LITHUANIAN DEFENSE UNDER SECRETARY ON BALTIC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 VILNIUS 000818 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: MOPS MARR PREL AF LG EN LH SUBJECT: LITHUANIAN DEFENSE UNDER SECRETARY ON BALTIC COOPERATION AND AGENDA FOR WASHINGTON VISIT VILNIUS 00000818 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: MOD Under Secretary Renatas Norkus gave the Ambassador areadout of the recent Baltic Defense Ministers' meeting and a sketch of his plans for his upcoming visit to Washington during a meeting September 1. The Baltic Defense Ministers agreed they would try to encourage NATO to extend the Baltic Air Policing program until 2018, when the Balts plan to provide their own air defense. The Ministers agreed to work toward a joint NRF contribution and to explore joint procurement possibilities. Norkus also said that Lithuania would ask about the possibility to use the transportable parts of NATO's air defense system currently in Iceland. During his visit to Washington, Norkus wants to discuss the Riga agenda at DoD and State. He will be especially keen to talk about Lithuania's PRT mission in Ghor Province, Afghanistan and prospects for reconstruction projects there. End Summary. Baltic Defense Ministers' Meeting -------------- ¶2. (U) Norkus told the Ambassador that at the August 30 Baltic Defense Ministers' meeting the Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian DefMins agreed they would encourage NATO to continue the current Baltic Air Policing (AP) regime until 2018, at which time the Baltic states will be able to provide their own air defense. Lithuania plans to make procurement decisions in the 2010 - 2011 timeframe for interceptor aircraft that will help it reach air defense self-sufficiency in the long term. In the meantime, extension of AP will allow Lithuania and the other Balts to follow methodical defense reform and modernization without the disruptions of "big ticket" procurement in the near term. The Ministers also resolved to work to reduce costs for NATO rotational units doing Air Policing and to encourage all allies to contribute units (currently, allies have signed up through the end of 2007). Between now and 2018, the Balts will concentrate efforts on airspace control improvements, particularly radars. Baltic defense officials will brief the NATO Military Committee and SACEUR on their AP ideas. Lithuania will also raise the issue with the Polish Defense Minister (visiting Vilnius the week of September 5) and DASD Fata. ¶3. (U) The three Baltic Defense Ministers decided to explore ways they could work together to contribute to the NATO Response Force (NRF). All agreed they would like to re-invigorate land forces cooperation, ultimately leading to a joint NRF contribution. The Ministers tasked their Armed Forces to develop appropriate proposals. ¶4. (U) The ministers agreed to explore joint procurement possibilities for political and practical reasons. Radars are the first priority. They tasked their Armed Forces to develop appropriate proposals. Eventually, joint procurement will also be considered for armored personnel carriers, electronic countermeasures, and helicopters. ¶5. (SBU) Although it was not mentioned in the Joint Communique from Jurmala, Norkus told Ambassador Cloud that Lithuania intends to query NATO about using the transportable components of the NATO-provided air defense system, currently deployed in Iceland, in the Baltic region. Lithuania is also exploring the possibility of using NATO common funding to purchase long-range radars (as Poland, Czech Republic, and Hungary have done). Norkus's Agenda for his September 18 - 22 Visit to Washington -------------- -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Norkus said that one of his primary goals for his visit to Washington is to compare notes on Lithuanian and U.S. positions for the upcoming NATO summit. He intends to meet with DASD Dan Fata and others at the Departments of Defense and State to discuss the Riga agenda and current operations. Norkus plans to present the possibilities for future Lithuanian contributions to the NRF. He will mention that Lithuania is seriously considering the Strategic Airlift Initiative and a possible "buy-in" of C-17 flight hours. On enlargement issues, Norkus said that Lithuania supports ID for Georgia, believing it will likely be offered at the NATO Foreign Ministers Ministerial in New York in December. He mentioned that Lithuania, like many allies, is hoping for more favorable developments in Ukraine, but believes that Riga should offer some positive language to keep Ukraine "on the radar screen". On the subject of the Middle East Training Initiative, Norkus commented that Lithuania would like to train Iraqi and Afghan officers at the Lithuanian Military Academy. VILNIUS 00000818 002.2 OF 002 ¶7. (SBU) Norkus is also eager to hear official U.S. views about the progress of ongoing missions in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Lebanon, while sharing the Lithuanian perspective. On Lebanon, he confirmed that Lithuania will not send troops, but will continue to monitor the situation and consider future requests for military contributions if the required capabilities and resources are available for deployment. He is particularly keen to talk about reconstruction efforts in Ghor Province, Afghanistan, where Lithuania leads its PRT. Norkus expressed satisfaction with the performance of the military aspects of the mission, but voiced concern that civilian reconstruction progress in Ghor is lagging behind that of neighboring provinces. He believes that this uneven development may create force protection issues in the future when the local inhabitants' expectations are not met. Norkus intends to bring a representative from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to outline Lithuania's efforts to encourage international governmental and NGO support for reconstruction projects in one of Afghanistan's poorest regions. He mentioned that he would like to meet with Mary Beth Long and Deborah Kagan at DoD, and other appropriate officials at State, to discuss Ghor Province reconstruction issues. (We note that Norkus already has a meeting set on September 19 with SCA DAS Gastright.) ¶8. (U) Norkus plans to discuss Lithuania's defense and diplomatic outreach to its neighbors to the East, and, in particular, would like to share views about programs and talks with Moldova, the South Caucasus, and Central Asia. Norkus also intends to talk about the more difficult relationships Lithuania has with Belarus and Russia, and the national security implications of current energy issues. CLOUD