EU EMPHASIZES SUCCESS IN PSC PLUS 7 MEETING

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 05 BRUSSELS 000401 NOFORN SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/ERA, EUR/RPM E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/20/2019 TAGS: MARR MOPS PREL XF XG XW ZJ ZL XD ZF EUN SUBJECT: EU EMPHASIZES SUCCESS IN PSC PLUS 7 MEETING Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Christopher Murray for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C//NF) Summary: At the March 17 Political and Security Committee (PSC) Plus 7 meeting organized by the Czech EU Presidency, representatives of Member States and the EU institutions generally gave high marks to EU-led civilian and military operations in Chad, the Gulf of Aden, Georgia, Kosovo, and Afghanistan. While acknowledging challenges, such as Russian obstructionism in Georgia, Serb obstructionism in Kosovo, force generation difficulties for EUPOL Afghanistan, and resilient pirate groups in the Gulf of Aden, EU officials generally chose to see the &glass half full.8 Most third countries took the opportunity to congratulate the EU for its successes, to pledge personnel and financial contributions to the EU,s missions, and press the EU to hold to its commitments. Turkey, on the other hand, reiterated well-known complaints about the EU,s treatment of Turkey and suggested that increased Turkish contributions to EU missions were subject to the EU opening up to Turkey. Although Turkey made repeated reference to the &agreed framework8 for NATO-EU relations, concerns about Cyprus were not at the center of Turkish interventions. Instead, Turkey focused on the EU,s treatment of non-EU European Allies, Turkish hopes for high-level appointments in EULEX Kosovo, and Ankara,s desire to be consulted when the EU plans operations in geographic proximity to Turkey. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) On March 17, the Czech EU Presidency organized the second PSC Plus 7 meeting. Initially an initiative of the French Presidency, the PSC Plus 7 is an informal format that brings together all non-EU NATO Allies as well as EU accession countries (United States, Canada, Turkey, Norway, Iceland, Croatia, and Macedonia). The PSC Plus 7 supplements the official formats of PSC Plus 3 (non-EU European Allies Turkey, Norway, and Iceland) and PSC Plus 5 (PSC Plus 3 plus EU accession states Croatia and Macedonia). The PSC Plus 7 format allows NATO Allies and EU Member States to discuss the full range of ESDP operations, except the EU,s Operation ALTHEA in Bosnia, which is the only subject covered in NAC-PSC meetings. EUFOR Chad ¶3. (SBU) Claude-France Arnould, Director of Defense Issues in the EU Council Secretariat, said strong cooperation between the EU and UN and the decision of a number of Member States to &blue hat8 their forces had allowed the EU to turn over EUFOR,s responsibilities to MINURCAT without leaving a security vacuum, a claim echoed by the Deputy Director of the EU Military Staff, Spanish Rear Admiral Fernando Lista. Arnould praised the EU for applying the comprehensive approach by coordinating military action with development assistance and diplomatic engagement. She said the end of EUFOR Chad would not mean the end of EU engagement on the diplomatic, humanitarian, and development fronts. Lista said the EU had shown the ability to deploy a robust military force to a theater far from Europe, despite challenging terrain and logistical issues. He called the operation &a military success8 because it created a safe, secure environment, worked well with MINURCAT, and resulted in a decline in violence in the area. With the transition of EUFOR to the UN, the EU had completed its longest, largest military operation in Africa. ¶4. (C) French PSC Ambassador Christine Roger echoed Arnould and Lista,s claims of success, while noting the &unusually high8 number of Member States that participated in the force. She said the EU had paved the way for increased stability in the region and that the international community would now have to wait and see how the consequences of Sudanese President Bashir,s arrest warrant affect refugee flows. She expressed confidence that the UN could deal with an influx of refugees from Sudan. (Comment: France, which pressed for the EU to deploy to Chad, has a particular interest in claiming political and military success for the operation. End Comment.) BRUSSELS 00000401 002 OF 005 ¶5. (SBU) USEU Charge congratulated the EU on a successful operation and read excerpts from the Department's March 16 press release. Canada, Croatia, Norway, Ireland, and Italy also congratulated EUFOR for a successful operation. Canada expressed its intention to provide financial assistance to the EU to assist in supporting the African Union peacekeeping exercise AMANI AFRICA in 2010. Canada also said it was committed to cooperating with the EU on the assessment of African training Centers of Excellence in West