HORN OF AFRICA PIRACY: FORMATION OF CONTACT GROUP

C O N F I D E N T I A L STATE 129941 E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/10/2011 TAGS: MOPS PBTS PHSA PTER SUBJECT: HORN OF AFRICA PIRACY: FORMATION OF CONTACT GROUP REF: A. STATE 125514 ¶B. STATE 126055 Classified By: PM ACTING ASSISTANT SECRETARY RUGGIERO -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) The Secretary will participate in a Ministerial at the UN Security Council on December 16 that we expect will adopt a resolution calling for intensified and coordinated international efforts against piracy off the Horn of Africa. We plan to build on this resolution to seek establishment of a Contact Group that will coordinate international approaches to expanded military operations and related information sharing, develop procedures and assistance for the prosecution and incarceration of suspected pirates, intensify cooperation with industry and the IMO, and analyze financial flows among pirates. Department requests action addressees brief host governments on this diplomatic strategy and invite their participation in the Contact Group, using non-paper provided in paragraph 9. -------------- OBJECTIVES -------------- ¶2. (C) Demarche objectives are to: A) Brief on U.S. aims at upcoming UNSC ministerial, including passage of UNSC resolution with four objectives: i) Encourage establishment of an international cooperation mechanism to counter piracy; ii) Address the need to pursue pirates ashore with the cooperation of Somalia,s Transitional Federal Government (TFG),and welcome arrangements between the TFG and individual states to conduct counter-piracy operations; iii) Call for international support to build the judicial capacity of regional states to carry out their obligations, under the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation, 1988 (SUA),to prosecute and incarcerate pirates; and iv) Expand sanctions against individual pirate leaders. B) Brief on U.S. proposal to form a Contact Group on the basis of the expected resolution, and provide a copy of non-paper with ideas for scope and function of Contact Group; and FOR ALL RECIPIENTS EXCEPT UN, AU, NATO, AND EU C) Invite host government to participate as a founding member of the Contact Group soon after passage of the above UNSC resolution in an organizational meeting. Embassy Nairobi please also approach and invite TFG Somalia. FOR LONDON, PARIS, AND BERLIN D) Note that this is based on our consultations in Paris on December 2. FOR UN, AU, NATO AND EU E) Invite organizations to participate as observers in the Contact Group. -------------- REPORTING DEADLINE -------------- ¶3. (U) Posts are requested to report on consultations by December 12. -------------- BACKGROUND -------------- ¶4. (C) Department appreciates posts, timely consultations with host governments on countering the growing threat of piracy in the Horn of Africa region (refs A and B),which indicated broad support for creating a more coordinated international mechanism to respond to the threat on the basis of current and future UN Security Council resolutions. Drawing on those consultations, we would like to propose a Contact Group comprised of leading states in the region and key prospective international contributors to counter-piracy efforts. ¶5. (C) Aware that many prospective members of the Contact Group would prefer a UN imprimatur for such an effort, the United States will seek to win approval of a UNSC resolution at its ministerial meeting on piracy on December 16 that will contain the elements listed in demarche objective A. ¶6. (C) Anticipating approval of the resolution, the United States would like to move quickly following the resolution,s passage to work with partners to stand-up an International Contact Group on Counter Piracy in The Horn of Africa as an international coordination mechanism as envisioned in the resolution. Initial members will be drawn from key contributors to international military operations and key regional powers, including the United States, UK, France, Germany, Denmark, Spain, Russia, China, India, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Djibouti, Oman, Kenya, UAE, Greece, the Netherlands, Somalia,s Transitional Federal Government (TFG),Japan, Australia and South Korea. Observers will be the African Union (AU),the European Union (EU),NATO, and the UN Secretariat. ¶7. (C) The United States proposes that the Contact Group focus its efforts as suggested in the text of the non-paper in paragraph 9, which may be provided to host governments/organizations. The United States will seek to convene an organizational meeting of the Contact Group at, initially, the Assistant Secretary-level soon after passage of a new Security Council resolution and which could be followed with a later ministerial level meeting. ¶8. (C) In initial conversations, some States expressed a concern about States pursuing pirates on land. The United States feels this is one of a number of essential tools needed to effectively suppress piracy off the coast of Somalia. Recent pirate attacks, like the hijacking of the MV Sirius Star off the southern Kenyan port of Mombassa and recent unsuccessful attacks by Somali pirates off the Tanzanian coast, demonstrate that pirates are expanding their range of operations despite a growing number of military vessels patrolling the coast of Somalia. The United States feels that maritime efforts alone will not address the problem. We must suppress the pirates where they dwell, in the pirate coves and nests off the shores of Puntland and south-central Somalia. In addressing the problem on land, the United States would prefer to couple both UN Security Council authorization and the permission of Somalia,s Transitional Federal Government if possible. -------------- NON-PAPER -------------- ¶9. (U) The following non-paper may be shared with host governments: COMBATING PIRACY OFF THE HORN OF AFRICA Purpose: To develop a coordinated international approach to combating piracy off the Horn of Africa. Background: Piracy off the Horn of Africa has grown dramatically in recent months and will continue to