RUSSIA: AWAITING INTERAGENCY RESPONSE ON ARF

UNCLAS MOSCOW 003471 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/RSP KSHEIVES E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL EAID MARR MOPS ASEAN ARF RS SUBJECT: RUSSIA: AWAITING INTERAGENCY RESPONSE ON ARF DISASTER RELIEF EXERCISE REF: STATE 122937 ¶1. (SBU) In response to reftel request, Post reached out to Russian MFA's Department of ASEAN and Asia Pacific Regional Affairs regarding Russian participation in the May 4-8, 2009 ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Disaster Relief Exercise in the Philippines. According to Counselor Dmitriy Lukiyantsev, the MFA has received an invitation from the Government of the Philippines, but the fax quality was too poor to make out the details. After piecing together information from other sources, however, the MFA sent out an interagency request seeking comments and interest in the exercise. Lukiyantsev expects that the Ministry of Emergency Situations will likely be designated the lead agency in deciding Russian participation. He thanked us for the information that U.S. and Philippines' disaster relief exercise planners would be available for discussions at the December 4-6 ARF Inter-Sessional Meeting (ISM) on Disaster Relief in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, and indicated that a representative of the Russian Embassy in Jakarta was likely to attend. ¶2. (SBU) Post also contacted the Philippines embassy in Moscow. The personnel there appeared to have knowledge of the exercise but could not provide information on their government's bilateral engagement with the GOR on this issue. Subsequent attempts to reach the official identified as the lead have not been successful. We will continue to reach out and to ask that the Philippines embassy resend an invitation to the Russian MFA. Embassy Moscow's POC is Political Officer Judy Kuo. She can be reached at 7-495-728-5042 or via email at kuojh@state.gov. BEYRLE