Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07THEHAGUE1952
2007-10-30 15:32:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy The Hague
Cable title:  

CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION (CWC): SCENESETTER FOR

Tags:  PARM PREL CWC 
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UNCLAS THE HAGUE 001952 

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SENSITIVE
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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): SCENESETTER FOR
THE TWELFTH CONFERENCE OF THE STATES PARTIES

This is CWC-85-07.

-------
SUMMARY
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UNCLAS THE HAGUE 001952

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
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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): SCENESETTER FOR
THE TWELFTH CONFERENCE OF THE STATES PARTIES

This is CWC-85-07.

--------------
SUMMARY
--------------

1. (SBU) The November 5-9 Conference of the States Parties
will either be extremely hectic or rather uneventful. When
Executive Council 50 passed the 2008 budget, expectations for
a meeting of the EC during the Conference faded. Del
believes an EC meeting will be necessary during the week of
the Conference if several substantive items are ready for CSP
consideration. Current consultations on Article VI (late
declarations and transfer discrepancies),Article VII
Implementation, and Universality are all bogged down by
Iranian and NAM delaying tactics while they push for an
Article XI action plan that western delegates are blocking.
Delegations are beginning to realize that the agenda is very
thin unless there is forward movement on these consultations
and some would like to have more to show than a budget for
this anniversary year. Del expects decisions are possible,
but will probably require significant last minute work to
conclude. Lobbying for the chairmanship of the Review
Conference is likely to be active during the Conference, but
the Secretariat is proposing that no action is required by
the CSP but only a report by the Chair of the Open Ended
Working Group to the next regular session of the Executive
Counil that the chair will rotate to the Asian regional
group. End Summary.

-------------- --------------
Elections of CSP and RevCon Officers and EC Members
(Agenda Items 2, 3, 12)
-------------- --------------

2. (SB) The African group,s choice of Sudan as the chair
of the Conference of States Parties has been controversial,
both within the group and outside. The African group held a
meeting October 19 to reconsider its earlier decision but did
not take action. Del expects the grumbling will continue but
that Sudanese Ambassador Idris,s election will not be
opposed in the Conference itself.


3. (SBU) There has been even more buzz about the rotation of
the Review Conference chair and what procedures are required
(or not) to achieve it. There is widespread agreement that

the five-year schedule of the review conference, which would
have Africa chair it every time among the five regional
groups, is not equitable. Most delegations agree that the
RevCon chair should rotate to Asia in 2008, but there is
little agreement about how that should be done, and great
concern among the WEOG and others about an Iranian candidacy.
The latest interpretation from the Technical Secretariat is
that the Review Conference is a unique special conference
that should elect its own officers, quite apart from the
annual Conference of States Parties. The TS recently
proposed to the Chairman of the Open Ended Working Group for
the Review Conference, Amb. Lyn Parker (UK),that no action
is necessary by the CSP, but that the OEWG chairman should
report on the expected rotation to the next Executive Council
at its next regular session so that the regional groups can
choose candidates for all RevCon offices well before the
April dates of the RevCon.


4. (U) Election of new Executive Council members to begin
their terms in May 2008 will probably be routine. Full lists
of candidates are not yet available, but notable among early
reports is that Iran and Cuba are seeking re-election. Del
will send lists of candidates when received.

--------------
Status of Implementation (Agenda Item 9)
--------------

5. (SBU) A/S DeSutter,s address to the Conference should be
the highlight of this agenda item on Wednesday morning.

--------------
Article VII
--------------

6. (SBU) There is virtually no chance of an agreement on an

Article VII decision document by the start of the CSP.
Facilitator Kimmo Laukkanen (Finland) has tried to
accommodate opposing positions but has failed to lead the
consultations toward agreement on the issues, with sessions
getting bogged down in wordsmithing details. Iran has
repeatedly noted that they have not even agreed that the
consultation is working on a decision, that the draft
document may be only report language. Iranian delegate also
informed a recent session that one &concrete wall8 may face
another, a reference to the NAM,s insistence on linking
Articles VII and XI. South African delegate told Del reps
after the same meeting that there will be no action on
Article VII unless agreement can be reached on action on
Article XI.