increase without further determined international efforts. If left unchecked, it may spawn imitators in other regions. So far in 2008, there have been over 100 attacks, 41 of which have resulted in successful seizures. Currently, 14 vessels and approximately 287 hostages are in pirate custody. The pirates demand, and regularly receive, million-dollar or greater ransom payments. Discussion: Active piracy has other consequences in addition to the obvious problems of hostages and ransom payments. It has made international assistance deliveries to Somalia more difficult and costly. With insurance premiums increasing as much as tenfold, some shipping companies are beginning to divert their vessels around the Cape of Good Hope. This longer route adds to the cost of manufactured goods and oil from Asia and the Middle East and directly impacts Suez Canal and other regional revenues. The large number of pirate attacks also increases the chances of an environmental disaster. If an Ultra Large Crude Carrier such as the M/T SIRIUS STAR were sunk or run aground, the environmental damage could be catastrophic. Further, other actors, to include criminals and terrorists, are surely watching pirate actions and international reaction, and may seek to take advantage of unchecked opportunities. UN Security Council Resolutions 1816 and 1838 gave the international community an important mandate to conduct counter-piracy operations in the region, including NATO,s recent mission and the European Union,s Operation Atalanta, which is meant to protect vulnerable ships, including WFP ships. On December 2, the Security Council passed Resolution 1846 which renewed the important authorities provided in UNSCR 1816 and encourages States to better coordinate their counter-piracy activities. UNSCR 1846 also calls upon States to cooperate in the investigation and prosecution of pirates. Recommendations: Propose a resolution at the UNSC Special Ministerial Session calling for additional international coordination and cooperation on counter-piracy issues off the east coast of Africa. This statement would be the basis for the creation of a Contact Group (CG) to coordinate new international counter-piracy efforts. The first meeting of the Contact Group would be held in early January 2009. Establish the CG, at the Assistant Secretary level, with membership and potential activities as follows: o Membership: The CG member nations should be key regional powers and those with the political will, expertise, resources or operational capability to engage in, support, or to help build the capacity of regional partners to undertake effective counter-piracy measures. Initially suggest that CG include: Australia, China, Denmark, Djibouti, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, India, Japan, Kenya, The Netherlands, Oman, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Somalia,s Transitional Federal Government (TFG),South Korea, Spain, the UAE, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Yemen; and 4 observers (the African Union, the European Union, NATO, and the UN Secretariat). o Focus Areas: Increased Intelligence and Coordinating Military Operations: The CG will discuss plans to increase and coordinate force presence and field intelligence collection and analysis. The CG should facilitate the establishment of a regional Counter-Piracy Coordination Center (CPCC) to share operating picture and disseminate information, in coordination with regional partners to conduct or participate in counter-piracy law enforcement operations. The CPCC should include representatives of operations launched in the area. Strengthening Cooperation with Industry: The CG will develop strategies and plans to increase coordination among and policies regarding commercial shipping companies and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in order enhance shipping self-defense capabilities (including the use of military or civilian personnel),develop and share technology and best practices for shipping security, and share information regarding piracy and counter-piracy operations. Judicial Arrangements: The CG will undertake to increase awareness and enhanced use in the international community of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the1988 Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation (SAU Convention); develop legal frameworks for apprehending, incarcerating and prosecuting persons seized in counter-piracy operations (Persons Under Control, or PUCs); provide assistance to build judicial capacity of regional powers to conduct prosecutions; and consider new or existing international tribunals or other alternative arrangements for prosecuting PUCs. Financial Intelligence: The CG will advocate for the development of national capabilities to gather, assess, and share financial intelligence on pirate financial operations, with the goal of tracing payments to and apprehending the leaders of pirate organizations and their enablers and beneficiaries. Diplomacy and Public Information: The CG will champion bilateral and multilateral diplomatic and public diplomacy efforts to discourage piracy by highlighting the consequences for pirates. The CG will also emphasize its destructive effects on trade, human and maritime security, and the rule of law, to include UN Security Council Statements and Resolutions. Other Issues: The CG might usefully address other issues such as a coordinated international response to the problems of illegal and over-fishing and the dumping of waste in Somali territorial waters; and examine modalities to provide security to legal fishing activities. Items for discussion at the first CG meeting: o A draft Charter and Terms of Reference for the CG, upon which additional instruments pertaining to the regional CPCC could be based; and o A draft Work Plan for the CG to help guide the actions of the Group and its member nations. -------------- POINTS OF CONTACT -------------- ¶10. (U) Department POCs are PM/PPA Dr. David Glancy at (202) 736-4054 and Donna Hopkins at (202) 647-0792 or via email. ¶11. (U) Tripoli Minimize Considered. RICE NNNN End Cable Text