READOUT: OCTOBER 8 NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL MEETING

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 06 USNATO 000367



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E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/10/2018

TAGS: NATO, PREL, AF

SUBJECT: READOUT: OCTOBER 8 NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL MEETING



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Classified By: Classified by Acting Deputy Chief of Mission Walter S. R

eid for Reasons 1.4(b) and (d).



1. (C/NF) Summary from the NAC Meeting:



-- AFGHANISTAN: NATO Secretary General de Hoop Scheffer

noted that SG(2008)0746: &Employment of NATO Airborne Early

Warning & Control Force for ISAF8 is under silence until

1800, Oct 8. If this document is agreed, the Military

Committee (MC) will be able to take forward its work on this

issue. SHAPE,s Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Maj

Gen Wright, cited a slight reduction in Opposing Militant

Forces (OMF) activity compared to the previous week and

reported that there has been a 33 percent decrease in attacks

on the ring road since August 4. PermReps focused on the

future assessment of the Comprehensive Strategic Pol-Mil Plan

(CSPMP) and Pakistan,s operations in the border area.



-- BALKANS: The SYG announced that he will continue to plan

the NAC trip to Kosovo.



-- AFRICA/PIRACY: The Chairman of the Military Committee

(CMC) presented the latest state of play on MC advice on the

issue of piracy. The MC is looking at a short term response

to address the immediate need of providing protection to the

World Food Program (WFP),as requested in a letter from the

UN, as well as the rules of engagement for a NATO flotilla

expected to be in the vicinity of the Gulf of Aden (GoA) in

coming weeks. He said the NATO MC will look at longer term

counter-piracy operations next, including options for use of

another NATO flotilla set to operate in the GoA and Indian

Ocean in Spring 2009. Canada is currently protecting WFP

ships, but will leave the region on October 23. The

Netherlands said it is considering detaching a ship from the

current NATO Mediterranean flotilla and sending it under a

national flag to follow the Canadian escort vessel. The EU

has a coordination cell in Brussels and is considering an

ESDP mission to commence in mid-December. SACEUR is seeking

NAC approval to establish the Rules of Engagement for any

NATO vessel that encounters an act of piracy; the ROE would

consider surveillance, deterrence, and engagement (Note: this

passed silence on Thursday, Oct. 9. End Note.).



-- IRAQ: no discussion



-- PREPARATIONS FOR THE MEETINGS OF DEFENCE MINISTERS IN

BUDAPEST: The SYG said that he would ask Ministers to note

and agree five reports during the October 10 formal session

of the Budapest Defense Ministerial.. At the same time, he

expressed his and the CMC's significant concerns about the PE

Review in the "Capability" report.



-- NOISE MITIGATION MEASURES AT GEILENKIRCHEN: The Chairman

postponed the presentation to another occasion given the

unexpected length of discussion on the previous agenda topic.



-- RESPONSE TO TERRORISM: Turkey briefed on the October 3 PKK

terrorist attack in Simdinli, informing the NAC that Turkish

operations against the PKK terrorists continue. Turkey also

said that Ankara had demarched Baghdad, reminding the Iraqis

of their international obligations and requesting that they

take measures against the terrorists.



-- STATEMENTS ON POLITICAL TOPICS: France briefed on the

recent informal EU defense ministers meeting which discussed

EU operations (namely Chad, Althea in BiH and Georgia),

capabilities and future counter-piracy activity plans.



--AOB: Poland informed the Council of plans for a Polish

contribution to the NATO Trust Fund for Afghanistan and the

NATO Trust fund for Ukraine. Albania and Croatia thanked

Lithuania for having ratified their entry into NATO and urged

remaining Allies to follow suit.



END SUMMARY.





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Afghanistan

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2. (C/NF) Afghanistan: AWACS: NATO Secretary General de

Hoop Scheffer noted that SG(2008)0746 titled &Employment of

NATO Airborne Early Warning & Control (NAEWC) Force for

ISAF8 is under silence until 1800, Oct 8. In this document,

the SYG recommends moving the issue forward by validating the

requirement and establishing this deployment as a

theatre-level capability. If the document passes silence,

the Military Committee will be able to take forward its work

on this issue.



