Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07USNATO46
2007-01-25 17:35:00
CONFIDENTIAL//NOFORN
Mission USNATO
Cable title:  

NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL READOUT JANUARY 24, 2007

Tags:  NATO PREL AF 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO8612
OO RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHLA RUEHMRE RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHNO #0046/01 0251735
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 251735Z JAN 07
FM USMISSION USNATO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0403
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
INFO RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNOSC/ORGANIZATION FOR SECURITY COOPERATION IN EUROPE PRIORITY
RUEHGB/AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD PRIORITY 0228
RUEHBW/AMEMBASSY BELGRADE PRIORITY 1323
RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN PRIORITY 0494
RUEHBM/AMEMBASSY BUCHAREST PRIORITY 2367
RUEHHE/AMEMBASSY HELSINKI PRIORITY 0854
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY 0253
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 0514
RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM PRIORITY 0113
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 0141
RUEHMD/AMEMBASSY MADRID PRIORITY 0574
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PRIORITY 5633
RUEHNY/AMEMBASSY OSLO PRIORITY 0516
RUEHPG/AMEMBASSY PRAGUE PRIORITY 3931
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME PRIORITY 0487
RUEHSF/AMEMBASSY SOFIA PRIORITY 2336
RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE PRIORITY 0869
RUEHWR/AMEMBASSY WARSAW PRIORITY 4035
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0329
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 USNATO 000046 

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/24/2017
TAGS: NATO PREL AF
SUBJECT: NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL READOUT JANUARY 24, 2007

Classified By: DCM Richard G. Olson for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 USNATO 000046

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/24/2017
TAGS: NATO PREL AF
SUBJECT: NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL READOUT JANUARY 24, 2007

Classified By: DCM Richard G. Olson for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) SUMMARY:

-- Afghanistan: SYG reported that Pakistan PM Aziz will
address the NAC on January 30. The outgoing JFC-Brunssum and
ISAF Operational Commander General Back presented his
analysis of NATO,s efforts in Afghanistan stating that the
Alliance's goals are too high. He called for more leadership
from, and greater coordination with the UN, and advocated
continuing support for tribal agreements such as the one in
Musa Qala. The General opposed ground-based spraying to
reduce poppy production. Back also proposed tasking the
drafting of an &exit strategy8 for Afghanistan, which was
not supported by PermReps.

-- Kosovo: SYG stated that UN Special Envoy Ahtisaari will
address the NAC on 16 February. The Chairman of the Military
Committee (CMC) provided a briefing on transition plan for
KFOR during the settlement period, to include a new
&international civilian presence8 (ICP). Several PermReps
called for high-level NATO-EU political talks, with Spain,
Italy, and Germany urging caution during the complex period
ahead.

-- Iraq: CMC noted the Italian scoping team mission to Iraq
has concluded and said that SHAPE advice on gendarmerie
training is expected by the end of January. Spanish PermRep
noted his country's 399,000 Euro contribution to NTM-I.

-- Missile Defense: Ambassador Nuland advised PermReps about
U.S. missile defense plans with Poland and the Czech
Republic; UK PermRep welcomed the announcement.

END SUMMARY.

Afghanistan
--------------

2. (C) NATO Secretary General de Hoop Scheffer reminded the
NAC of the upcoming January 30 session with Pakistan Prime
Minister Aziz. The SYG called for enlarging NATO,s
political dialogue and military cooperation with Pakistan,
including (on the military side) through the Tripartite
Commission (TPC). CMC General Henault briefed the results of
the January 11 TPC meeting, which was held in Islamabad at
the four-star level. He said that discussion of Pakistan's
contentious proposal for fencing and mining the border was
omitted as part of a compromise brokered by COMISAF Richards

to permit the meeting to go forward. CMC said that ISAF
mil-mil relations with Pakistan were &very good,8 and that
military activities coordinated with Pakistan on the border
had been successful in recent weeks.


3. (C) Outgoing Commander of Joint Forces Command (JFC)
Brunssum and ISAF Operational Commander General Gerhard Back
gave a dour report on Afghanistan and provided his
intentionally "thought-provoking" recommendations. Back
suggested NATO had set its goals too high in Afghanistan,
which had resulted in an impatient and disappointed Afghan
population that is suspicious of ISAF's motives. Noting that
Afghanistan has never has a strong central government, he
thought the approach of reaching tribal agreements, such as
those in Musa Qala and Khost, was promising and that NATO
should collect evidence on how effective the agreements prove
to be, and then decide whether to support more such
agreements. On counter-narcotics, he recommended against
"short term actions that endanger our troops," such as
ground-based spraying, until more progress is made in
alternative livelihoods for adversely affected farmers. The
General called for more pressure on the UN to provide the

USNATO 00000046 002 OF 003


necessary coordination and leadership to civilian
reconstruction efforts and the necessary link to security
efforts. He spoke out against both the forced repatriation
of Afghan refugees in Pakistan and the fencing and mining of
the border, arguing that, instead, there should be major
efforts to improve conditions for refugees in Pakistan and in
the Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) to
"dry up the swamp" of Taliban recruits. General Back
cautioned against the use of "body counts." He emphasized
that the CJSOR was the minimum military requirement and must
be filled. Most controversially, he recommended the NAC task
NMAs to draft an "exit strategy" withdrawing ISAF maneuver
forces by the end of 2010, only leaving residual mentoring
and training teams in place. He advocated planning force
rotations through 2010 to assure an orderly exit strategy,
not a piecemeal drawdown by nations on their own schedules.


