CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION (CWC): WRAP-UP FOR THE

UNCLAS THE HAGUE 001002

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR ISN/CB, VCI/CCB, L/ACV, IO/S
SECDEF FOR OSD/ISP
JOINT STAFF FOR DD PMA-A FOR WTC
COMMERCE FOR BIS (GOLDMAN)
NSC FOR LEDDY
WINPAC FOR WALTER

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PARM PREL CWC
SUBJECT: CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION (CWC): WRAP-UP FOR THE
WEEK ENDING MAY 25

This is CWC-44-07.

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ARTICLE VII
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1. (U) Facilitator Kimmo Laukenen (Finland) launched his
facilitation with an extremely informative May 22 session,
focusing on implementation developments since February 2007
and upcoming Technical Secretariat outreach activities. The
facilitator noted that his goal would be to create a
structure for long-standing work to ensure implementation of
Article VII obligations and welcomed delegations ideas and
proposals. Laukenen will hold the next consultation prior to
EC-49 but after the TS distributes its progress report.


2. (U) TS Legal Advisor Santiago Onate first updated
delegations on its efforts to support establishment of
National Authorities. Because Barbados just adhered to the
Convention, the number without NAs has increased by one.
Onate reported that on May 11, the EC Chair sent letters to
all states that have yet to establish NAs (Cambodia, Cape
Verde, Central African Republic, Honduras, Comoros,
Mauritania, Montenegro, Timor-Leste, Afghanistan, and
Barbados) and provided the texts. Afghanistan provided in
April 2007 contacts who will be in its new NA and requested
training for its future personnel. The TS is considering how
best to provide such training.


3. (U) Onate then moved to discuss developments in the realm
of implementing legislation. In alphabetical order:

-- In late April, Bahrain included TS comments in its
implementing legislation before sending it to the Council of
Minister for review. Afterwards the legislation will move to
Parliament where it is anticipated that before it can be
passed, Parliamentarians will need to be educated as to CWC
requirements (Note: one venue might be the fall training
scheduled for Qatar).
-- Belgium reported that in May the federal Parliament passed
its implementing legislation. Now the regional Parliaments
need to complete their independent and analogous processes.
-- Cook Islands submitted its final draft to the TS in late
March. It now is incorporating TS comments prior to
submitting the draft to Parliament in early May. It is
possible that Parliament could complete its process prior to
the regional meeting in August.
-- In February, Ecuador prepared and discussed its draft with
the TS. The NA was happy with the TS recommendations and
hopes to finalize the draft in early May.
-- Iceland reported that in March its NA changed staff
members, delaying its work. It anticipated that it could
complete the process in another ten months.
-- Head of ICA (and former Kenyan Ambassador) Mworia visited
Nairobi in May to review and comment on Kenya's draft
legislation. Kenya noted that it may submit the draft to
Parliament after the upcoming elections.
-- Kuwait recently hosted a Technical Assistance Visit and
reported that it hopes to finish its implementing process
soon.
-- Malawi reported in March that it is having big problems,
e.g., lack of financial means, lack of capacity, its NA is
under reorganization, and its budget was slashed. Therefore
it cannot commit to any dates.
-- Montenegro reported in March that it is taking steps to
prepare legislation. Once its NA is established, it does not
expect finalization of its process to take very long.
-- Mozambique reported that its draft is advancing, and
requested samples of legislation from Portugal, citing
specifically sections on penal legislation. Portugal
provided these, and a speedy conclusion is expected.
-- Panama in March noted the complexity of its implementation
process due to the free zones in Colon. The NA was
reorganized again, and it is starting from scratch. The NA
is now in the Ministry of Health where no concrete progress
is expected because of the Agency's more pressing focus on
the country's health problems.
-- In March, Paraguay informed Magda Bauta (IPB) that it
needed a TAV before it could make progress.

