ESTABLISHING A U.S.-LIBYA POLITICAL-MILITARY

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 STATE 119290

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/04/2118
TAGS: LY MOPS PARM PREL
SUBJECT: ESTABLISHING A U.S.-LIBYA POLITICAL-MILITARY
DIALOGUE

Classified By: PM A/S Mark T. Kimmitt E.O. 12958 Reasons 1.4 (b),(d)


1. (U) This is an action request for Embassy Tripoli. Please
see paragraph 2.

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SUMMARY
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2. (U) The Department requests that Post engage appropriate
host country officials at the earliest opportunity (November
9 if possible) to seek host country views on establishing and
hosting a political-military dialogue in December 2008.
Additionally, the Department seeks host country comment on
the proposed agenda provided in paragraph 9, which may be
left as a non-paper.

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OBJECTIVES
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3. (U) Department instructs Embassy to pursue the following
objectives:

-- Impress upon the Libyan government that establishing a
regular political-military dialogue will represent another
important step in strengthening our bilateral relationship,
particularly after decades of inactivity vis-a-vis military
cooperation, and offers a regular forum for discussing
security issues of mutual and regional interest.

-- Note that focused security and defense cooperation provide
areas where we believe the U.S. and Libya can increase
bilateral ties on issues of mutual strategic importance.

-- Provide the Libyan government with a preliminary agenda
for its review, and welcome any suggestions or comments. We
envision the dialogue to be comprised of sessions that would
focus on issues falling under the broad themes of regional
security, defense trade, and security cooperation.

-- Note that we look forward to hearing the Libyan
government's thoughts on the agenda and proposed dates that
would accommodate such a dialogue.

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REPORTING DEADLINE
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4. (U) Post should report findings by cable to PM/RSAT Chris
Danielewski before November 14.

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BACKGROUND
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5. (S) The Department proposes holding the inaugural round of
the political-military talks in December 2008 in Tripoli.
The dialogue should be led by the U.S. Department of State
(PM) and Libyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the Assistant
Secretary-level and, on the U.S. side, include senior
participants from State PM and NEA and representatives from
the Department of Defense and Africa Command. Based on
Libya's national security policy-making structure, a similar
composition of Libyan representatives would be expected. The
dialogue would be held on an annual basis, with the option of
more frequent lower level meetings if necessary, in
alternating capitals. We envision the agenda encompassing
regional security, defense trade, and security cooperation
issues. The Department would welcome Libya's thoughts on
these proposed topics, as well as those issues that the
Libyan government believes important for discussion. We
note, however, that all/all end-use and other requirements
will need to be met before we could realize serious progress
towards approval of lethal defense articles.


6. (S) REGIONAL SECURITY: North Africa is an area of great
strategic importance, requiring a cooperative effort to
address such regional security challenges as combating
terrorism (i.e., AQIM) and resolving the conflict in Darfur.
We would welcome a discussion on what the U.S. and Libya see
as the primary security challenges in the region, what we
each see as our strategic priorities, and how we might
effectively cooperate to address them.


7. (S) DEFENSE TRADE: Should the USG anticipate undertaking a

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decision to begin lethal defense trade with Libya, amendment
of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) for
Libya would be necessary before any sales of lethal defense
articles could proceed. A review of Libya's military
capabilities and requirements, via a modernization
assessment, could assist in determining actual defense needs
and system priorities. We will also need to set the
conditions for end-use and retransfer assurances to be
addressed sufficiently to ensure proper protection of U.S.
technologies and information.


8. (S) SECURITY COOPERATION: There are several areas where we
can increase cooperation to further enhance the bilateral
relationship, such as training and counterproliferation (i.e.
Man-Portable Air Defense Systems - MANPADS and Small Arms and
Light Weapons - SA/LW). U.S. security assistance through the
Department's International Military Education and Training
(IMET) Program aims to professionalize Libya's military and
security services, fostering closer ties between the U.S. and
Libyan armed forces. Through the Department's Program for
Nonproliferation, Antiterrorism, Demining and Related
Programs (NADR),we seek to assist the Libyan government in
its ability to interdict illicit transfers of strategic
items, such as MANPADS and SA/LW, at Libya's borders and
ports. In addition, expected Libyan participation in the
Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership (TSCTP) could
further facilitate future training and exchange opportunities.


9. (S/REL LIBYA) Text of Proposed Agenda:

U.S.-Libya Political-Military Dialogue Agenda

The United States views the establishment of a regular
political-military dialogue with Libya as an important step
in strengthening our bilateral relationship. North Africa is
an area of great strategic importance, requiring a
cooperative effort to address such challenges as combating
terrorism (i.e., AQIM) and resolving the conflict in Darfur.
This dialogue offers a forum for discussing security issues
of mutual and regional interest, as well as Libya's military
needs and areas of potential future political-military
cooperation. The United States proposes the dialogue be
comprised of sessions that would address:

(1) Regional Security

* Regional Security overview and strategic priorities - (led
by U.S. and Libya)

0 Identifying common goals

0 Identifying common threats (including regional
counterterrorism threats)

0 Country/region-specific discussions could include: Sudan,
Chad, the Maghreb and possibly the Sahel, Iraq, and Iran.

* Next steps on increasing cooperation in areas of mutual
strategic concern - (U.S. and Libya)

0 Future efforts on TSCTP

(2) Defensive Capabilities and Cooperation

* Current military capabilities overview - (Libya)

* Resource/security requirements overview - (Libya)

* Strengthening defense trade via Foreign Military Sales
(briefing) - (U.S.)

* Libya's defense procurement status - (U.S.)

(3) Security Cooperation

* Expanding training opportunities via the IMET Program -
(U.S.)

* Expanding counterproliferation cooperation in combating
MANPADS and SA/LW - (U.S.)

The United States looks forward to discussing these issues,
as well as to designing the future goals and objectives for
future rounds of this dialogue.

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POINT OF CONTACT
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10. (U) Department points of contact for this issue are Chris
Danielewski (PM/RSAT),danielewskica@state.sgov.gov, (202)

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647-0389 and Amanda Johnson (NEA/MAG),
johnsonal2@state.sgov.gov, (202) 647-4674.


11. (U) Tripoli minimize considered.
RICE