CANADIAN VIEWS ON UPCOMING AFGHANISTAN-RELATED

C O N F I D E N T I A L OTTAWA 000351 SIPDIS SIPDIS KABUL PLEASE PASS CSTC-A E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/10/2018 TAGS: PREL MOPS NATO AF CA SUBJECT: CANADIAN VIEWS ON UPCOMING AFGHANISTAN-RELATED MEETINGS REF: OTTAWA 325 Classified By: PolMinCouns Scott Bellard, reasons 1/4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) According to Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) Afghanistan Task Force (FTAG) Deputy Director for Policy and Advocacy Christopher Gibbins, Canada was "keen" see strong U.S. participation and close coordination with U.S. officials at two upcoming meetings on Afghanistan: a March 31 meeting in Brussels on policing and the rule of law (P/ROL) in Afghanistan, and a DFAIT-led April 28 meeting of Regional Command South (RC-S) country officials in Ottawa. Gibbins clarified that the P/ROL event will be for working-level officials, and he expressed a wish for a presentation by a knowledgeable expert from CSTC-A on the policing aspects of Focused District Development (FDD). He acknowledged the inconvenience of travel to Brussels for a single meeting, but emphasized Canada's view that it would be "worth it" for a USG CSTC-A expert to participate in this one. He commented that participation would improve the USG's ability to increase understanding of and support for the FDD and the work of CSTC-A among our partners in Europe. ¶2. (C) In an internal document to DFAIT colleagues, FTAG Director General (DAS-equivalent) Kerry Buck explained that she would use the next quarterly consultation of RC-S contributing countries meeting in Ottawa to encourage officials to agree on practical steps to implement the directions from the April 2-4 NATO Leaders Summit in Bucharest. In particular, Buck plans to encourage the delegations to build on the launch of the anticipated NATO-ISAF Political-Military Plan and declaration, as well as to discuss the implementation of any new deliverables announced at the Summit (reftel). Visit Canada,s Economy and Environment Forum at http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/can ada BREESE