CORRECTED COPY - OSCE 2008 HEADS OF VERIFICATION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 USOSCE 000063 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR VCI/CCA, VCI/NRRC, EUR/RPM, EUR/PRA, SCA/CEN, SCA/RA, PM/WRA JCS FOR J5 OSD FOR ISA (PERENYI) NSC FOR DOWLEY USUN FOR LEGAL, POL CENTCOM FOR CCJ5-C, POLAD UNVIE FOR AC GENEVA FOR CD E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PARM PREL OSCE KCFE XG SUBJECT: CORRECTED COPY - OSCE 2008 HEADS OF VERIFICATION MEETING: GERMAN HEAD REPEATS CALL FOR INSPECTION COORDINATION IN VIENNA REF: USOSCE 0062 ¶1. (SBU) (This corrected version of reftel contains revised numerical values in para 9.) Summary: At the March 3 meeting of Heads of Verification (HOV),discussion of implementation matters extended into the policy arena, as had been anticipated after the 2007 HOV meeting, when the German verification head called for Vienna Document 1999 (VD99) inspection coordination in Vienna. Much of the discussion in the HOV anticipated the agenda of the Annual Implementation Assessment Meeting (AIAM),held March 4-5. Subjects examined included a German proposal to address the annual VD99 inspection "quota race," a Schengen visa for non-Schengen inspecting States, a best practices guide for conducting air base and military facilities visits and new equipment demonstrations, and the role of OSCE "assistants" in the Article IV (Dayton Peace Accords) verification regime. End summary. Germany Divided Again? -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The German head of verification, Brigadier General Winfried Mertens, while urging consideration of Germany's proposal to reorganize the VD99 inspection calendar to avoid the annual "quota race" (FSC.DEL/51/08),also criticized coordination of VD99 verification events at NATO. Recalling his intervention at the 2007 HOV meeting, he urged more effective use and harmonization of quotas through consultations in Vienna. Mertens said participating States (pS) should be able to coordinate in Vienna so that each receives its "fair share" of quotas within a two- or three-year period. This would be preferable to "coordination in smaller groups elsewhere . . . where everybody is not there and are left out of the process." (Comment: It is not clear that Mertens' recommendation reflects a coordinated position within the German government. End comment.) ¶3. (SBU) In response to Germany, Russia (Zabello) noted that inspection quotas of only 21 participating States had been exhausted last year and that quotas for only four pS--Georgia, Russia, UK, and the U.S.--were exhausted in the first two months of the calendar year. (Note: Later, during an intervention at the AIAM, Russia mentioned the same statistics but made clear that they were in reference to VD99 evaluation quotas. End note). Only 54 of a potential 104 (59/114?) inspections were conducted. Schengen Visas for Non-Schengen Inspectors -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Finland suggested a common visa be issued to non-Schengen inspecting pS for inspections conducted in Schengen countries. The first Schengen pS entered would issue Schengen visas to the inspectors for the entire period. Several pS supported this suggestion. Best Practice Guide for Demonstrations and Visits -------------- -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Several countries supported a best practices guide to standardize the conduct of demonstrations and visits to air bases and military facilities. USOSCE 00000063 002 OF 003 Russia Makes New Proposals -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Russia provided three proposals in writing (FSC.AIAM/9/09): (1) requests for inspections or evaluations that are submitted too early would be considered invalid; (2) a five-year (vice the current one-year) period after entry into service for conducting demonstrations on new equipment; and (3) the development of common methodologies for demonstrations and visits to air bases and military facilities. There was little discussion of the Russian proposals. ¶7. (SBU) Russia also said it would be willing to receive auxiliary personnel to increase the size of the inspection/evaluation team if this were supported by an FSC decision making it compulsory for all receiving States to accept them. Switzerland Rescinds Some Voluntary Measures -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Switzerland noted that it had since 2004 voluntarily notified the temporary activation of its militia units and offered an additional quota, but there has been little interest from other pS. Citing the lack of interest and administrative costs, Switzerland announced that it will no longer provide the notifications or offer the additional quota. Article IV (Dayton Accords) Briefing -------------- ¶9. (SBU) Brigadier General Costanzo Periotto (Italy),the OSCE Chairman-in-Office's Personal Representative for Article IV (Dayton Peace Accords),briefed the role of the OSCE "assistant" in Article IV inspections. Periotto forecasts 72 assistants drawn from OSCE pS will be needed in 2008, down from a high of 160 in 1997, the reduction explained by the decreasing number of inspection quotas available under Article IV. (Note: On the margins of the meeting, Periotto informed that the U.S. would be offered positions on nine of the 18 inspections. End note.) Periotto stressed the importance of technical training and expertise for the assistants. HOV Complain of Shorter Leashes -------------- ¶10. (SBU) The heads of verification were more restrained this year, according to some because an agenda published in advance that allowed guidance from capitals and the presence of policy personnel sitting behind them. (Note: Last year's HOV meeting was held concurrently with other AIAM sessions, allowing the HOV to escape much supervision. End note.) The German verification head, Mertens, later complained to USDel that the agenda was too broad and that the guidance received from capitals resulted in less flexibility in the positions of the HOV, although Mertens appeared to be unrestrained in his own comments (see para 2 above). ¶11. (SBU) The end result was a call by some delegations for a longer, more informal HOV meeting next year. In addition to calls for a longer meeting, several HOV also proposed holding USOSCE 00000063 003 OF 003 several sessions throughout the year, with at least one of them breaking up into small working groups tasked with a specific issue to allow in-depth discussions and recommendations that might result in deliverables. SCOTT