JCIC-XXXIII: (U) UKRAINIAN CLOSING STATEMENT,

S E C R E T GENEVA 001019 DEPT FOR T, VCI AND EUR/PRA DOE FOR NNSA/NA-24 CIA FOR WINPAC JCS FOR J5/DDGSA SECDEF FOR OSD(P)/STRATCAP NAVY FOR CNO-N5JA AND DIRSSP AIRFORCE FOR HQ USAF/ASX AND ASXP DTRA FOR OP-OS OP-OSA AND DIRECTOR NSC FOR HAYES DIA FOR LEA E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/17/2018 TAGS: KACT PARM START JCIC INF US RS UP BO KZ SUBJECT: JCIC-XXXIII: (U) UKRAINIAN CLOSING STATEMENT, NOVEMBER 21, 2008 Classified By: Jerry A. Taylor, United States Representative to the Joint Compliance and Inspection Commission. Reasons: 1.5(b) and (d). ¶1. (U) This is JCIC-XXXIII-029. ¶2. (U) At Paragraph 3 below is the official translation of the Ukrainian Statement that was deliverd at the Closing Plenary Meeting of the Thirty-third Session of the START Treaty's Joint Compliance and Inspection Commission (JCIC), held at the U.S. Mission on November 21, 2008. ¶3. (S) Begin text: Official Translation JCIC-XXXIII Non-paper of the Ukrainian Side November 21, 2008 STATEMENT by the Head of Delegation of Ukraine to the Joint Compliance and Inspection Commission at the Closing Plenary Meeting of JCIC-XXXIII Esteemed Mr. Chairman, Esteemed Representatives, Heads Qd Members of the Delegations of the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Russian Federation, and the United States of America, This session was marked by consideration of fundamentally new issues that affect the interests of all the Parties and of each Party individually. In our view, the most critical issue was the discussion of the future of the Treaty after December 2009. The actual fact that this issue was discussed at this session can be viewed in procedural terms, as fulfillment of paragraph 2 of Article XVII of the Treaty, which allows an agreed decision to be made at any time up until December 2009 on extending the Treaty or replacing it with a new Agreement. In the Ukrainian side's view, extension of the Treaty for another five years is the most acceptable solution, which best takes into account the specific nature of the current situation. If our Treaty partners take the path of working out a new Agreement to replace the current Treaty, it would be in Ukraine's interest to participate in the relevant negotiating process. In this connection, the Ukrainian side retains the option of presenting arguments to its partners in defense of its right to be a full-fledged participant in the accords which will be conditioned on the progress of the discussion of this issue as of the end of 2009. The issue tabled by the Ukrainian side on "Moving types of ICBMs that have been completely eliminated to date into the category of former type of ICBMs" was discussed for the first time at this session. The possibility of moving a significant portion of "existing types of ICBMs" as of the date of signature into a different category, i.e., "former type of ICBMs," derives from the substance of the term "former type of ICBMs" in definition number 34 (11) of the Definitions Annex. Such a solution considerably simplifies the current Treaty and will be useful no matter what the decision regarding the Treaty's future. The Ukrainian side anticipates that discussion of this issue will continue, which has been confirmed by all the Parties. New concerns were added to those discussed at previous JCIC sessions, which demonstrates the Parties' subjective interpretation of certain Treaty provisions. These signals are rather alarming since they can inject a certain negativity into the constructive results of our Commission's work over the past years. However, the Ukrainian side hopes and believes that the spirit of cooperation and mutual understanding which has prevailed during all previous JCIC sessions will remain the constructive foundation that allows us to be optimistic about the prospects for our future joint work. The Ukrainian Delegation expresses its appreciation to the interpreters and translators of the Russian and U.S. Delegations for assisting our Delegation and wishes all the participants in this session health, happiness and a good trip home. Thank your for your attention. End text. ¶4. (U) Taylor sends. TICHENOR NNNN End Cable Text