4. (C) Back received support among PermReps for his call for
greater coordination of civilian and military efforts, a more
active UN role, opposition to the mining and fencing of the
border, and avoiding a focus on "body counts." Many PermReps
disagreed with his call for an exit strategy (specifically,
Norway, The Netherlands, UK, Bulgaria, Romania),saying it
was important not to set a date since the Afghan people
needed reassurance NATO would not leave prematurely. Dutch
PermRep Schaper said NATO should think about a "handover
strategy" rather than an "exit strategy," while others said
that NATO should define conditions for a handover, rather
than specifying a date for withdrawal. Spanish PermRep
Benavides supported Back's call for an "exit strategy," but
said it should not be made public. Italian PermRep Moreno
said Italy was considering doubling its commitment to train
customs officers and doing more to train the ANP.


5. (C) In response to a question on counter-narcotics,
DSACEUR General Reith said President Karzai had decided
against ground-based spraying for this year, and would rely
again on manual eradication. In Helmand Province,
eradication would be focused on the central regions where
development zones were already in place. The governor of
Helmand also wanted eradication in outlying areas to show
farmers they would pay a price for going along with Taliban
control.

Kosovo
--------------

6. (SBU) The SYG briefly touched on the Serbian election
results, saying that the elections occurred without incident,
and called on Serbia to form a new government without delay.
He outlined the status process timeline and said that
following the January 26 Contact Group meeting, UN Special
Envoy Ahtisaari would travel to the region on 2 February to
present his proposal to both parties. The SYG mentioned that
Ahtisaari would address the NAC, most likely on 16 February.
The SYG again expressed his hope that the Transatlantic Lunch
on 26 January would pave the way for in-depth NATO-EU
discussions on the way ahead in Kosovo.


7. (C) The CMC briefed the NAC on the proposed three-phased
plan for KFOR operations during the upcoming time period from
UN Special Envoy Ahtisaari,s status proposal announcement to
a UNSCR and the start of a new &international civilian
presence8 (ICP) in Kosovo. CMC stated that the military
committee will present to the NAC a &Transitional
Directive8 that will provide KFOR with the framework for
operations from the time of a UNSCR until the stand-up of an
ICP, (predicted to be 120 days). Several PermReps (including
NL, BE, IT, UK, NO) expressed strong desire for higher level
political discussions with the EU on Kosovo. The Spanish,
Italians and Germans expressed caution concerning the complex

USNATO 00000046 003 OF 003


period ahead and emphasized the need to help the moderate
faction in Serbia to form a government. The UK PermRep
stressed the priority of getting a settlement and supporting
Ahtisaari. The German PermRep mentioned that members
representing the EU Troika would be traveling to Belgrade in
February to discuss the status of stabilization and accession
talks. Lastly, the SYG mentioned that he intends to visit
both Belgrade and Pristina at some point during the upcoming
settlement period, when the timing is right and in
consultation with Ahtisaari.

Darfur
--------------

8. (SBU) The SYG noted that the ongoing African Union (AU)
Summit will address Darfur, a possible AU peacekeeping
mission in Somalia, and the selection of a new AU Chairman.
The SYG will report next week on the outcome of this summit,
including any implications it might have for NATO,s
involvement in Darfur and any future role in Somalia.

Iraq
--------------

9. (SBU) CMC noted that the Italian scoping team had
concluded its visit to Iraq,s national police headquarters
and potential training sites. He said SHAPE advice on
gendarmerie training was expected by the end of January. CMC
informed the NAC that the first senior NCO course began at
Kirkush and a Mobile Training Team (MTT) will deliver the
NATO leadership and management modules. Spanish Ambassador
Benavides noted Spain,s 399,000 Euros contribution to NTM-I.

Missile Defense
--------------

10. (C) Following up her informal briefing to PermReps at
their weekly luncheon on January 23, Ambassador Nuland drew
from guidance (State 07445) to officially advise the NAC that
the U.S. had formally requested that bilateral negotiations
begin with both the Czech Republic and Poland on placing U.S.
missile defense (MD) assets in their countries. She noted
the valuable contributions that Denmark and the UK have
already made in support of our MD architecture and informed
the NAC that the U.S. was also acting in a completely
transparent manner with Russia. Both CZ and PL PermReps
stated their nations, willingness to begin negotiations,
their desire to keep Allies informed throughout the process,
and the importance of this issue to NATO in enhancing Allied
security, as well as the security of Europe as a whole. The
UK PermRep welcomed the U.S. announcement, noting the
important support provided to the U.S. MD system by the UK
radar site at RAF Fylingdales. (Note: The Ambassador
separately circulated a letter to all PermReps with a copy of
the points in State 07445, Para 5.)

State of the Union Speech
--------------

11. (U) Ambassador Nuland drew PermReps, attention to the
President's State of the Union address, noting that the
President had put strong emphasis on energy security and
independence, as well as the need for bipartisan support for
efforts to secure Iraq. She also highlighted President
Bush's mention of NATO in the context of its leading the
fight in Afghanistan. Copies of the State of the Union
address were made available to PermReps.



NULAND