Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07BRUSSELS3390
2007-11-27 09:08:00
SECRET//NOFORN
Embassy Brussels
Cable title:  

USG DELEGATION APPROACHES BELGIUM ON TERRORISM

Tags:  PREL PTER TU BE 
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VZCZCXYZ0003
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBS #3390/01 3310908
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
O 270908Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS
TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6718
S E C R E T BRUSSELS 003390 

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/27/2017
TAGS: PREL PTER TU BE
SUBJECT: USG DELEGATION APPROACHES BELGIUM ON TERRORISM
THREAT

REF: BRUSSELS 3292

Classified By: POLCOUNS TED ANDREWS. REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D).

S E C R E T BRUSSELS 003390

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/27/2017
TAGS: PREL PTER TU BE
SUBJECT: USG DELEGATION APPROACHES BELGIUM ON TERRORISM
THREAT

REF: BRUSSELS 3292

Classified By: POLCOUNS TED ANDREWS. REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D).


1. (S/NF) SUMMARY: An inter-agency USG team, led by S/CT
Counterterrorism Coordinator Dell Dailey, met with
representatives of Belgium's counterterrorism, law
enforcement, and intelligence communities, as well as
parliamentarians, to discuss Al Qaida's increasing threat to
Europe and the West, and ways to reinforce bilateral
cooperation against terrorism. The meetings were another
step in an ongoing U.S.-Belgian dialogue designed to explore
ways to combat terrorist activities in Belgium, including
through intelligence exchange, prosecutions, diplomatic
initiatives, and steps against terrorist financing. The
Belgians were interested in the information on Al Qaida's
growing global presence and reacted positively to the idea of
increased bilateral cooperation on terrorism issues. They
were optimistic about the progress of the trial of Bilal
Soughir and five others suspected of planning suicide attacks
in Iraq. The prosecution hopes to net stiff sentences for
Soughir and his cohorts under Belgium's antiterrorism law,
which MFA Counterterrorism Adviser Andre Ceulemans cited as a
major avenue for fighting terrorism in Belgium. END SUMMARY.


2. (S/NF) S/CT Counterterrorism Coordinator Dell Dailey,
Treasury Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing Patrick
O'Brien, NSC Director for European Counterterrorism Elizabeth
Farr, NCTC Deputy Director for Information Sharing Russell
Travers, FBI Deputy Assistant Director for Counterterrorism
Issues Charles Frahm, Justice Department Counsel to the
Deputy Attorney General Jessie Liu, and DHS Attache Jacquelyn
Bednarz, accompanied by Ambassador Fox and embassy staff, met
with their Belgian counterparts November 7. Representatives
from Belgium's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA),Ministry of
Interior, Justice Ministry, State Security Service (Surete),
Office for Threat Analysis (OCAM/OCAD),Federal Prosecutor's
Office, Federal Police, National Crisis Center, and Financial
Intelligence Processing Unit (CTIF) participated, with the
MFA's Secretary General Jan Grauls, OCAM's Deputy Director

Luc Verheyden, and Justice's Pascale Vandernacht, Deputy
Chief of Cabinet for Counterterrorism Issues, chairing the
various meetings. The USG team briefed the Belgians on the
growing threat Al Qaida poses to the West and both sides
discussed ways the U.S. and Belgium can further cooperation
and coordination on antiterrorism matters. Embassy staff and
Ambassador Fox met with the USG team prior to their meetings
with the Belgians to discuss Belgian thinking on bilateral
cooperation and consider the most promising approach to use
with the GoB.

--------------
Increased Al Qaida Threat
--------------


3. (S/NF) Ambassador Dailey, aided by NCTC Travers'
presentation on the Al Qaida threat, laid out USG thinking to
the Belgians. He said the United States is trying to engage
European partners on Al Qaida's increasing strategic reach
throughout Europe, aided by a more permissive environment in
the FATA, improved communication techniques, and the merger
that resulted in AQIM. All of these factors combined to
increase the potential for Al Qaida to use its terrorist
infrastructure within Europe to rally attacks in Europe or
into the United States through Europe. While no specific
information on timing or targets existed, information pointed
to the West as a target for future Al Qaida attacks. The
U.S. goal, spearheaded by President Bush's concern about the
increased threat, was to inform allies and disrupt
threatening activity before it occurs in the U.S.