-------------- --
Programme and Budget for 2008 (Agenda Item 13)
-------------- --

7. (U) With EC-50,s recommendation that the budget be
approved, this agenda item will likely be quickly adopted
with little if any debate.

-------------- --------------
Article XI (Item 17 Fostering International Cooperation)
-------------- --------------

8. (SBU) The decision by the Tenth Session Conference
requesting the Council to report on the full implementation
of Article XI at each regular session was extended for
another year by the Eleventh Session of the Conference.
Facilitator Li Hong (China) has continued the consultations,
but there is no resolution to the impasse between the NAM,s
insistence on an action plan, and western reluctance to agree
to a plan before its contents are known. Iran and Cuba,
claiming to speak for the NAM, continue to link an action
plan on Article XI with any movement on strengthening Article
VII implementation. We expect no real movement on either
until late in the Conference. Despite attempts to de-link
the two issues, progress on either will depend on a broader
deal that includes the other one.

--------------
Universality (Item 18)
--------------

9. (SBU) While universality should be an apple pie
resolution, the Iranians are holding up the consultations
with extraneous additions to the text. Facilitator Said
Moussi (Algeria) is cheerfully continuing informal and formal
consultations, but this item may also need to be part of a
comprehensive agreement on the other Articles to have final
text in time for the CSP to consider.

--------------
OTHER AGENDA ITEMS
--------------

10. (U) The following are other substantive items on the CSP
agenda:

Item 7 - DG Statement: Delegation will provide a copy when it
becomes available.

Item 8 - General Debate: A draft national statement for
Ambassador Javits has been E-mailed to Washington.

Item 9(b)- Approval is expected of the DG's report on
handling of confidential information.

Item 9(c) ) The Conference is expected to note the Director
General,s report on progress made in the destruction of
chemical weapons.

Item 10 - Report of the OPCW on the implementation of the
Convention should be approved with no debate.

Item 11 - Report of the EC should be approved with no debate.

Item 14 ) Scale of Assessments: The document has not yet
been distributed to delegations.

Item 15 ) External Auditor,s report should be approved with
no debate.

Item 16 ) Administrative and financial matters:

-- 16.1 CSP will likely note the report by the Director
General on OPCW income and expenditure for the financial year
to 30 June 2007.

-- 16.2 CSP should note the DG,s note on the use of the
Working Capital Fund for the financial year to 30 September

2007.

-- 16.3 CSP should approve proposed multi-year payment plans
from Moldova and Guatemala.

-- 16.4 CSP should note the report on the status of
implementation of agreed multi-year payment plans.

-- 16.5 CSP will likely note the annual report of the Office
of Internal Oversight.

-- 16.6 CSP is expected to approve the alignment of OPCW
staff regulation 3.2 on educational allowances with the
corresponding UN staff regulation.

-- 16.7 CSP will likely note the DG's note on transfers of
funds between programmes in 2007.


Item 19 ) Establishment of an OPCW Office in Africa:
EC 50 welcomed the DG,s initiative in developing a new
Programme to Strengthen Cooperation with Africa and agreed to
the need for a new facilitator and continuing work by an Open
Ended Working Group. Del expects the CSP to follow this
line, although there may be debate calling for more specific
actions or deadlines.

Item 20 - Reports of subsidiary bodies:

-- 20.1 is the report of the Committee of the Whole.

-- 20.2 is the report of the General Committee.

-- 20.3 is the report of the Confidentiality Commission.

-- 20.4 is the report of the Credentials Committee.

Item 21 ) Any other business: CSP is expected to note a
report by the Host Country Committee.

Item 22 ) Dates and duration of the next regular sessions of
the CSP: Del should have more information on these dates
after the Board meeting on November 1.

Item 23 ) Adoption of the report of the Conference of the
States Parties: No bets yet on what will happen but odds are
good for a late Friday evening session.



11. JAVITS SENDS.
Gallagher