RFG -- NETHERLANDS: STATUS OF FORCES AGREEMENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 001990

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/WE, WHA/AND

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/13/2017
TAGS: PREL PARM MARR MOPS XL NT VE NL
SUBJECT: RFG -- NETHERLANDS: STATUS OF FORCES AGREEMENT
UPDATE

REF: STATE 149873

Classified By: Ambassador Roland Arnall, reasons 1.4 (b,d)


1. (SBU) This is a request for guidance; please see para 4.


2. (SBU) Per reftel, DCM Gallagher raised the lack of
progress made on a long-term status of forces agreement
(SOFA) for the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba with MFA Head
of the North America Directorate Jos Schellars on November 1.
According to Schellars, the MFA Legal Department had just
received comments from the island governments regarding our
draft long-term agreement. Schellars said their legal
experts must first review and incorporate these comments, but
expected to provide us with an official response "soon."


3. (SBU) Ambassador Arnall raised the long-term SOFA with MFA
Political Director Pieter de Gooijer on November 7. De
Gooijer reiterated senior MFA support for a long-term
agreement, noting that the GONL's preferred approach is for a
multi-year SOFA. Ambassador Arnall raised the possibility of
bringing a U.S. legal expert team to The Hague to discuss the
matter further; de Gooijer agreed with this approach.


4. (C) Comment/Action request: We have now raised the
long-term SOFA at the political director level -- while the
MFA is committed to establishing such an agreement, there is
a decided lack of urgency on the Dutch side. Time is running
out if we are to be successful in obtaining a long-term
agreement before it becomes again necessary to extend the
current short-term agreement in May 2008. In that respect,
and per de Gooijer's concurrence, we recommend Washington
propose dates for a possible delegation to The Hague or
teleconference to discuss the agreement -- this may help
jump-start negotiations.

Arnall