4. (S/NF) Dailey highlighted the importance of U.S.-Belgian
cooperation to fight the threat to the West, and urged the
Belgian law enforcement and intelligence services to inform
the U.S. about any threads of information or activity that
crossed their path. Treasury's O'Brien praised CTIF and
stressed the value of evaluating financial information as a
tool against terrorism. MFA Counterterrorism Adviser
Ceulemans indicated that Belgium had established the
authority in 2007 to freeze assets and to create a national
list of terrorist entities involved in terrorist financing.
He said OCAM would have significant input into formulating
names for the national list.

--------------
Belgian Prosecution of Suspected Terrorists
--------------


5. (S/NF) The USG team praised the Belgians for bringing
Soughir and his cohorts to trial, as well as for prosecuting
other suspected terrorists under Belgium's 2003 antiterrorism
law. Justice's Liu said the U.S. is watching the Soughir

trial closely, especially from the angle of terrorists being
radicalized at home and then committing terrorist attacks
abroad (Belgian Muriel Degauque and her husband allegedly
trained within Soughir's cell for suicide attacks in Iraq).
MFA Secretary General Grauls mentioned Belgium's Federal Plan
Against Radicalization. Ceulemans said a national
anti-radicalization program had been launched in April 2007,
with OCAM playing a major role in implementing the plan. The
program operated on a federal level, but hoped to expand to
the communities, where a dialogue between moderates and
radicals was deemed essential. Ceulemans indicated the Prime
Minister's Office of Intelligence and Security was reviewing
ways to combat radicalization in mosques, prisons, and via
the internet and the media. Ceulemans called combating
radicalization a "priority area" for Belgium, which was
considering ways to address the issue within the UN and EU.


6. (S/NF) Grauls said it had "shocked" Belgian society that
a Belgian woman such as Degauque could have been involved in
suicide attacks. The case had raised public awareness of the
threat within Belgium's borders and sent a message to the
political as well as public sectors of Belgian society about
the "homegrown threat." Grauls said such cases contributed
to the passage of stronger antiterrorism legislation, such as
the 2003 antiterrorism law. Dailey encouraged Belgium to
reconsider legislation regarding special investigative
techniques that would give broader wiretapping authority to
intelligence officials to investigate and build cases against
terror suspects. Grauls said the proposed legislation, which
was not passed in April, was the victim of June federal
elections and had to await the establishment of a new
government for passage.

-------------- --------------
Belgian Efforts Positive, Continued Vigilance Needed
-------------- --------------


7. (S/NF) Bednarz praised Belgian support for the Container
Security Initiative (CSI) in Antwerp and the additional
security features in Belgian passports. She pointed to the
exchange of PNR information as a useful tool in targeting
potential terrorists and said the U.S. wanted to work with
Belgium in demonstrating uses for the information. Bednarz
also discussed biometrics as a screening tool for asylum
applicants, whereby a "blind exchange" of fingerprints could
help identify potential threats. Grauls was interested in
this program, although he noted that the exchange of PNR
information was "a difficult process." He agreed that the
CSI initiative was "working well," and welcomed an invitation
for Belgians to visit the U.S. and meet with various
counterterrorism agencies.


8. (S/NF) Dailey stressed the positives in Belgian
counterterrorism efforts, noting the passage of the stricter
2003 antiterrorism law, the creation of OCAM, the
establishment of a counterterrorism adviser in the MFA, the
increased budget for counterterrorism activities and
intelligence gathering, and Belgium's troop presence in
Afghanistan. He urged the Belgians, however, to closely
review potential terrorism indicators, because Belgium, as
the headquarters of the EU and NATO, might be a target. He
pointed to attacks on the U.S. and its facilities as cases of
missed indicators and urged Belgium not to make the same
mistake.


9. (S/NF) Grauls agreed that Belgium, as the headquarters of
the EU, could face an attack. He said Belgian authorities
were very aware of the possibility and pointed to the
positives noted by Dailey as ongoing efforts by Belgium to
remain vigilant. Grauls indicated that Belgium was
"satisfied with the cooperative framework established with
the U.S." on counterterrorism matters.

--------------
Turkey and the PKK
--------------


10. (S/NF) Dailey raised the struggle between Turkey and the
Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in Iraq. He reiterated U.S.
support for Turkey and indicated U.S. success in getting
Iraqi authorities to crackdown on the PKK. It was a positive
sign that Iraqi authorities had acknowledged the PKK threat.
He asked for Belgian support for Turkey. Grauls reiterated
Belgium's ongoing complaint: that Turkey needed to provide
better, more specific information to enable Belgian
authorities to go after PKK members in Belgium. He asked for
U.S. assistance with Turkey: "help us to help them."

