TORRES STRAIT: LATEST LETTER DELIVERED

C O N F I D E N T I A L CANBERRA 001073 NOFORN DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/ANP FRELICK AND FOR L/OES ROACH E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/24/2018 TAGS: PHSA, EWWT, PREL, AS SUBJECT: TORRES STRAIT: LATEST LETTER DELIVERED REF: STATE 111975 Classified By: Economic Counselor Edgard Kagan. Reasons 1.4 (b/d). ¶1. (C/NF) Australia should be able to accept the key elements of reftel letter, according to Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade International Legal Division Assistant Secretary Adam McCarthy. Stressing that he could only give a very preliminary response based on his initial reading of the letter, McCarthy said that he will need to consult with representatives of the Attorney General's Department and the Australian Maritime Safety Agency (AMSA) before giving a more formal response. McCarthy subsequently told us that the agencies will meet to discuss the letter on October 28. ¶2. (C/NF) McCarthy told Econcouns that he understood U.S. concern about when the penalty would be assessed and that this should not pose a problem. Australia is thinking in terms of an administrative penalty, though this has not been finalized. Regardless of the decision, any penalty would not be assessed until a ship entered an Australian port. Turning to the second element in the letter, McCarthy said that under Australian domestic law, statutes of limitations only apply to violations of criminal or civil law. Stressing that the final decision will be up to the Attorney General's Department, McCarthy said his understanding is that it would be impossible to refer to the statute of limitations in the context of an administrative penalty. ¶3. (C/NF) Finally, McCarthy said that while he could understand that the United States believes it "preferable" that Australia inform the International Maritime Organization of changes to the Torres Strait Pilotage Regime, this would probably be a bridge too far for his AMSA colleagues to agree to at present. He said that Australia understands that it will need to announce any changes, but that it is unlikely to do so in that manner. CLUNE