3. (C/NF) Operational Update by SHAPE DCOS/OPS: SHAPE,s

Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Maj Gen Wright, cited a

slight reduction in Opposing Militant Forces (OMF) activity

compared to the previous week and noted OMF are focusing

their efforts on undermining the Government of Afghanistan

and key government leaders. He reported that the Tri-partite

Commission (TPC) met this past week and that Pakistan

representatives offered training and equipment to the ANSF.

This offer is expected to be a key topic for the next TPC

meeting, scheduled for October 27. Maj Gen Wright reported

that there had been a 33 percent decrease in attacks on the

ring road since August 4. Lastly, he said that voter

registration began on October 6, adding that there has been

no specific OMF intent to target voter registration.



4. (C/NF) PermRep Comments: Noting that he was looking

forward to a discussion of the Comprehensive Strategic

Pol-Mil Plan (CSPMP),the UK PermRep expressed regret that

the CSPMP Annex was still making its way through NATO,s

committee structure and would not be available in time for

discussion at the October 9-10 Budapest Defense Ministerial.

He recommended the NAC look at the CSPMP immediately upon

return from Budapest to ensure the structure is correct

before the committee work on the document resumes. He also

argued that a detailed report must be prepared for the 2009

Summit. Returning to his concerns about the way NATO does

business, he suggested that NATO should move toward reviewing

documents in a parallel process rather than the current

series process. De Hoop Scheffer replied that that this

suggestion would be looked at as a part of the larger

discussion on NATO HQ reform.



5. (C/NF) The Dutch PermRep requested SHAPE provide an

assessment of Pakistan operations in the Federally

Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and how it has affected the

OMF activities in Afghanistan. MG Wright said he would have

his intelligence staff work on this assessment, and he would

address this issue in his next briefing to the NAC.



6. (C/NF) The Canadian PermRep suggested the SYG speak

specifically about the CSPMP during the lunch at 26 in

Budapest. SYG assured him this topic would be discussed more

than once in Budapest.



7. (C/NF) The Romanian PermRep reported that his country had

deployed its first OMLT to Afghanistan this week.

Additionally, his Defense Minister has pledged further OMLTs

for deployment next year.



8. (C/NF) The Estonian PermRep asked for a briefing or

assessment of Pakistan border issues and how civilian tools

could be of use in addressing problems for which the military

could not. He also voiced support for SACEUR,s

recommendations on counternarcotics (CN) amendments to the

Operational Plan (OPLAN).



9. (C/NF) The Czech Republic,s PermRep reported that his

government has donated 50,000 Euros to the ANA Transportation

Trust Fund to move the 3 Czech attack helicopters that are

ready to for delivery to the ANA. He noted that an

additional 350,000 Euros was needed to move the other 12

donated helicopters. He challenged the Alliance to donate



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more money to the Trust Fund to get desperately needed

equipment to the ANA.



10. (C/NF) Closing Comments: In closing, the de Hoop

Scheffer mentioned that he would have a teleconference with

Afghan Minister of Defense Wardak that afternoon and he would

let the Council know what was discussed over lunch in

Budapest. Lastly, SYG recommended a combined Political and

Military Committee meeting to discuss the CSPMP in the run-up

to NATO,s April 2009 Strasbourg / Kehl Summit.



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Balkans

--------------



11. (C/NF) Balkans: The SYG, following up on the

discussions that occurred in the Perm Rep coffee on October

7, announced that he will continue to plan the NAC trip to

Kosovo. He said he would take into account concerns that

nations had raised with the agenda and with meetings with

Kosovo officials that could be perceived as NATO

acknowledgment of Kosovo,s status.



12. (C/NF) SHAPE followed with a short operational update

that highlighted shortfalls in both the KPC Stand-down and

KSF Stand-up Trust Funds. Luxembourg and the Czech Republic

both expressed concern that nations still had not honored

pledges to these critical Trust Funds. De Hoop Scheffer

stressed that the situation must improve quickly, adding that

it may be appropriate to conduct an analysis of the Trust

Fund pledges and the consequences of delays in filling them.



