AMIA CASE: SPAIN WILL SUPPORT ARGENTINE POSITION

C O N F I D E N T I A L MADRID 000457 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/08/2017 TAGS: PTER PREL KJUS SP SUBJECT: AMIA CASE: SPAIN WILL SUPPORT ARGENTINE POSITION AT INTERPOL REF: STATE 29082 Classified By: DCM Hugo Llorens; reasons 1.4 (B) and (D). ¶1. (C) Per reftel instructions, the Ambassador contacted Argentine Ambassador Carlos Betinni on March 8 to advise him that the USG planned to approach the Spanish Government to express support for the Argentine position on the AMIA case at Interpol. On March 9, the DCM, accompanied by Legat and Poloff, delivered reftel points to Secretary of State for Security (Deputy Interior Minister equivalent) Antonio Camacho. (NOTE: The Spanish delegate to Interpol is a member of the National Police and comes directly under Camacho's authority. END NOTE). The DCM noted the heinous nature of the terrorist attack and discussed the approach that had been developed at Lyon, noting that this solution was acceptable to the USG. He requested that Spain support Argentina at the upcoming Interpol Executive Committee meeting. ¶2. (C) Camacho said that he was aware of the basic facts of the case and said Spain had already determined that it would support Argentina and the compromise position regarding the issuance of Red Notices. He said that he would contact Spain's delegate to Interpol to advise him of this decision. Camacho reviewed the legal obstacles that might arise if the subject of one of the Red Notices was detained in an EU country, but emphasized Spain's position that a blatant act of terrorism could not simply be swept under the rug. The DCM (who served in Buenos Aires prior to arriving in Madrid and who had worked in support of the AMIA investigation) shared additional details of the case with Camacho and noted the symbolic importance of partners in the fight against terrorism working together to obtain justice for the victims of the attack. Camacho agreed and reiterated Spain's strong determination to support the Argentine position. //AMIA PROSECUTOR IN MADRID// ¶3. (C) Reftel demarche request coincided with the visit to Madrid of AMIA case prosecutor Alberto Nisman, who was invited to speak at an NGO event associated with the commemoration of the third anniversary of the March 11, 2004 Madrid train bombings. Nisman worked with the Argentine Embassy in Madrid to arrange bilateral meetings with Spanish officials and other events, including a speech before Madrid's Jewish community. Separately, the DCM (who had worked with Nisman in Buenos Aires) arranged a lunch with National Court Chief Prosecutor Javier Zaragoza and with the head of the National Police counter terrorism division, Miguel Valverde. Mike Hurley and Alexis Albion of S/CT were in Madrid for bilateral meetings and participated in the Nisman lunch as well. This event allowed for a very interesting exchange of views on the intricacies of investigating major terrorist cases, such as AMIA and the March 11, 2004 bombings in Madrid. Both our Spanish guests and Nisman were pleased by the opportunity to meet counterparts and expand their contacts in the counter-terrorism legal community. AGUIRRE