EXBS: THAILAND/VIETNAM ADVISOR MONTHLY REPORTING

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BANGKOK 005766 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR ISN/ECC YWONG, ACHURCH, KCROUCH, ROWEN, EAP/MLS DRICHELSOPH, BBLACKSHAW CBP/INA FOR RWATT DEPT OF ENERGY FOR NNSA TPERRY AMEMBASSY HANOI FOR PECKSTROM AMEMBASSY KUALA LUMPUR FOR RMOODY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ETTC KNNP KSTC MNUC PARM PREL TH VN SUBJECT: EXBS: THAILAND/VIETNAM ADVISOR MONTHLY REPORTING CABLE - OCTOBER 2007 BANGKOK 00005766 001.3 OF 002 SUMMARY ¶1. (U) EXBS Advisor and ISN/ECC Desk Officer met with key Thai export and border control officials, October 1-2. All Thai ministry officials were supportive of U.S. training and cooperation. EXBS Advisor visited Laem Chabang port and conducted initial deconfliction coordination with CSI team assistance for proposed International Seaport Interdiction Training in January 2008. Advisor conducted introductory visit to Vietnam from October 28 to November 3, meeting with key embassy and Vietnamese government officials and conducting site visits to the Lang Son border crossing and Haiphong port. SITE ASSESSMENTS AND MEETINGS ¶2. (U) On October 1-2, EXBS Advisor and ISN/ECC Desk Officer conducted introductory meetings with key export control, border security and foreign affairs officials. At the Port of Bangkok, Managing Director Mr. Chalermchai Meekun-iam welcomed U.S. interest and assistance. Although most of the senior Port Authority staff and training facilities are located in Bangkok, most U.S. trade passes through the port of Laem Chabang (to the south of Bangkok in Chon Buri),which is therefore the focus of U.S. security interests. At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Worawoot Pongprapapant, Acting Director, North American Division, also welcomed U.S. cooperation. Mr. Worawoot's primary concern was the one hundred percent cargo scanning requirement contained in the recently-passed 9/11 law. He said that the Thai government would need to keep in close touch regarding the specific provisions, due to the potential significant lead time and resources needed to meet the new requirements. ¶3. (SBU) Mr. Visudhi Srisuphan, Director-General of Royal Thai Customs, was very supportive of the cooperative relationship his agency has developed with its U.S. counterparts. Deputy Director-General Sunggorn Puengpradit led a follow-on meeting to discuss potential upcoming events. He supported seaport and land border interdiction training, and said his Office of International Cooperation would stay in close touch regarding other potential activities. He is also very supportive of our ongoing Container Security Initiative (CSI) and Megaports programs. Ms. Suchana Choocherd, Director, Bureau of Trade Measures, Department of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce, welcomed our visit, but expressed concerns regarding lack of resources and capacity for effective export control. She said that her bureau was not staffed to monitor a national system, and that it may be more practical for each ministry to monitor items pertaining to their own specific areas of expertise. Given the level of technical sophisticatio n, dual-use items are often difficult to identify. Seminars on developing a control list and industry outreach would be very useful. Training in end-user certification and post-shipment verification would also be helpful. A well-run system that avoided delays in shipment would be very important. As with the Foreign Ministry, the new one hundred percent scanning requirement by the U.S. was a concern. ¶4. (U) General Vaipot Srinual, Director-General for Policy and Planning, Ministry of Defense, concurred on the need to closely monitor weapons and other potentially harmful exports. He asked whether other ASEAN countries were participating in similar programs. He also asked whether there had been any significant complaints of problems with third parties due to damage to or delay of their cargo. He tasked the Chief of his Munitions Export Control Section to be the point of contact for future cooperative efforts. Mr. Sirichai Keinmeesuke, Deputy Director-General, Office of Atoms for Peace, offered several helpful comments. He recommended that the Ministry of Industry be included in BANGKOK 00005766 002.3 OF 002 strategic trade control training. He said that his office was already running some training on detection and handling of nuclear contraband for the customs and other border control agencies. He said that commodity identification training was very helpful and important, especially for front-line supervisors. In this regard, h e suggested that access to the U.S. National Targeting Center would be helpful. ¶5. (U) On October 17, EXBS Advisor met with CSI team at Laem Chabang to view port facilities and CSI and Megaports projects. Advisor also discussed preliminary plans for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to conduct an International Seaport Interdiction Training (ISIT) event at Laem Chabang, particularly with respect to deconflicting other working-level activities. It was decided that the last two weeks of January would be an acceptable timeframe. ¶6. (U) From October 28 to November 3, EXBS Advisor conducted an introductory visit to Vietnam (reported SEPTEL). Advisor met with key members of embassy Country Team, Vietnamese Customs and Border Army, and visited major ports of land and sea entry in Lang Son and Haiphong. Although there is significant export and border control assistance being provided to Vietnam, additional targeted assistance would be useful - future visits will be devoted to developing specific proposals. TRAINING CONDUCTED ¶3. (U) None. EQUIPMENT DELIVERED ¶4. (U) Twenty sets of night vision binoculars were delivered to the Vietnamese Border Army for use in patrolling remote areas. IMMINENT TRAINING/EQUIPMENT UPDATE ¶5. (U) An Export Control Legal-Regulatory Workshop will be conducted in Bangkok, November 26-29. Venue arrangements are complete and the final list of participant names has been received from respective RTG ministries. A third set of Tracker equipment has been received for Vietnam, and will be delivered to the Ministry of Industry as soon as transfer coordination is complete. SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS ¶6. (U) None. BOYCE