-- Portugal in March noted that it had finalized its
legislation and sent it to parliament with a note of urgency
(Note: it takes over the EU Presidency in July).
-- Qatar reported that it expects Parliament to approve the
draft in the next two months. The legislation has sat in
Parliament since December 2006 and suggested that a TAV for
its Parliamentarians might advance its progress.
-- St. Kitts and Nevis in May made its first Article VII
submission and responded to the legal questionnaire.
-- In March, Swaziland informed the TS that its Parliament
decided to combine CWC implementing legislation with that of
three other treaties. Until this process concludes, no
progress is anticipated. Once it is completed, quick
progress is possible.
-- Tonga hosted a TAV in April, where it recommenced work
suspended in late 2006. Its progress has been delayed by the
passing of the King and a turnover in its NA personnel. It
requested a TAV in Sep./Oct. in conjunction with the meeting
of the Asia Pacific Security forum.
-- Tunisia in May notified the TS that its implementing
legislation had been adopted and the text was in the process
of being submitted to the TS. The TS is optimistic that all
key areas will be covered, but is unwilling to say so
outright until it has reviewed the approved text.
-- Venezuela noted it received TS comments on its draft
legislation and is about to forward the draft to its
Parliament.
-- Finally, Onate noted that the TS is working with Malaysia,
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE on implementing regulations.


4. (U) Next, Magda Bauta made a detailed presentation
(delreps requested a copy which will be forwarded to ISN/CB
once received) on Implementation Support Branch Activities
which will include TAVs, regional and sub-regional meetings
for National Authorities, courses for NA personnel and
Parliamentarians, and exchanges with UNEP and the World
Customs Organization, for a total of 48 events in 2007. If
additional requests come in, more events can be accommodated
as well.

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OPEN-ENDED WORKING GROUP ON TERRORISM
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5. (U) On May 24, the facilitator for the Open-Ended Working
Group on Terrorism (Annie-Claire Mari, France) held the first
consultation under her leadership, the first such
consultation in a year. Mari's opening remarks focused on
the history of the Working Group, relevant Executive Council
decisions, input and presentations from outside experts, and
work with regional, subregional, and other international
organizations. She referenced UNGA Resolution A/RES/60/288
(Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy) that encourages the IAEA
and the OPCW to continue within their mandates to help States
build capacity to prevent terrorist access to materials and
facilities of concern. She referenced UNSCR 1540 in a
similar light and pointed to recent workshops that have been
held toward this end.


6. (U) The Deputy Director General made a very brief
intervention in support of continuing work in cooperation
with the UN 1540 Committee.


7. (U) The main topic on the agenda was a presentation by
Ambassador Peter Burian (Slovakia),Chairman of the UN 1540
Committee. Burian, while acknowledging that the OPCW is not
an anti-terrorism organization, pointed to the work of the
OPCW as vital in reducing the ability of terrorists to obtain
access to weapons of mass destruction. He laid out the
history of UNSCR 1540 and its objectives and obligations. He
emphasized that the main objective is to allow member states
to put in place appropriate measures (e.g., import/export
controls, transshipment and trafficking measures, etc.) to
react to emerging threats. Workshops and other work to date
has pointed to the need for assistance to many member states,
and the 1540 Committee sees its role as a clearinghouse for
such need requests and offers of assistance. The OPCW has
participated in many of the Committee's outreach efforts to
date. The Committee's current outreach efforts will focus on
E

the Pacific, the Caribbean, and Africa.


8. (U) In response to questions from Algeria, the
Netherlands, and Sweden, Burian said that he saw the biggest
role for the OPCW as assistance to States Parties. The
Committee desires to use existing programs within the OPCW,
IAEA, and WCO to move its work forward. He sees a need to
better advertise the Committee's activities. He acknowledged
that many states activities probably meet the requirements of
1540, but they do not know it. Using open source
information, the Committee hopes to reach out to those in
this situation to move their efforts forward. He clearly
sees the need to help states understand that 1540 is to their
benefit and security. He acknowledged that little reporting
progress has been made since their 2006 report, with 56
reports still outstanding from the Pacific, the Caribbean,
and Africa.


9. (U) In response to an inquiry from Turkey, Burian
acknowledged that reporting is only the first step and that
full implementation of 1540 (and the follow-up 1673) is
long-term. The Committee's mandate will need to be extended
next year in order to do that. They have learned that
sub-regional efforts can be particularly helpful where
individual states find it difficult to put these measures in
place on their own.


10. (U) Iran made a general statement about the delicacy of
this matter. They referenced operative paragraph 5 of the
decision and that the provisions of this resolution do not
relieve states' obligations in other areas. They pointed to
what they felt were two assumptions that need to be kept in
mind: (1) the independent and autonomous nature of the OPCW
and (2) the fact that the OPCW is not an anti-terrorism
organization. They also reminded delegations that new
proposals should come through the Working Group but
eventually need the approval of the Executive Council.