Africa and on the coordination of capacity building for civilian police to participate in peace operations. Croatia said it was pleased to contribute to the force, and that the Croatian reconnaissance team would remain with MINURCAT for six months. Norway said plans for the deployment of a field hospital to MINURCAT to replace the Italian EUFOR hospital were proceeding as planned, a claim confirmed by Italy. Ireland expressed appreciation for the value added by non-EU force contributors. EUNAVFOR ATALANTA ¶6. (C) Arnould led the discussion of the EU,s naval operation off the coast of Somalia, saying the operation was starting to see positive results, but that pirates still show the ability to attack far from the coast. She said the recent agreement between the EU and Kenya would allow the EU to deliver captured pirates to Kenya for prosecution, and also announced a recent agreement in principle for the EU to provide security to UN shipping to support AMISOM. She said the EU was seeking to increaseits coordination with other countries involve in counter-piracy and was at work on &cooperative frameworks8 with Russia, China, India, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Malaysia, Oman, Yemen, and Egypt. These frameworks include modalities for the exchange of information, coordination of movements, liaison with the EU,s Operational Headquarters, and possible sharing of tanker support for ships engaged in counter-piracy. Arnould also praised the &strong cooperation8 between the EU and Combined Task Force (CTF) 151 and said the EU expects to cooperate closely with NATO when Standing NATO Maritime Group (SNMG) 1 begins counter-piracy operations. Finally, she thanked Norway for agreeing to contribute a frigate to the operation. ¶7. (C) Rear Admiral Lista said Operation ATALANTA currently consists of five ships, two maritime patrol aircraft, and approximately 1,000 personnel from twelve Member States. He said escorts of World Food Program shipping had made it possible to feed four million Somalis. The Maritime Security Centre website allowed the EU to communicate with and advise the merchant community. ¶8. (C) The UK said the agreement with Kenya was a step forward and that coordination with all actors would be essential. The UK also emphasized the need to help develop local capacity, especially criminal justice capacity, to allow for the successful prosecution of pirates. Noting the difference between ground and naval operations, the UK said good weather would ironically make countering piracy more difficult, for it would allow the pirates to operate more easily. ¶9. (C) Croatia said it was willing to contribute five naval officers to the EU,s headquarters, subject to parliamentary approval. Canada said it would have a ship in the NATO force and that it supports coordination and information exchanges between NATO and the EU. Spain said it had been contributing a patrol aircraft since the beginning of the operation and would send a frigate and support ship during its command of the Force Headquarters, which begins in a few weeks. Norway said it would contribute a frigate to the EU force for six months beginning in August. ¶10. (C//NF) Turkey intervened to emphasize its concerns about EU cooperation with non-EU European Allies. While Turkey welcomed the informal PSC Plus 7 format, which allows Canada and the U.S. to participate, it prefers the official formats of PSC Plus 3 or PSC Plus 5 ) although the Turks emphasize that the PSC Plus 3 is their first preference. BRUSSELS 00000401 003 OF 005 Turkey emphasized that its record of contributions bears witness to the value it can add, but that early, robust consultations between the EU and non-EU European Allies were critical. Calling on the EU to implement fully the Nice Implementation Document from 2002, Turkey said the EU should consult with non-EU European Allies in advance of launching operations, especially when those operations would take place in the geographic proximity of Allies. On piracy, Turkey referenced Turkish participation in the Contact Group and CTF 151 and said coordination between all actors in the region was important. On the margins of the meeting, a Turkish rep told PolOff that NATO-EU cooperation on counter-piracy would have to take place within &the agreed modalities.8 ¶11. (C//NF) Responding to the Turkish emphasis on PSC Plus 3 meetings, the Czech Ambassador chairing the meeting said the PSC Plus 7 format is informal and does not replace the official formats, to which the Turkish Ambassador replied that a PSC Plus 3 meeting ) the format Turkey prefers to PSC Plus 5 ) had not happened for some time. (Comment: A Canadian colleague noted the irony to PolOff that while Canada and the U.S. support greater EU-Turkey cooperation, Turkey prefers to meet with the PSC without North American participation. End Comment.) EUMM Georgia ¶12. (C) Kees Klompenhouwer, who leads the EU,s Civilian Planning and Conduct Capability (CPCC) unit, led the discussion of the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia, which he called a clear example of the EU,s commitment to conflict resolution and regional stability. He said the EU,s response to the Georgian crisis showed its ability to react rapidly and strongly, and that EUMM Georgia was successfully implementing its mandate. The mission had recently rebutted Russian allegations about Georgian military movements, and a new Memorandum of Understanding with Georgia would provide further transparency on Georgian military actions. The agreement in Geneva to establish an incident response and prevention mechanism was important, but needs diplomatic follow-up. He acknowledged that EU monitors do not have access to South Ossetia and Abkhazia, but said the EU is ready to continue its presence even if the OSCE and UN missions come to an end. ¶13. (C) Sweden said the lack of access to the breakaway republics was a serious problem and emphasized the importance of working to keep the OSCE mission alive. Noting &complications8 in the incident response and prevention mechanism agreed in Geneva, Sweden lamented that no dates had been set for further consultations in Geneva. Sweden also noted that Russia had not agreed to place a liaison to EUMM on the ground, but nonetheless launched allegations against the Georgians. Concluding, Sweden said that the EU in troikas with Russia must emphasize the Russian commitment to withdraw in line with ceasefire agreements. ¶14. (C) Turkey intervened to question why the EU had not accepted the Turkish offer of personnel for EUMM Georgia. Klompenhouwer responded with the well-known refrain that the EU had wanted to show that the 27 Member States could respond and therefore did not require third country contributions. EULEX Kosovo ¶15. (C) The Czech EU Presidency said the EU,s Rule of Law Mission (EULEX) in Kosovo is maturing and coordination with NATO,s KFOR is strong. The Presidency said that the mission had passed its first tests at the turn of the year and had implemented measures to increase responsiveness. Further, the Presidency said that EULEX was starting to implement the core of its mandate and was picking up speed. ¶16. (C) Klompenhouwer reported that EULEX is implementing its mandate throughout Kosovo. He said that EULEX had secured its first conviction in a war crimes case and that the first case in the Mitrovica courthouse was being heard. Klompenhouwer stressed that the Kosovo Police remain the first responders ) with EULEX supporting in a mentoring, BRUSSELS 00000401 004 OF 005 monitoring and advising (MMA) capacity ) backed up by EULEX special police units and KFOR in that order. EULEX is facilitating joint, multi-ethnic patrols in North Mitrovica. ¶17. (C) Klompenhouwer said that the mission is getting greater cooperation from Belgrade, but needs to make progress on integrating ethnic Serb police officers into Kosovo,s police forces south of the Ibar. Head of Mission Yves de Kermabon will travel to Belgrade March 19 to work out this and other technical issues. On customs, Klompenhouwer said EULEX was manning Gates 1 and 31, but not yet collecting duties. He reported that the mission was currently staffed by some 1,695 internationals with another 150 personnel coming on line prior to reaching a full operating capability (FOC) by the end of March. ¶18. (C) Despite these achievements, Klompenhouwer stressed that the mission &wasn,t there yet.8 He singled out customs and the effective functioning of the Mitrovica courthouse as key tasks moving forward. Klompenhouwer said that a &single economic and legal space across Kosovo was key8 and thanked third states for their political and substantive support. ¶19. (SBU) USEU Charge congratulated the EU on its successful deployment and said EULEX now needs a burst of energy to assert itself on control of customs and courts in the Serb-majority north. He also called for a strong common approach to Serbia, supporting its integration to Europe but insisting that Belgrade deliver on its promise of full cooperation with EULEX. (Note: Klompenhouwer nodded upon hearing each of the Charge,s points, with his personal assistant later thanking PolOff for the Charge,s comments and continued support for EULEX by the U.S. End note.) ¶20. (C//NF) Turkey said it is taking part in EULEX with 38 personnel, which it is willing to increase to 150. At the same time, Turkey attaches particular importance to the selection of Turkish personnel to specific positions in EULEX. (On the margins of the meeting, a Turkish contact told PolOff that while an increase in Turkish participation was not officially tied to certain positions, the two issues are clearly related.) Canada praised the progress Kosovo has made since independence and said it would be ready to contribute following the next EU call for contributions. Spain said Kosovo still confronts challenges to stability, such as organized crime, and that