SECOND FRENCH PAPER ON PROPOSALS FOR STRENTHENING

C O N F I D E N T I A L USNATO 000561 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/16/2017 TAGS: NATO PREL EU FR XG XT SUBJECT: SECOND FRENCH PAPER ON PROPOSALS FOR STRENTHENING NATO-EU RELATIONS REF: A. USNATO 506 ¶B. STATE 541 Classified By: DCM Richard Olson, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Norway's deputy PermRep provided USNATO with a draft of a French paper on improving EU-NATO cooperation that was circulated at the EU on 1 October. This paper follows an earlier French paper on NATO-EU relations presented at NATO and provides more detail on French ideas. USNATO is informed by USEU that EU PSC Ambassadors were to discuss this paper on 16 October. The Greek Mission to NATO informed us that the French had already amended this new paper to address Greek and Cypriot objections. End Summary. ¶2. (C) Following is the French paper (in informal translation). BEGIN TEXT: EU/NATO relations: French proposals to improve relations between EU member states and European Allies who are not members of the European Union. 1) Proposals for a deepening and broadening the accepted framework. -- PSC meetings with non-EU member European Allies, modeled on the recent 6 September meeting or in any other ad hoc operational format. -- Establishment of regular consultations of political directors with Turkey in Troika format which could also include directors of strategic affairs, along the model of the first meeting of this type which took place on 18 September. -- Participation of non-member European Allied contributors in discussions leading to the constitution of a contributors committee, and invitation to the Crisis Management Exercises (CME) as participants when the scenario includes a possible contribution on their part. When the scenario does not include such a possibility, they should be invited as observers. -- During exercises, establishment of working consultations with the PSC and the Secretary General of the Council. -- PSC consultations with non-member European Allies during the pre-operational phase, especially when an EU operation is to be conducted in the proximity of the territory of a non-member European Ally or in a zone of strategic interest. -- Ad-hoc contacts with the Secretariat during mission planning, notably during crisis management review at EU headquarters. -- Improving meetings and the effectiveness of the contributors committee, notably by regular interaction with the operational commander, and if the case arises, with the force commander, to permit direct exchange of information at the high level with non-member European Allies contributing to an EU operation. -- Invitation to non-member European Allies to contribute to the headquarters of an autonomous EU operation. 2) General steps for non-member European Allies to have better cooperation with ESDP structures and activities. -- Invitations to non-member European Allies to the SHAPE Cell at the EU Military Headquarters. -- Launching joint efforts with Cyprus and Turkey to achieve a solution to the question of administrative arrangements between the European Defense Agency and Turkey, and security agreements between the EU and Turkey on the one hand, and Cyprus, Malta, and NATO on the other. -- Launching joint efforts with Cyprus and Turkey to achieve a solution to the question of administrative arrangements between the European Defense Agency and Turkey, and security agreements between the EU and Turkey on the one hand, and Cyprus, Malta, and NATO on the other. -- More direct association for non-member European Allies in activities of Strategic Studies Institutes (development of partnerships between the European Strategic Studies Institute and institutes outside of the EU, sharing of work programs after their adoption and partnering with researchers of countries not belonging to the EU. -- Participation in the Mediterranean activities of common European Security and Defense Policy. END TEXT ¶3. (C) Greece's First Secretary at NATO Spiro Lambridis told USNATO that France's Mission to the EU issued a subsequent revision to this paper after corridor discussions between EU diplomats revealed that two points were unacceptable to a number of delegations; including Greece and Cyprus. The two deleted points are: -- Invitations to non-member European Allies to the SHAPE Cell (NATO Permanent Liaison Team) at the EU Military Headquarters. -- Launching joint efforts with Cyprus and Turkey to achieve a solution to the question of administrative arrangements between the European Defense Agency and Turkey, and security agreements between the EU and Turkey on the one hand, and Cyprus, Malta, and NATO on the other. ¶4. (C) Lambridis said Greece's EU delegation had objected to "a French attempt to de-veto Cyprus." He also said the second point was withdrawn by France because Greece and Cyprus objected that exercising security agreements (information) with NATO would be sovereign decisions of Cyprus and Malta and could not be linked to fixing administrative arrangements for Turkey at the European Defense Agency. Lambridis said the rest of the French proposals were not very new, but they were a good start. ¶5. (U) USEU will provide further reporting on the PSC Ambassador's discussion of the French short paper. NULAND