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Africa

--------------



13. (C/NF) Africa: The Chairman of the Military Committee

(CMC) presented the latest state of play on MC advice

regarding the piracy issue. The MC is looking at a short

term response to address the immediate need of providing

protection to the World Food Program, (WFP),as requested in

a letter from the UN, as well as the long term need of a

complementary approach to counter-piracy when the EU stands

up its operations in the Gulf of Aden and the next NATO

flotilla returns to the region in Spring 2009. Canada is

currently protecting WFP ships, but will leave the region on

October 23. The EU has a coordination cell in Brussels and

is considering an ESDP mission to commence in mid-December.

SACEUR is seeking NAC approval to establish the Rules of

Engagement for any NATO vessel that encounters an act of

piracy; the ROE would consider surveillance, deterrence, and

engagement (Note: This passed silence on Oct. 9 as well. End

Note.).



14. (C/NF) The CMC noted that Standing NATO Maritime Group 2

(SNMG-2) will be passing through the Suez Canal on October

15, in the Gulf of Aden October 21, and continue through the

Red Sea to various port visits in the Persian Gulf,

completing its mission in early December. CMC stated that

NATO had a number of options, including having some ships

detour and stay in the Gulf of Aden. Alternatively, the

entire mission could be redirected or extended as needed.

The MC had provided a memorandum for this short term

decision, which was under NAC silence. CMC said that--so

far--ships protecting the WFP have been provided on a

national basis. He highlighted TF-150 and CJTF-HOA as having

allowed ships to peel off in support. (Note: we would welcome

confirmation of such detachments from CJTF-HoA. End Note.)

In the long term, CMC said that SNMG-1 will pass through the

Gulf of Aden region from mid-March 2009 until early July,

2009.



15. (C/NF) Ambassador Volker urged the NAC to respond

favorably to the UN request, arguing that NATO has the

capacity to provide the support and would not incur any

additional costs in doing so. He also argued that NATO



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needed to fill the gap that will exist until the EU mission

is deployed. Volker emphasized that NATO-EU staff-to-staff

coordination is important. The Ambassador also offered U.S.

assistance in providing/sharing data from USG assets in the

region to a NATO headquarters, which could then be shared

with the ESDP mission.



16. (C/NF) The Dutch PermRep informed the NAC that his

government was likely to send a frigate in response to the UN

request for WFP escort duty, adding that a firm decision on

this from The Hague was expected by the end of next week.

The Netherlands said it would detach the ship from the

current NATO Mediterranean flotilla and send it under a

national flag to follow the Canadian escort vessel. In

response to a UK suggestion that NATO efforts might need

further consideration in this light, the Dutch PermRep

emphasized that he did not want the Dutch decision to operate

on a national basis to block NATO's collective decisions on

piracy. Germany, Italy, Denmark, and UK supported the CMC's

approach, highlighting the need for complementarity of NATO

and EU anti-piracy efforts. Italy added that counter-piracy

was so important that Italy was proposing to host the

headquarters in Rome for the EU ESDP mission. The UK

pointedly said that national contributions were simpler and

quicker, although he did add that such contributions should

not block NATO's parallel efforts to develop its own policies

and that any political decisions must be made by the NAC.

Norway was very strong in urging the SYG to make a positive

and immediate response to the UN request. The Canadian

PermRep said that NATO must be sympathetic to the situation

in Somalia, adding that taking on an anti-piracy role would

prove NATO,s relevance in the region and beyond. Turkey

said it supported SNMG-2 use in response to the UN request

and said future possible NATO assistance to support the EU

should be defined in operational detail and brought to the

NAC for consideration under existing guidelines. (Note:

Turkey did not use the term &agreed framework.8 End Note.)



17. (C/NF) The SYG concluded the discussion by saying that

NAC needed to move forward on three decisions: two

short-term, one long-term. First, to assist the WFP, NATO

needs more clarification from the UN, but also needs to be

seen as supportive, especially in light of UNSCR 1838 and the

recent signing of the UN-NATO MoU at UNGA. He continued that

an immediate response would likely be national in character

since NATO will need an MOU with the WFP, and NATO may have

additional command and control issues to resolve. Second,

Defense Ministers in Budapest this week should consider the

role of SNMG-2. In response to German and Portuguese

requests about rules of engagement for NATO ships to actually

engage pirates as opposed to cruise in deterrence/presence

missions, the SYG said individual Allied political decisions

would be made whether these ships would stay under the NATO

flag or revert to their national flag in such a circumstance.