EULEX reaching FOC was critical. Spain also praised the opening of a EULEX office in Belgrade. Italy emphasized the importance of the mission and expressed satisfaction that no major security incident had taken place since Kosovo,s declaration of independence. Italy also said deploying throughout the country is critical. EUPOL Afghanistan ¶21. (C) Klompenhouwer said that after a difficult start, EUPOL Afghanistan had reached the minimum number of personnel necessary to execute the mission and had reoriented its mandate to include more than just strategic advising. The EU still needs to increase contributions to reach 400 personnel and is working hard to attract those contributions. Klompenhouwer said cooperation with international organizations and third countries is improving and that EUPOL is working with CSTC-A to fill niches in the international police training effort. While Klompenhouwer acknowledged the challenges that lie ahead for EUPOL, he said he prefers to think of the mission as a &glass half full.8 After the meeting, Klompenhouwer told USEU that he is concerned that if NATO stands up a police training mission and calls for contributors from European Allies, NATO force generation will compete with EUPOL. Klompenhouwer suggested that using a contractor to recruit retired rather than active duty police could avoid this problem. ¶22. (SBU) USEU Charge said that helping Afghanistan will take a redoubled international effort, which is why the U.S. is undertaking a broad-ranging strategic review while simultaneously increasing its force contributions by 17,000. He said we welcome EU input into our review, and that recent BRUSSELS 00000401 005 OF 005 high-level visitors had made this point to EU counterparts. He said the U.S. looks forward to EUPOL reaching its authorized strength of 400 personnel, and expressed confidence that we will find a security solution that allows EU police trainers to deploy increasingly outside Kabul. ¶23. (SBU) The Netherlands emphasized that the EU has commitments it must meet. Calling for increased contributions and improved international coordination of police training and development aid, the Netherlands confirmed that it would host a conference on March 31, to which 72 countries and 15 organizations are invited. The conference will include discussions of security, political, and development issues, with an emphasis on the regional dimension. ¶24. (C) Norway said it would increase its personnel contribution to international police training efforts from 18 to 23, although it did not say how many of these would be placed under EUPOL. Norway is also considering increasing its participation in Focused District Development in Faryab province, which it would do in coordination with EUPOL. Canada predicted that the U.S. review would make reference to the need for increased police training efforts, and that Canada was keen to help EUPOL take on an increased role outside Kabul. With NATO contemplating an increased police training role, Canada emphasized that the EU needs to get up to strength, have a clear mandate, and establish benchmarks to avoid withering away. ¶25. (C) Germany said EUPOL is now present in sixteen provinces, and the EU is committed to doubling the mission to ¶400. Germany said optimism is justified and that contributions by third states like Canada, Norway, and Croatia are substantial and important. Calling for improved international coordination, Germany also reiterated the need for a security agreement with ISAF, both for EUPOL and for a potential EU election observation mission for the 2009 Afghan elections. Klompenhouwer echoed the need for a security agreement. The European Commission representative Richard Wright stressed that Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner wants to send a full election observation mission to Afghanistan, but that such a mission depends on receiving assurances of security and that the Commission would rely on the full cooperation of international partners in achieving this goal. ¶26. (C//NF) Turkey said building the Afghan National Security Forces is critical to success, and Turkey is helping to train both army and police officials. Turkey expressed its willingness to contribute to EUPOL once NATO and the EU reach the necessary technical agreements. (Comment: Turkey has, in fact, blocked a NATO-EU technical agreement, which it insists should only exist under the agreed framework that excludes Cyprus.) Any Other Business ¶27. (C//NF) Before the meeting closed, Turkey spoke again about the need for the EU to consult with non-EU European Allies in an intensified way when the EU is considering operations in Allies, geographic proximity. With that in mind, Turkey said if the EU re-invigorates its mission in Gaza, it should do so only after close consultations with Turkey. In addition, Turkey is willing to contribute as the EU increases its numbers in its police mission in the West Bank. MURRAY .