11. (U) In response to a question from the UK, Burian
addressed export controls and the impact of the Committee's
work in their establishment. He referenced the Committee's
participation in a recent workshop in Bucharest that dealt
with these matters. He cautioned that the implementation of
1540 is a national responsibility and that the Committee
cannot dictate methods for doing so. However, he sees the
Committee's role as making states aware of the best practices
in use so they can use that information when putting their
export control measures in place.


12. (U) Pakistan made a statement that pointed to the CWC
experience as an example of the time and effort required in
the implementation of "onerous" requirements like these.
They pointed out that Pakistan has already made two reports
to the Committee but that other states need more time and
assistance to do so. While acknowledging the independence
and autonomy of the OPCW, they stated that they felt that the
OPCW could still serve as an effective vehicle to providing
assistance.

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GENEVA GROUP - DRAFT 2008 BUDGET
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13. (U) The Geneva Group met on May 25 to get an initial
briefing on the proposed 2008 budget, which will be submitted
to the Director General for his consideration. Director of
Administration Ron Nelson and acting Head of Budget Labib
Sahab provided the briefing. The key points:

-- Zero growth budget.
-- The DG will present it to delegations on June 22.
-- There will be a two per cent increase for staff costs.
-- The exchange rate used for the budget will be .732 Euro
for one USD, as this was the rate for most of May.
-- A two per cent inflation factor was utilized.
-- There will be a 3.6% increase for ICA, although Nelson
emphasized that the inflation rate used for LDCs (and
therefore relevant for any TS activities there) is 4.75%.
-- The distribution will be about 50.2% for Chapter 1 and

49.8% for Chapter 2.
-- Three temporary positions in ISB, PSB and ICA will be
reprogrammed to permanent positions, so the total number of
TS staff will go from 521 to 524.

SIPDIS
-- There will be an increase of 100,000 Euros to cover higher
than expected departures of P-staff. The usual number of
P-staff departures is 15 per year. There are 17 so far in
2007 and two more will definitely depart. The estimate is
that 5-6 more P-staff will leave by the end of the year.
-- There will be no/no increase in Human Resources personnel
to handle higher turnover.
-- With regard to requests from some delegations about
showing voluntary contributions, the draft budget will
not/not show voluntary contributions. Those will continue to
be shown in quarterly financial statements.
-- Nelson referred to the Annual Performance Report linked to
Results Based Budgeting and said the TS would be working to
maximize the utility of the report.


14. (U) On the number of OCPF inspections, which had been the
key point of contention in last year's budget negotiations,
the budget was prepared with a total of 200 industry
inspections. The option had been put to the DG to consider
an increase that number to 220, 230 or 250. If the DG elects
to have 220 inspections, an additional 150,000 Euros would
need to be re-allocated to cover the additional inspections.
After Nelson and Sahab departed, there was a discussion in
the Group on whether the TS could handle more than 200
inspections a year. Diana Gosens (Netherlands) said that
there had been discussion of improved procedures that would
allow the same number of inspectors to handle more
inspections (more sequential inspections, less preparatory
work, due to greater experience, etc.) However, there was no
consensus on whether more than 200 inspections could be
handled by the current number of inspectors.


15. (U) The U.S. and UK made a strong pitch for a continued
increase (no specific number) in OCPF inspections, and there
was general agreement in the Group and no delegate expressed
disagreement. The key is to learn if the DG plans to hold to
200 inspections and reallocate the number for Schedule 1, 2 3
and OCPF, or move up to 220 with a substantial part of the
extra 20 going to OCPFs.


16. (U) Finally, Sahab said that the 2005 surplus, currently
estimated to be 8.8 million Euros, would be credited and
distributed back to States Parties at the start of 2008, once
it had been certified. There was a general discussion of the
status of Article IV/V invoices, with Nelson stating that the
U.S. had recently made a payment which had covered
outstanding 2006 and 2007 invoices. There was also a
discussion of the state of payment of assessed contributions.
Nelson noted that the payment rate was very slow this year.
Del rep asked if there had been any TS cancellation of
projects or a negative impact on operations so far. Nelson
flatly told the Group there had been no slowdown or cut-back
in operations.


17. (U) Budget co-facilitators Gosens and Donggy Lee (South
Korea) said they would hold a facilitation the week of July

3. The expectation is that this would be an opportunity for
delegations to present questions on the budget to the TS.
The facilitators would then hold the usual item-by-item
consultations beginning in early September. With an EC set
for September 25, the facilitators candidly stated they are
expecting to have to complete the budget on the margins of
the November Conference of States Parties.


18. (U) Ito sends.
ARNALL