affirmed the agreed
dates for EC sessions in 2007. Del rep made an intervention

to note that the Conference at CSP-11 may wish to consider
holding CSP-13 during the period Dec. 2-5. This would allow
for an efficient work schedule in 2008 of four EC sessions
concluding with the CSP. This was included in report
language.

(U) Item 13.1: Under any other business, the EC noted the
report of ABAF's 21st Session (ABAF-21/1, dated September 13,
2006).

(U) Item 13.2: The EC also approved the reappointment of Mr.
Vladimer Iossifov (Russia) to ABAF for another three year
term.

--------------
DISCUSSIONS WITH TS
--------------


18. (U) DOD rep met with TS staff to address a number of
technical issues, first among which was the inconsistent
implementation of optimization measures at U.S. CW
destruction facilities. The TS agreed additional training
would be necessary, even for experienced inspectors. The TS
inquired as to the availability of a destruction facility for
hands-on training, and suggested a facility in a period of
inactivity would be ideal. TS reps emphasized that this
approach resulted in a savings of approximately 18,000 Euros
in training funds last year. DOD rep reminded TS that, as
destruction schedules are subject to change, possible
scheduling of such training could be better explored in early

2007. DOD rep also addressed the final summary report for
CAMDS, inspection team composition for the beginning of
operations at the Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facility in
Deer Park, Texas, analytical procedures for ton container
transparency measures, and potential trending data concerns.

--------------
DONORS MEETING
--------------


19. (U) Chair & Dutch MFA Rep Frank Van Beuningen
recommended officially going to two meetings per year
(probably to coincide with the March and September 2007 EC
sessions). There followed the normal tour de table, with
interventions from Russia, UK, Canada, France, New Zealand,
Italy, Switzerland, U.S., Germany, Finland, Belgium, Czech
Republic, Netherlands. However, Russia's statement this time
placed even more emphasis on difficulties it is experiencing
with donor states, particularly the UK, U.S., Germany (Russia
cited problems with German systems at operational sites,
noting this caused serious "safety concerns") and New
Zealand. The UK in turn noted there have been significant
delays, and that it believes it should ensure taxpayer money
is spent wisely.


20. (U) The UK and Canada gave a detailed overview of
assistance efforts at Shchuch'ye and Khizner. As usual,
Russian and U.S. figures differed greatly in terms of actual
dollar expenditures in Russia. The U.S. expressed a desire
to provide clarification. Van Beuningen is still very
interested in a detailed presentation from the U.S. in March

2007.

--------------
DESTRUCTION INFORMALS
--------------


21. (U) The Nov. 6 meeting opened as usual with the TS
presentation of destruction and verification activities. The
TS reported that Russia has completed destruction of 1680 MT

SIPDIS
at Kambarka. The TS also reported that India has completed
destruction of some 70% of its total stockpile and A State
Party has completed destruction of some 85% of its total
stockpile.


22. (U) Russia reported that its facility at Kambarka was
nearly up to full capacity for destruction of lewisite. In
the discussion of Maradykovskiy, Russia maintained its claims
that the neutralization process, which began in late August

(a date verified by the TS),is sufficient for destruction.
As such, Russia claims it has "destroyed" 2,200 MT of agent
at Maradykovskiy, and 3,500 MT will be destroyed by 31
January 2007. With this number, Russia claims destruction of
13% of its stockpile as of 31 January (as opposed to the c.
7% reported by the TS). However, Russia also acknowledged
that it plans to subject the reaction masses to "thermal
processing" and that this will begin in January. Russia still
maintains that the neutralization process will enable them to
meet the 20% deadline in April 2007.


23. (U) Germany questioned if these projections included the
"thermal processing," and Russia responded by repeating its
comments about the process. In both speeches, Russia stated
that the "thermal decontamination unit" would have a capacity
of 1.3 MT/hr. This number was also given in a document
containing Russian responses to U.S. questions. Russia
reported that as of November 5, 100% of the aviation bombs at
Maradykovskiy have been treated.


24. (U) India did not report on its destruction progress.


25. (U) China and Japan had their usual entertaining
exchange on ACW in China. China claimed that Japan is too
slow in inspecting and dealing with the sites that China
reports to Japan. Japan responded by saying the proprietary
work has begun in the Hubei province and that it has
conducted several exchanges and inspections.


26. (U) A State Party reported that it has destroyed 501 MT
to date, which accounts for 85% of its stockpile. A State
Party plans to finish its destruction for the year in
mid-November and is confident that it will start up again
soon next year to complete on time.


27. (U) Italy noted it has submitted a request to extend its
deadline for the destruction of Old Chemical Weapons to April
29, 2012.


28. (U) Libya reported its revised destruction deadlines as:
1% - 1 May 2010; 20% - 1 July 2010; 45% - 1 November 2010;
and 100% - 31 December 2010. Libya expects to complete
destruction of its Category II stockpile by 31 December 2011.


29. (U) Albania reported that it had a problem with its
incinerator during the testing phase, that it had submitted
revised deadlines to the TS, and that it expects destruction
operations to begin at Qaf Molla in early December. Albania
still expects to meet the April 2007 deadline for final
destruction.


30. (U) Javits sends.
BLAKEMAN