--------------
Delisting Global Relief Fund members
--------------


11. (S/NF) Grauls also asked for feedback on Belgium's
request to delist former Global Relief Fund members Nabil
Sayadi and Patricia Vinck. (The GOB requested that Sayadi
and Vinck be removed from the UN Sanctions list after a
Belgian court ruled in 2005 that there was insufficient
evidence to pursue a court case for money laundering. A
Belgian Appeals Court upheld the lower court ruling.) Grauls
requested the U.S. either provide more information for
Belgium to resume a court case against Sayadi and Vinck or
support delisting. O'Brien indicated Treasury would follow
up on the case, noting that the U.S. would not support UN
delisting if Sayadi and Vinck remained on the U.S. list.
Frahm said the FBI would also look into the case to see what
additional information could be provided either in support of
continued listing or a review and delisting.

--------------
Belgian Police/Prosecutors Comment on Threat
--------------


12. (S/NF) During a meeting hosted by OCAM's Luc Verheyden,
which featured representatives from Belgium's Federal Police
and Prosecutor offices, as well as the Interior Ministry,
intelligence services, and terrorist financing unit, the
Belgians said they actively monitored suspected terrorist
cells. They perceived the terrorist threat to Belgium as
"average," but said Belgium's antiterrorism services were
continually vigilant, despite a public that was "not always
directly concerned" about terrorism within its borders,
absent obvious terrorist activity. For example, Ann Fransen,
chief of the antiterrorism unit in the Federal Prosecutor's
Office, noted that, after day one, public interest in the
Soughir trial had died down. Verheyden said Belgian
authorities did not actively seek to change the public
perception, out of concern for increasing fear and distrust
of foreigners.


13. (S/NF) Verheyden said there was a concern about "home
grown radicals" and pointed to the London bombings. He said
Belgium's antiradicalization plan ("Plan R") was considered
vital to combating this trend, and cited several factors
contributing to radicalization, including the internet, lack
of integration into Western society, and unemployment. He
said jihadists were also returning to Europe to recruit new
members. As part of "Plan R," Belgian authorities routinely
monitored the internet and moved imprisoned radicals around
to combat recruitment efforts.


14. (S/NF) Belgium had also recently introduced an action
plan to combat terrorist financing, and a training session
for counterterrorism and police officials was scheduled soon
to address internet recruitment (USG participation was
requested). The Belgians stressed that communication was
good among their various counterterrorism units, and stressed
their desire for good intelligence from the U.S. and
continued strong bilateral cooperation. U.S. Treasury
representative O'Brien urged the Belgians to also consider
monitoring cash couriers more closely, citing the need for
cash limits across borders and stricter declaration
requirements. He also urged that charities be monitored more
closely, through audits and a strict supervisory framework.

--------------
Justice Ministry Vows to Improve Efforts
--------------


15. (S/NF) The theme of continued vigilance and bilateral
cooperation was echoed by Justice Minister Onkelinx's Deputy
Chief of Cabinet, Pascale Vandernacht. He praised the
quality of bilateral cooperation, indicating Belgium was open
to improvements, and said Belgium took potential terrorism
threats very seriously: "you can count on us to develop and
improve our efforts." Vandernacht stressed "the baton would
be passed on" once a new Justice Minister was in place,
adding that Belgium wanted continuity in promoting new
legislation and prosecuting terror cases. According to
Vandernacht, there had been "a real effort in the past year
that we anticipate continuing." U.S. Justice Department
official Liu offered USG dialogue on drafting antiterrorism
legislation.


16. (S/NF) Ambassador Dailey summed up the challenge for
Belgium as one of privacy balanced against security. The
U.S. has the same concern, managing to implement security
measures while maintaining democratic principles. He urged
the Belgians to benefit from the U.S. experience and heed
early indicators about potential threats. The fact that
Belgium's neighbors had suffered attacks increased the threat
to Belgium. Domestic vigilance and information sharing with
the U.S. were crucial. He also encouraged Belgium to
consider further legislative action to strengthen the tools
available for investigating terrorist suspects.



17. (U) S/CT Counterterrorism Coordinator Dailey approved
this message.


FOX
.