EXBS: MOROCCO SEEKS ENHANCED BORDER ENFORCEMENT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 RABAT 001160 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR NEA/MAG, ISN/ECC E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PARM ETTC PREL KSTC MO SUBJECT: EXBS: MOROCCO SEEKS ENHANCED BORDER ENFORCEMENT REF: RABAT 01145 Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect accordingly. ¶1. (SBU) Summary: An interagency EXBS (Export Control and Related Border Security) team launched a broad program of cooperation in an initial round of meetings with Moroccan officials July 9-12. The EXBS program is a multi-year assistance program and will begin delivering training to Morocco this fall using funding from FY06 and FY07. The U.S. team stressed the legislative and enforcement aspects of an effective export control system and encouraged the Moroccans to adopt the European Union's (EU) export control list of dual-use items. Despite some skepticism from the Moroccan side concerning the relevance of developing a strategic control list in a country that does not produce or import any dual-use items, they enthusiastically welcomed the opportunity to enhance their enforcement capability. End Summary. -------------- EXBS Relevance to Morocco -------------- ¶2. (U) A USG interagency team visited Morocco 9-12 July to discuss and coordinate the Export Control and Related Border Security (EXBS) assistance program with their Moroccan counterparts. The Moroccan delegation was headed by Khalid Zerouali, Director of Migration and Border Protection, Ministry of Interior. The Moroccan delegation also included senior representatives of Customs, Commerce, Royal Navy, and other security agencies. ¶3. (U) EXBS is the USG's premier initiative to help other countries improve their export control systems. Administered through the Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation, Office of Export Controls Cooperation (ISN/ECC),it is an interagency program designed to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD),missile delivery systems, conventional weapons, and related items by assisting foreign governments in the establishment and implementation of effective export control systems. While the EXBS program's original focus was on the WMD "source countries" in the former Soviet Union, the program was broadened to include countries with major transshipment hubs in the Mediterranean, Middle East, and Southeast Asia. ¶4. (SBU) Morocco's drug and human smuggling problems are well known. Reportedly, 50 percent of Europe's hashish is smuggled from Morocco, while thousands of sub-Saharan Africans migrate through Morocco each year. According to the Commander of the Al Hoceima Naval Base, located on the Moroccan Mediterranean coast, the tempo of the base's primary mission - interdiction of illegal drugs and migrants - has soared, with over 3,500 arrests made in 2006 compared to 640 in 2003. One member of the U.S. EXBS team summed the Moroccan situation best, "Smuggling is smuggling, whether its drugs or missile parts." ¶5. (SBU) Morocco will become even more relevant in the control of WMD and dual-use items with the opening of the new Tangier Med Transshipment Port, scheduled for the end of July 2007. According to Said Elhadi, Tangier Med Special Agency Chairman, the Tangier Port complex will be one of the largest and most complex transshipment facilities in the world, with an eventual transit of 10 million containers a year. Of note, the Moroccan Ministry of Interior and Customs officials at the EXBS conference unanimously acknowledged Morocco's responsibility for effective control of items transiting Tangier. Unfortunately, however, Morocco has neither a strategic control list, nor a licensing system for the control and transshipment of dual-use items. -------------- Enforcement - YES. Control List - MAYBE. -------------- ¶6. (SBU) During the EXBS conference, the U.S. team emphasized the training and equipment support available through the program to assist with legislative reforms required to incorporate a strategic control list into Moroccan national law and enhancement of Morocco's export control enforcement. Of note, the team's visit came on the heels of an elevation of the security posture at all Moroccan ports of entry (reftel),which appeared to reinforce the relevance of the enforcement aspects of the EXBS program. By contrast, the legislative aspect of the program, which includes incorporation of a control list and licensing for dual-use items, was received with less enthusiasm. ISN/ECC Director, Paul van Son, encouraged the GOM RABAT 00001160 002 OF 002 to work with the EU on adopting the EU Control List and adapting it to the Moroccan export control law. Van Son also reiterated that if Morocco wants to work with the U.S. on these issues as well, the USG is ready to provide assistance and training. ¶7. (SBU) The Moroccan Ministry of Commerce's presentation at the conference captured the essence of the Moroccan position on the control of dual-use items. From the beginning, the speaker made it clear that Morocco neither produces nor imports dual-use items, and that its customs officials have a "trade, vice security" agenda. Left unsaid, but nonetheless understood by the U.S. team, was that Morocco remained unconvinced of the need to modify its foreign-trade law in order to incorporate a control list or to develop a licensing system for the transit of dual-use items. ¶8. (SBU) Through subsequent discussions, the U.S. team countered this perception with five primary arguments: 1) Incorporation of a strategic dual-use control list, such as the EU's, would result in increased visibility over all commercial shipments, resulting in a decrease in smuggling and a corresponding increase in customs revenue. 2) Although Morocco may not be a producer or importer of dual-use items today, a Moroccan decision (currently under discussion) to pursue nuclear energy in the future would change that. 3) Many of the techniques used to combat illegal human, drug, and contraband smuggling are the same as those used to enforce an international dual-use control list. 4) Jordan, in a similar situation as Morocco, recently incorporated the EU's control list. The GOM should ask the GOJ about its experience and the positive outcomes it has witnessed. 5) If Morocco truly intends to be a regional leader and establish Tangier Med as one of the world's leading transshipment hubs, it must meet its international responsibilities under UNSCR 1540. ¶9. (U) The Moroccans closed the conference with a reaffirmation of the strong bilateral cooperation between Morocco and the U.S. in all security related fields, and presented their "wish-list" for customs and border enforcement training. The U.S. team pledged to coordinate the request through the interagency process, and closed the conference by presenting Morocco with 50 personal radiation detectors, designed to be worn by customs officials as a first-line of defense against radiation hazards. ¶9. (SBU) Comment: A robust and effective Moroccan export control system is in both the Moroccan and U.S. interest. By going through the process of incorporating a dual-use control list and licensing system for dual-use items, Morocco will not only comply with international export standards, but it will also improve its visibility and control over all commerce transiting Morocco - greatly enhancing its anti-smuggling capability. Post will continue to encourage and facilitate Moroccan legislative and regulatory reform of its foreign trade law and enhancement of it export control system. We will also work with the program to enhance border controls, a mutual priority for a range of target persons and goods. Now is the time to put the systems in place that will prevent Morocco, and specifically the new port of Tangier Med, from becoming a transit point for WMD and dual-use items. RILEY