JULY GAERC PRE-BRIEF

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 THE HAGUE 001376 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/UBI, EUR/ERA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AL ENRG ETRD ETTC EUN IR IS KPAL PGOV PREL RS, SOCI, SR, SU, UP, XA, XF, XH, XW, YI, ZL SUBJECT: JULY GAERC PRE-BRIEF REF: SECSTATE 98749 THE HAGUE 00001376 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. Summary: The Dutch are concerned about the lack of progress and will press for a unified European approach on Kosovo. They anticipate the upcoming Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) will be a formal ceremony without any substantive changes to the mandate text. The Dutch may provide a limited support unit to the UN-AU mission in Sudan. They like the idea of the proposed detachment of an ESDP mission in Chad but remain concerned about its implications. On the CIA rendition flights issue, the Dutch will generally condemn the practice but remain skeptical about the allegations listed in the report by the Council of Europe without more concrete evidence. Foreign Minister Verhagen will make a brief statement as such. Poloff delivered reftel points July 18 to MFA Political Affairs Officer Jeroen Boender at the monthly pre-GAERC briefing for non-EU diplomatic missions. End Summary. ¶2. At the IGC, Boender said the Dutch do not expect more than a formal opening by the Portuguese presidency since the mandate has already been concluded and "merely" needs to be reformatted into a legal text. He suggested that negotiation will be much more low-key with each member state providing no more than three or four representatives. The October GAERC will present an interim report on its progress and the December European Council will present the final text. The EU hopes to have the new treaty fully ratified by June 2009. (Comment: The Dutch Council of State has already received a letter from Parliament requesting ratification of the IGC mandate. Usually ratification would be based on the treaty text but the mandate is already considered sufficiently detailed. End comment.) ¶3. Boender briefed on external political affairs: Ukraine: The Council will prepare for the September 14 EU-Ukraine Summit in Kyiv, which is still planned to go forward despite parliamentary elections on September 30. The Dutch would like the EU to use the summit to stress the importance of free and fair elections, the need for constitutional reforms, and further strengthening of the rule of law. Sudan: The Dutch appreciate the increased European support of this issue now that the French are paying more attention to it. The GONL announced in a July 13 letter in Parliament that they received a request by the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations to contribute to the hybrid force. While it is still too early to tell, the Dutch are considering contributing to operations in the form of a support unit. However, any support will be modest given their current commitments in Afghanistan. A potential deployment of an ESDP mission in Chad would be headed by the French. The Dutch believe such a mission could be important but worry that the ESDP mission might attract an extra flow of refugees into Chad or divert funds and troops from the main AU-UN mission. Western Balkans: Kosovo will be the major issue at this GAERC. The Dutch are concerned with the lack of progress and still think it is important to get a UN resolution because that would be "more civilized" and it is "important to save the prerogative of the UNSC." Without a UNSC resolution, it also would be difficult to participate in a European operation in Kosovo which is anticipated to eventually take over after UNMIK leaves. At the GAERC, the Dutch will continue to plea for unity in the EU approach, supporting the Ahtisaari plan as the basis for the resolution. Middle East: The Council will welcome Blair,s appointment as Envoy to the Quartet. The Dutch support President Bush,s suggestion to have an international conference but emphasize that such a conference cannot replace direct negotiations between Abbas and Olmert. The Dutch were displeased with the letter sent by EU member states making suggestions to Blair. They do not think that this approach is the way to build a common EU foreign policy. THE HAGUE 00001376 002.2 OF 002 Iran: Solana will provide a briefing on the June 23 Lisbon meeting and might include a discussion of the recent IAEA visit. The Dutch position on Iran has not changed. They think it is important to maintain pressure but keep open the possibility of a diplomatic approach. They are also waiting to see what the UN has to say. Libya: The Dutch are hopeful for a group transfer of medics to Bulgaria under the legal assistance angle. The Dutch feel connected to the case for having started the progress under the Dutch presidency in 2004, and for the fact that the family of the Palestinian doctor lives in the Netherlands. CIA rendition flights: Boender emphasized that a resolution in Parliament is forcing them to raise this in the EU framework. The Dutch are uniformly against secret detention centers. However, while they consider the allegations to be very serious, they feel that the Council of Europe Report contained hearsay and circumstantial evidence. Foreign Minister Verhagen will keep his statement on the issue as brief as possible. UK agenda: The UK will ask for European support on the Litvenenko case and for attention regarding Zimbabwe in light of the planned EU-African summit in December. The Dutch do not want President Mugabe, who remains on the visa sanction list, to attend. Regardless of his attendance, they think it is important to discuss human rights issues in Zimbabwe at the summit. GALLAGHER