Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08SAOPAULO683
2008-12-23 16:42:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Consulate Sao Paulo
Cable title:  

UN WORKSHOP ON IMPLEMENTING UNSCR 1540, SAO PAULO, NOVEMBER

Tags:  PREL AORC KPAO PTER UNSC KNNP BR 
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 SAO PAULO 000683 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL AORC KPAO PTER UNSC KNNP BR
SUBJECT: UN WORKSHOP ON IMPLEMENTING UNSCR 1540, SAO PAULO, NOVEMBER
24-28, 2008

REF: WUCHTE-BROOKS E-MAIL OF DECEMBER 19

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 SAO PAULO 000683

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL AORC KPAO PTER UNSC KNNP BR
SUBJECT: UN WORKSHOP ON IMPLEMENTING UNSCR 1540, SAO PAULO, NOVEMBER
24-28, 2008

REF: WUCHTE-BROOKS E-MAIL OF DECEMBER 19


1. (U)Summary: The UN Workshop on UNSCR 1540 Implementation held in
Sao Paulo on November 24-28, 2008, was organized by the United
Nations Office of Disarmament Affairs in cooperation with the
Government of Brazil with funding by the European Union and the
Governments of Norway and the United States. Participants included
representatives from the MERCORSUR and associated States
representing 10 countries, as well as from the co-sponsors including
the European Union, France, and the United States. In addition, IGO
and regional organizations such as the Organization of American
States (OAS) and various UN offices were in attendance. The
workshop sessions allowed the delegates the opportunity to discuss
regional efforts towards full implementation of UNSCR 1540, with the
end results indicating a renewed interest by the MERCOSUR countries
in working with the UN 1540 Committee. See para 11 for likely next
steps. End Summary.

Objectives for the UN 1540 Workshop
--------------


2. (U) The overall objective of the workshop was to enhance the
understanding of national, regional, and international efforts to
prevent the proliferation of WMD and their means of delivery;
achieve greater clarity of current implementation and enforcement
measures and increase steps taken or planned to be taken towards
full implementation of Resolution 1540 (2004); enhance risk
assessment, detection, and examination techniques; improve
interaction and information sharing among national export controls
and legal authorities; discuss the role of regional organizations
and the role they can play in assisting members to achieve full 1540
implementation; review UN 1540 Committee assistance request form;
discuss partnership for technical assistance programs; combine
country needs with a voluntary financial contributions to enhance
technical assistance efforts; and define each participant's role in
the formulation of a road map and action plan for the implementation
of UN Resolution 1540.

Highlights and Observations
--------------


3. (U) Participants: This UN Workshop was primarily intended for

the MERCORSUR members and associated States to include: Argentina,
Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay,
and Venezuela to discuss UN Resolution 1540 reporting status and to
get familiar with programs and activities to facilitate the
implementations of UN Resolution 1540 requirements. The workshop
provided a forum for members to discuss problems and lessons
learned, and propose potential avenues to comply with the UN
Resolution 1540's provisions. In addition, the workshop allowed
participants to discuss the formulation and status of national
action plans as well as the assistance regional and
inter-governmental organizations (IGOs) could provide. Many
countries noted that although they were fully in support of meeting
1540 obligations, the breadth of functional areas to address could
be overwhelming. The majority of the participants reported that
without a key central point of contact or coordinator, understanding
all national programs related to 1540 implementation would be close
to impossible.


4. (U) Workshop Program: The workshop was organized into five
working sessions:

-- Working Session I started with a welcoming remarks and
introductory statements, followed by three presentations led by a
moderator.
-- Working Session II was a combination of 1540 experts'
presentations with participating countries presentations. -- Working
Session III included presentations from contributing participants,
participating countries, and 1540 experts.
-- Working Session IV was a full-day visit to the Brazilian port
facility at Santos to observe how Brazilian Customs conducts its
daily security operations in the implementation of UN Resolution
1540's requirements.
-- And Working Session V included two presentations and discussions
to explore possible cooperative steps - including an interactive
exchange between states on measures underway to implement UNSCR

1540.


