NETHERLANDS/IAEA: DUTCH WANT MORE DELIBERATION ON

C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 000672

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/05/2018
TAGS: PREL PARM IAEA NL IN
SUBJECT: NETHERLANDS/IAEA: DUTCH WANT MORE DELIBERATION ON
INDIA PROPOSALS

REF: A. UNVIE 443

B. UNVIE 437

C. THE HAGUE 585

Classified By: Political-Economic Counselor Andrew C. Mann for reasons
1.5(b,d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: The Dutch do not expect to be able to
approve a proposal on India during the Nuclear Suppliers
Group (NSG) meeting in late August -- the Dutch need a
proposal to review, and more time to review it. At the
August 1 meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors (BoG),the
Dutch supported Austria's intervention to resolve
uncertainties and ensure an "adequate" safeguards agreement.
END SUMMARY.


2. (C) LOOKING FOR DETAILS, TIME TO DELIBERATE BEFORE NSG
ACTION: On August 6, Dutch MFA Senior Advisor for
Nonproliferation and Nuclear Affairs Ceta Noland told poloff
that the Dutch are "not looking forward to another general
discussion" on India at the August 21-22 NSG plenary meeting.
The Dutch are "waiting on a proposal." On the substance of
the proposal, suspension of the agreement in the event of a
nuclear test is an essential element for the Dutch. The
Netherlands "cannot accept an NSG agreement without a clause
on nuclear testing." The export prohibitions of the Hyde Act
and the 123 agreement should also be part of the NSG
proposal. On the timing for consideration of the NSG
proposal, the Dutch are unlikely to be ready to approve it in
August. FM Verhagen only returns from vacation on August 18,
and the Dutch parliament also wants to consider the measure.
The British and French have demarched the Dutch for
expedited approval, but the Dutch are not ready to act.


3. (C) SUPPORTING AN "ADEQUATE" SAFEGUARDS AGREEMENT:
According to Noland, the Netherlands joined Austria's joint
statement at the IAEA BoG on August 1 because the India
agreement was not a "standard agreement" and the Dutch
therefore needed clarification on two key issues. First, in
the preamble, the Dutch believe that India's option to take
"corrective measures" does not mean India can suspend the
agreement due to a lack of fuel. Second, in article 4, the
link between safeguards and another key agreement also does
not provide a basis for termination of the agreement. On
the first matter, Noland expressed surprise that although the
Dutch and others asked about the meaning of "corrective
measures," India and the IAEA secretariat "refused to
answer," and U.S. representatives said "we don't know." The
Dutch believe that the DG's interpretation of corrective
measures -- that the lack of fuel does not provide grounds
for a total suspension of the agreement -- needed to be "on
the record" in order to create an "adequate" safeguards
agreement.
Culbertson