READOUT OF THE JULY 05 NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL

C O N F I D E N T I A L USNATO 000425 NOFORN E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/27/2016 TAGS: NATO MOPS MARR PREL IZ AF SU SUBJECT: READOUT OF THE JULY 05 NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL Classified By: Charge Sherwood McGinnis according to E.O. 12958 reasons 1.4 (b) & (d). ¶1. (C/NF) SUMMARY: From the 05 July North Atlantic Council (NAC): --DPRK: In response to the July 4 missile launches, Amb Nuland urges NAC to issue condemnatory statement. --Darfur: NATO personnel to travel to Darfur, D/CMC notifies of possibility of additional airlift request if AMIS expands. --Afghanistan: SYG raises CJSOR shortfalls; Nuland urges Allies to focus on both military and reconstruction efforts; Canada PermRep announces UAE will assist Canada in Kandahar. --Iraq: Nuland expresses strong support for Iraq FM Zebari's request for NATO to help train security forces; UK-led Basic Officer Commissioning Course to move into NTM-I. CONFIDENTIAL 2 of 4 CONFIDENTIAL 2 of 4 --Balkans: Nuland informs Allies of U.S. hand-over to Bosnia MOD of Tuzla airbase; PermReps discuss concerns regarding north Kosovo. -------------- NAC Response: DPRK Missile Launch -------------- ¶2. (C/NF) DPRK Missile Launches: SYG de Hoop Scheffer opened the July 5 NAC with the observation that North Korea's salvo of missile launches including a Taepodong-2 constituted a direct challenge to regional and international security, and urged the NAC to issue a statement opposing these actions. Noting that the U.S. had distributed a draft statement for NAC consideration, he invited Ambassador Nuland to provide an update. After summarizing the latest information available, Ambassador Nuland urged the NAC to adopt the proposed statement to show NATO's united support to those in the. Allies quickly reached consensus and the statement was approved. -------------- Darfur -------------- ¶3. (C) Darfur Update: The SYG told the NAC that the AU had extended AMIS' mandate until the end of the year, and that although UN SYG Annan had not convinced Sudanese President Bashir to accept a UN mission in Darfur during their talks at the AU Summit in Banjul, Annan remained optimistic. The SYG noted that NATO IS and IMS reps would travel to the UN next week for trilateral NATO/UN/EU talks on UN proposals for strengthening AMIS. Looking ahead to the July 18 AMIS pledging conference in Brussels, he reminded PermReps that DASG Jochems would go to Addis on July 11 to continue talks with the AU and seek solutions on NATO support to AMIS. D/CMC Baptiste informed the NAC that he expected all remaining AU lift needs would be addressed via NATO or EU mechanisms by the end of next week, but warned that if AMIS were to expand later in the year, NATO would receive an additional request and nations should be prepared to fill it. D/CMC downplayed the upcoming report from JC Lisbon's June 7-16 trip to Addis, stating that it had some recommendations, but that it was not a "huge leap forward," largely in his view due to the fact that the AU is "preoccupied" as it seeks to implement the DPA. -------------- Afghanistan CONFIDENTIAL 3 of 4 CONFIDENTIAL 3 of 4 -------------- ¶4. (C/NF) Afghanistan: The SYG asked Allies to offer forces to fill remaining CJSOR shortfalls prior to Stage III Transfer of Authority (TOA),noting a Force Generation Conference was scheduled for July 14. He urged the Council once again to come to agreement on detainee policy, which would be preferable to a series of bilateral agreements. (SACEUR awaits NAC approval and fulfillment of the CJSOR requirements to make a final recommendation on TOA for Stage III). ¶5. (C/NF) France noted that force protection for APODs should be financed nationally rather than through common funding. Belgium also said that the SRB had made that recommendation. However, the SYG suggested the issue be discussed by PermReps in another forum next week. Romania also urged the NAC to take up the issue. ¶6. (C/NF) Canada announced the UAE will assist the Canadian-led Kandahar PRT by providing funding and assistance for building mosques, hospitals, and schools. Bulgaria, which is assuming lead nation status at Kabul International Airport in August, requested help from Allies to fill shortfalls in firefighting capabilities. ¶7. (C/NF) Ambassador Nuland reiterated the need for Allies to focus on both military and reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan she noted that President Karzai recently expressed concern to Secretary Rice that development assistance in Afghanistan was not proceeding as quickly as Afghan citizens had hoped. She also noted that CFC-A is working with Afghan authorities to develop a list of equipment for the Afghan National Army (ANA) that the Afghan Government will present to the SYG during his visit to Afghanistan in two weeks. The U.S. will provide an additional $2 billion of equipment to the ANA in addition to the $2 billion already committed. Nuland urged Allies to push ahead on the NATO-Afghan Enduring Partnership Program because the Afghan Government will raise this during the SYG's July 20 visit. -------------- Iraq -------------- ¶8. (C) Iraq: U.S. Encourages Positive Reply to Zebari; Good News for NTM-I: Ambassador Nuland said that the U.S. and coalition strongly supported FM Zebari's recent letter to NATO requesting additional NATO help training Iraqi security CONFIDENTIAL 4 of 4 CONFIDENTIAL 4 of 4 forces, to include border guards and gendarmerie, and asked how the SYG intended to manage the issue within NATO. De Hoop Scheffer said he would ask FM Zebari for additional information, and would raise the issue with PermReps in another forum next week. Separately, with the signing of an MOU between SHAPE and the UK government, the UK-led Basic Officer Commissioning Course at Ar Rustimayah will fold into NTM-I, enabling NATO to expand its training to the Iraqi officer corps. Courses, modeled after the UK Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, will consist of three modules and last one year. Italy confirmed the commitment it made in the MC to provide the seven-man Military Advisory and Liaison Team to work with the Iraqi Base Defense Unit on force protection at Ar Rustimayah. The Italian MALT begins a six-month deployment on July 20. -------------- Balkans -------------- ¶9. (C/NF) Balkans: Ambassador Nuland briefed the NAC that the U.S. is in the process of turning over operations at Tuzla air base to the Bosnian MOD, but plans to maintain operational capabilities associated with NATO's enduring operation tasks following the closure. These capabilities would be "over the horizon." The U.S. will also reduce its presence at NATO Headquarters Sarajevo in line with the recent Balkans PMR. ¶10. (C/NF) On Kosovo, Ambassador Nuland noted discussions held during the Contact Group Political Directors meeting last week and raised the question of security north of the Ibar River. In response, Deputy Chair of the Military Committee Lt. Gen. Baptiste reiterated the military assessment first presented by COMJFC Naples Admiral Ulrich last week. KFOR retains an agile and ready posture capable of dealing with any contingency in Kosovo. The French representative pointed out that concern about northern Kosovo was mentioned in the Spring PMR. Military authorities were tasked to be flexible in response to possible outbreaks of violence. Spanish PermRep Benavides, supported by PermReps from Norway, the Czech Republic, and the United States, also stated that Serbia must remain on track toward democratic reform during the continuation of the Kosovo Status process. MCGINNIS NNNN