5. (U) Opening: The Workshop was opened by Mr. Carlos Sergio
Duarte, Head of the Department of International Organizations in
Brazil's Ministry of External Relations and UN High Representative
for Disarmament Affairs who affirmed Brazil's support for UN
Resolution 1540 and underlined the importance of regional and
sub-regional coordination in achieving international security.
Following Mr. Duarte's remarks, Mrs. Marcela Calderon, Minister

SAO PAULO 00000683 002 OF 004


Counselor from the Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the UN and
representative of the Chairman of the 1540 Committee, discussed the
Committee's efforts to encourage and support states as they
implement UN Resolution 1540. After Mrs. Calderon's remarks,
Workshop sponsors--the EU and the U.S.--delivered statements. Mr.
Fabio Della Piazza, representing the Council of the European Union
and Mr. Dietmar Petrausch, First Secretary from the French Embassy
in Brazil and representing the Presidency of the Council of the
European Union, outlined the EU's nonproliferation strategy and its
emphasis on cooperation and assistance. U.S. Consul General in Sao
Paulo, Mr. Thomas White, praised international efforts supporting
Resolution 1540 and highlighted U.S. government outreach, training,
and capacity building programs which contribute to Resolution 1540
implementation worldwide.


6. (U) Working Session I: The first session of the workshop
addressed regional efforts to prevent WMD proliferation and UN
Security Council Resolutions 1540, 1373, and 1267. Mr. Pericles
Gasparini, Director of the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace,
Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean
(UN-LiREC),discussed the role the Regional Centre in Lima, Peru has
played in supporting Resolution 1540 awareness and implementation
and highlighted the fact that compliance with Resolution 1540
carries not only security benefits, but can also support and
reinforce development goals by securing trade routes and increasing
trading partners' willingness to share sophisticated technologies.
Experts from the UN Resolution 1540 Committee reviewed
implementation by MERCOSUR member and associate states and
emphasized the benefits of regional cooperation through political
organizations like the OAS and CARICOM, as well as trading
communities like MERCOSUR. UN Counter-Terrorism Executive
Directorate (CTED) representative, Mr. Chen Weixion, and Mr. Victor
Shtoyunda, of the UN Resolution 1267 Committee, discussed the
interrelationship among Resolutions 1540, 1373 (Counter-Terrorism),
and 1267 (Sanctions against listed entities and entities with
relationship with Al-Qaida and the Taliban).


7. (U) Working Session II: Day two of the workshop addressed
preventative monitoring of cross-border trade; national mechanisms
to monitor exports, re-exports, transit, and transshipments; risk
assessment techniques; and approaches to capacity building.
Resolution 1540 Committee Expert, Ms. Isabella Interlandi, led the
discussion of preventative monitoring of cross-border trade. She
stressed the need for customs and other agencies charged with
monitoring trade to cooperate not only with industry, but with
foreign customs and border security services as well. She advocated
the harmonization of strategic trade controls across regions as a
way to enhance and facilitate enforcement efforts. The recent
efforts of MERCOSUR states to correlate strategic trade controls
with the MERCOSUR harmonized tariff system was viewed as an example
and potential model for other trading communities to follow. The
next segment of the workshop program gave countries an opportunity
to offer presentations on their respective strategic trade control
systems. While some national systems were more comprehensive than
others, all states voiced unqualified support for Resolution 1540
and appeared to share a unified view that strategic trade controls
were of vital importance. Following the national presentations,
Resolution 1540 Committee Experts and the Colombian delegation
offered presentations on risk assessment techniques and methods. To
conclude the session, representatives from the IAEA, OPCW, BWC
Implementation Support Unit, and Interpol discussed their respective
organizations' capacity building efforts and programs. Interpol
representative, Ms. Ivanka Spadina's observation that would-be
proliferators are constantly probing weaknesses in the international
trade security framework and performing many more risk assessments
than are governments and organizations charged with frustrating
their efforts, resonated with workshop participants and underscored
the urgency of Resolution 1540 implementation efforts.