Third, in the long-term how will NATO work with the EU in a

complementary capacity? Another political decision must be

made as to the long-term NATO role in anti-piracy, and how

this effort might fit with any future ESDP mission.



18. (C/NF) Iraq: no discussion



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Preparations for the Meetings of Defense Ministers in Budapest

-------------- --------------



19. (C/NF) Preparations for the Meetings of Defense

Ministers in Budapest: The SYG previewed the formal meeting

to be held at the Defense Ministerial on Friday, October 10.

He said he would ask Ministers to note and agree to five

reports. At the same time, he expressed his significant

concerns about the PE Review in the "Capability" report )

concerns he said were shared by CMC. He stated that the EWG

report on the PE Review "goes nowhere(and is a recipe for

disaster." As a result, he said that he intended to ask

Ministers to make their own decision about the PE Review.

The UK directly supported the SYG, with U.S., Canada,



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Denmark, Norway and Lithuania saying that they did not object

to a ministerial discussion of the PE review should the SYG

introduce the topic, while Turkey, Greece, and Spain

threatened to open up the entire report for discussion if the

SYG took his suggested course of action. The three Allies

noted that the EWG report had just passed silence, that they

had all made concessions in order to reach consensus, and

that Ministers could not discuss just select portions of the

report. The Turks asked that all positions expressed during

the NAC meeting be fully incorporated into the subsequent

decision-sheet so that everyone would be clear on the

discussions which took place. The SYG concluded by saying

that he has the obligation, as Chairman, to tell Ministers

that the PE Review is moving in the wrong direction. He said

it would then be up to the Ministers to decide if he is right

or wrong.



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Noise Mitigation Measures at Geilenkirchen

--------------



20. (C/NF) Noise Mitigation Measures at Geilenkirchen: The

Chairman postponed the presentation to another occasion given

the unexpected length of discussion on the previous agenda

topic. As the scheduled presenter was a Dutch national, the

Dutch PermRep. intervened to ask that the presentation be

rescheduled as soon as possible.



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Response to Terrorism

--------------



21. (C/NF) Response to Terrorism: The Turkish PermRep said

that 17 Turkish military personnel were killed in the October

3 PKK terrorist attack in Simdinli. He noted the use of

heavy weaponry by the PKK during the attack. He informed the

NAC that Turkish operations against the PKK continued. He

also said Ankara had demarched Baghdad to remind the GOI of

its international obligations and to request they take

measures against the terrorists.



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Statements on Political Subjects

--------------



22. (C/NF) Statements on Political Subjects: France briefed

on the recent informal EU defense ministers meeting,

highlighting the main discussion topics: EU operations,

capabilities and counter-piracy activities. On operations,

the PermRep said that while ministers recognized the recent

UN resolution mandating a relief operation for current EU

activities in Chad, they also recognized that a number of EU

personnel already there would remain to support the UN

operation. On Operation Althea in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the

ministers discussed &options8 but a decision would not be

taken until the November GAERC. On the recently deployed

Georgia mission, ministers expressed satisfaction with the

manner in which the operation was progressing. Regarding

capabilities, the points discussed included battle groups,

interoperability and strategic lift transportation

capacities, among other topics. According to France, EU

defense ministers also had a long conversation on piracy in

which they agreed on coordinating their efforts in early

December and to make strong efforts to complement the work of

NATO and other parties involved in the area.



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Any Other Business

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23. (C/NF) Any Other Business: Poland informed the Council

of plans for a Polish contribution to the NATO Trust Fund for

Afghanistan and the NATO Trust fund for Ukraine. The Polish

PermRep did not give an amount, but noted that these plans

would be elaborated in the forum of the Euro-Atlantic

Partnership Council later in the day. Albania and Croatia



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thanked Lithuania for having ratified their entry into NATO

and urged remaining Allies to follow suit.

REID