POST CONCERN ABOUT A&T STATUS FOR NON-USG

UNCLAS LIBREVILLE 000172 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR M/OFM, CA/VO, AF/C AND OBO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OFDP AMGT CVIS PREL SUBJECT: POST CONCERN ABOUT A&T STATUS FOR NON-USG EMPLOYEES ¶1. Embassy Libreville wishes to do everything possible to facilitate NEC construction. Post recently learned that the contract for construction of Libreville's NEC includes a provision stating that the Embassy will "work through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to allow U.S. citizen contractor personnel to be designated as Administrative and Technical staff to the USG." Post understands that this could involve as many as 100 contractor employees. ¶2. Post seeks guidance on how to present these requests to the Gabonese government as pertaining to "members of the staff of the Mission" in terms of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Post also requests guidance on how to respond to Gabonese requests for reciprocal treatment, i.e. possible requests for visas that would provide official status for up to one hundred private Gabonese citizens who might provide services to the Gabonese missions in Washington and New York. ¶3. Post understands that the arrival of the first contractor employees is imminent. WALKLEY