8. (U) Working Session III: Day three opened with a discussion of
examination techniques and technical detection capabilities. The
Paraguayan Customs representative was particularly candid about the
border security challenges his organization faces, while resolutely
expressing his nation's strong dedication to improved border
controls and trade security. The next discussion centered on
cooperation with industry, during which the Brazilian delegation
highlighted its PRONABENS industry outreach program which is
designed to foster public-private sector collaboration on sensitive
goods and technologies. The closing session continued the
capacity-building discussion from the previous day with
presentations from the OAS Inter-American Committee Against
Terrorism (CICTE),The Brazilian-Argentine Agency for Accounting and
Control of Nuclear Material (ABACC),the EU, and the U.S. CICTE
representative, Mr. Sheridan Hill, recalled OAS Resolutions
supportive of Resolution 1540 and the OAS 1540 Workshop conducted in
Buenos Aires in May 2008. He also pointed out that CICTE's upcoming

SAO PAULO 00000683 003 OF 004


annual meeting in Mexico City (March 2009) will have "Strengthening
Hemispheric Security and Border Controls" as its theme. EU Council
representative, Mr. Fabio Della Piazza, outlined the EU's Strategy
Against the Proliferation of WMD and how its capacity building
programs support it. The Council's efforts, through Joint Actions,
are primarily focused on events such as this one that are designed
to foster political commitments related to Resolution 1540. The
Commission, through the Stability Instrument, offers technical
training, primarily through the German Federal Office of Economics
and Export Control (BAFA). To close the session on capacity
building, Mr. Nils Johanson from the U.S. Department of State's
Export Control and Related Border Security (EXBS) Program and Mr.
Scott Sweetser, representing the Defense Threat Reduction Agency's
(DTRA) International Counterproliferation Program (ICP),offered
presentations on U.S. capacity building programs. Mr. Johanson
stressed the importance of submitting assistance requests to the
Resolution 1540 Committee and underscored the United States'
commitment to respond through EXBS or other programs. Mr. Sweetser
provided a demonstration of some of the enforcement and personnel
protection equipment provided through U.S. capacity building
programs.


9. (U) Working Session IV: Around 0900, all participants gathered
at the Hotel lobby in preparation for the trip to the Port of
Santos. We arrived at the Port of Santos before noon and were
hosted by the facility's Deputy Director. Throughout the day, the
group received briefings and information on the overall daily
operations, visited terminal facilities and scanning equipment. The
Port of Santos is the largest port in Latin America; it has 14 km
long with 54 berths. It contributes to 25% of Brazil's trade
balance and it has an expansion plan to double its number of berths.
The Port complies with the International Ship and Port Facility
Code and it has handled over 1,287M containers in 2007. One of the
facility's top interdiction tools is the Container Security
Initiative, or the CSI program. This program was a joint initiative
between Brazil and the United States to improve Brazilian Customs
ability to detect sensitive cargo in containers. The program allows
authorities, based on advanced information, to establish security
criteria for identifying containers that may pose a terrorist
threat. The CSI allows screening containers at the earliest
possible point. Currently, there is four container's scanning
equipment in operation. This allows the submission of 100% of empty
containers to identify clandestine content and target false
compartments inside the container. The monthly average of scanning
containers is of 13,000. However, this number can be greater
depending on the results of risk assessment.
In addition to the CSI program implementation, the Brazilian Customs
has improved its scanning areas by acquiring six new scanners with
high-penetration capabilities, radiation detectors incorporated in
scanners, application of spectrometers and portable radiation
detectors. Notwithstanding, the Port of Santos is projected to
become the training Customs facility in the implementation of the
Brazilian National Training Program for the identification of
sensitive commodities used in the development of WMD. Training
courses are scheduled to begin in March 2009 and could be extended
to other neighboring countries. Last, the Port of Santos is fully
committed to implement training activities, procedures, and
regulation to enhance detection capabilities to fulfill the
provisions of UN Resolution 1540. However, there are challenges to
be addressed such as the need to develop a new mindset related to
WMD commodities within law enforcement agencies. And the immediate
need to improve efforts to promote interagency cooperation.


