DEMARCHE: COOPERATION ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS

C O N F I D E N T I A L BUCHAREST 000113 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/NCE JENSEN AND FOR PM/WRA -- KATHERINE BAKER E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/01/2012 TAGS: MOPS PARM PREL NATO SUBJECT: DEMARCHE: COOPERATION ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS REF: SECSTATE 6667 Classified By: DCM Mark A. Taplin for Reasons 1.4(b) and (d) ¶1. (C) POLMILOFF delivered demarche to MFA Director for Non-Proliferation, Arms Control and Combating Terrorism Mihaela Vasiu on January 19. Vasiu said the MFA was aware that there were plans for a Cluster Munitions (CM) conference in Oslo but Romania had not yet been formally invited. She noted that the GOR would need to review its position within the inter-agency and consult with the EU before responding to the US demarche. ¶2. (C) Following GOR interagency and EU consultations, Vasiu on January 30 said the GOR fully appreciated the US position regarding the proposed Oslo CM Conference. In principle, she added, Romania shares the US position. However, Romania was obliged to follow the EU consensus for the Oslo Conference in February, including with regards to the April 18-20 experts meeting hosted by the ICRC in Montreux and the on-going discussions in the CCW which has scheduled a June 19-22 government experts meeting on explosive remnants of war (ERW),focused primarily on CM. She said following the January 16 meeting in Brussels, EU members are obliged to ratify the ERW Protocol in the CCW. The GOR has assumed all obligations under the CCW. The GOR intends to participate at the MOD level, but probably not at senior MFA levels (i.e., Office Director or below),though the Romanian Ambassador to Canada may attend, she surmised. Vasiu said the GOR would also like the US to attend the Ottawa Conference, but would understand if the US took an alternative position. ¶3. (C) Comment: Embassy will follow-up with Director Vasiu to flesh out the legal arguments and report those septel. End comment. TAUBMAN