10. (U) Working Session V: The moderator announced the final
session of the workshop and the plans for the day. He pointed out
the importance of the formulation of 1540 roadmaps as the means to
harmonize controls and minimize vulnerabilities. He also announced
bilateral talks with each country throughout the day to discuss
requirements and assistance provisions. He divided participants
into two groups: Group A included Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia,
Paraguay, and Uruguay. Group B include Brazil, Chile, Ecuador,
Peru, and Venezuela. The session followed with presentations
regarding Approaches to Capacity-Building and Technical Assistance
Template. The Director of the United Nations Office for Disarmament
Affairs briefed on regional networks and the opportunities for the
implementation of the UN Resolution 1540. He explained the concept
of networking as the cooperation between institutions, government
organizations, and NGOs to increase information sharing with
focusing on the development of specific studies. He added that
networking can facilitate the dialog between organizations and
people, establish cooperation, strengthen activities and strategic
development, promote information exchange, and save resources. He
concluded by stating that the implementation of UN Resolution 1540
can benefit from networking if nations interact and centralize
information on specific cooperation efforts. Next, a panel member
explained to the group how to fill up the template to request

SAO PAULO 00000683 004 OF 004


assistance for the implementation of the UN Resolution 1540's
provisions. She explained how the UN Resolution 1810 promotes the
regional implementation of the UN Resolution 1540. She pointed out
several efforts and considerations from 2005 to present date to
divulge the implementation of UN Resolution 1540. She specific
mentioned paragraph 3 of the resolution where all states must adopt
and enforce effective measures to implement national controls to
prevent the proliferation of WMD. She stated that such measures are
required to account for the implementation and maintenance of the UN
Resolution 1540. She also presented a case study showing what a
country can do to initiate the process for the implementation of the
resolution. She concluded by stating the national objectives of UN
Resolution 1540 for the countries in the region.

Conclusion
--------------


11. (U) In concluding, each of the UN panelists emphasized various
aspects of the challenges states face when implementing UN
Resolution 1540 and follow-on Resolution 1810. They thanked the
delegates for the open and frank discussions and noted that both UN
resolution 1540 and 1810 provide many mid-term objectives. They
encouraged all participants to finish national action plans and work
with and through the UN 1540 Committee Experts. In addition, a
follow-up two-day meeting was proposed to verify the status of the
road maps or action plans in support of the implementation of UN
Resolution 1540. Summary highlights included:
--MERCORSUR members and its associated states have shown
interest in submitting their 1540 reports to the Committee;
--The 1540 Committee specifically seeks to cooperate with
MERCOSUR members and associated states, in its outreach efforts
going forward;
--Participants can demonstrate cooperation by sharing
documents or lessons learned from this workshop with the 1540
Committee;
--Each national action plan should be tailored to national
capacity and priorities;
--MERCORSUR members and its associated states members should
capitalize on implementation plans as a useful way to communicate
with the Committee, its experts, and for the interagency process
states are likely to have initiated in response to 1540;
--Brazil and Argentina have offered assistance to synchronize
action plans efforts as well as synchronize planning coordination;
--A follow-up meeting will be scheduled to verify progress in
the development and implementation of road maps or action plans.


12. (U) This cable was cleared with the U.S. 1540 Coordinator,
Thomas Wuchte, 202-736-4275 who can be reached at WuchteTA@state.gov
for further information and background.

WHITE