DUBAI PROCESS: SLOW AND STEADY COOPERATION BETWEEN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KABUL 003995 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR S/SRAP, SCA/FO, S/SRAP, AND EEB/BTA DEPT PASS USTR E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ETRD ELTN PREL EAID PK AF SUBJECT: DUBAI PROCESS: SLOW AND STEADY COOPERATION BETWEEN AFGHANISTAN AND PAKISTAN REF: Kabul 3814 KABUL 00003995 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: The sixth round of the Canadian-led Dubai Process meeting November 24-25 brought together Afghan and Pakistani technical level delegates to discuss cooperation on counter narcotics, law enforcement, customs and movement of people. Discussions focused mostly on updates and fine-tuning of existing projects, although the two countries progressed on a cooperative framework for quarterly meetings between civilian border authorities. Major donor projects underway to support the Dubai process include a pilot program by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on border liaison offices, the International Organization of Migration (IOM) biometric program for pedestrians at the Torkham Gate border crossing and USAID's Trade and Accession Facilitation for Afghanistan program to support custom's capacity building. Unresolved disputes from the Afghanistan Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTTA) negotiations, just prior to the Dubai meetings, crept into the discussions, but the Canadian chair brought delegates back on track. Dubai's success springs from its conception as an informal, working level and apolitical discussion. End Summary. ¶2. (U) The Canadian-led Dubai Process meeting took place in Kabul, November 24-25, 2009, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with meetings of four working groups: Counter Narcotics, Law Enforcement, Customs and Movement of People. In addition to the Afghan and Pakistan Delegations, representatives from the World Bank, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC),the International Organization for Migration (IOM),the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA),the UK Embassy, and the U.S. Embassies in Kabul and Islamabad participated. The next meeting of the Dubai Process will take place with a high-level meeting in the first quarter of 2010. Counter Narcotics and Law Enforcement -------------- ¶3. (SBU) In the Counter Narcotics (CN) and Law Enforcement (LE) working groups, UNODC reps from both sides of the border briefed on their efforts to encourage cooperation between Afghanistan and Pakistan and on the desire to establish a narcotics border liaison office (BLO) at Torkham Gate. In addition, on counter narcotics, UNODC will help the Afghans and Pakistanis develop information exchange mechanisms, engage in joint exercises, and combat shipments of precursors. On law enforcement, UNODC will help create real-time information exchanges, set up joint training, and design procedures for cooperation. UNODC is also looking at training and equipping for precursor and drug smuggling detection. (Note: Embassy Kabul CN and LE agencies and sections will meet with UNODC to ensure clarity and coordination. End Note) ¶4. (SBU) Although the Afghans, with the help of the UNODC, had prepared a draft MOU specifying cooperation in these two areas, the Pakistanis proposed that the 2004 MOU signed by both Ministers of Interior would be a sufficient framework for specific cooperation in CN and LE. The Afghans agreed to review the 2004 MOU to see if, in their opinion, it could serve as a framework. ¶5. (SBU) The two delegations also agreed to seek more frequent interaction by local civil administration officials deployed in border areas for information exchange and joint activities. The GOP team mentioned its successful model with Iran under which civilian border authorities meet on a quarterly basis to discuss problems and successful resolutions of issues. Customs: Strengthening Border Monitoring Through Infrastructure, Training and Improved Coordination -------------- -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Embassy Kabul's Border Management Task Force (BMTF) briefed the group on the status of property acquisition at the Weesh-Chaman border crossing. After some confusion about the location and amount of land needed to construct the customs site, agreement was reached on the location and amount of land. Next step: President Karzai must issue a decree transferring the land from the Ministry of Agriculture to the Ministry of Finance, which is expected before the end of 2009. Embassy Kabul's BMTF representative also quickly updated the group on progress on the Afghan National Customs Academy. Although this is an Afghan-only institution, it sparked discussion about joint training ventures between the Pakistani and Afghan Customs agencies. ¶7. (SBU) The Pakistani delegation had previously presented the Afghans with a draft bilateral customs agreement. However, both delegations agreed to await the conclusion of the Afghanistan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTTA) before moving forward with the bilateral customs agreement. In the meantime they will review the World Customs Organization's template for bilateral KABUL 00003995 002 OF 002 customs agreements provided by the World Bank. Afghan Customs Seeking Streamlining of Procedures and Anti-Corruption Capacity Building -------------- -------------- ¶8. (SBU) USAID explained its Trade and Accession Facilitation Afghanistan (TAFA) program's three elements: trade policy liberalization, trade facilitation and customs reform, and public outreach on trade issues. Both delegations requested education seminars for traders, brokers, and businessmen, including an overview of Afghanistan-Pakistan procedures, laws and regulations, and how-to's on compliance. The Pakistani delegation believed it necessary to find ways to bridge the language barriers among the Dari, Pashto, Urdu and English speaking stakeholders. ¶9. (SBU) In a separate conversation on the margins of the conference, senior Afghan Customs officials requested that TAFA technical advisors devise ways to streamline trade documentation, such as electronic forms, creating a database and improving Custom's staff processing skills. They strongly requested TAFA to focus on stemming corruption in the Customs authority by developing an anti-corruption strategy, a work plan for implementation, and assistance for monitoring and reporting. Moving People with Biometrics -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Under the Dubai Process, the IOM has been charged with assessing biometrics capacity and needs on the Afghan side and reviewing the current biometrics system in place in Pakistan. The Afghan assessment is being finalized, and the IOM has begun the review of Pakistani system. IOM emphasized the need for compatibility between the two systems. The pilot biometrics operation, still in the design phase, is slated to be conducted at the Torkham Gate Border Crossing Point which has pedestrian traffic of approximately 24,000 people daily. Under the IOM program, day travelers would be provided with biometric ID cards. Afghanistan would like the pilot project to also include commercial trucker traffic as a test group. ID and Passport reader equipment would be provided as part of the pilot project. Canada announced it would fund two Afghan and two Pakistani Customs officials to attend an IOM biometrics training seminar in Bangkok in January 2010. In addition, Canada is considering funding participation of up to five or six participants from each country. APTTA and DUBAI Crossovers Inevitable but not Always Productive -------------- ¶11. (SBU) The meetings were sidetracked frequently as both sides argued over the name for the territorial division between Afghanistan and Pakistan, i.e. the "Durand Line" or "border," respectively. Since the Afghans do not recognize this as a "border" they insist on using the term, "legal crossing point," while the Pakistanis insist on using the term, "border crossing point." This issue is one of the sticking points in the Afghanistan-Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement negotiations, the last round of which occurred the two days prior to these Dubai Process negotiations. There is some overlap between the countries' negotiating teams, and language in the technical level Dubai Process had migrated to the APTTA discussions, much to the dismay of the GOP. Both delegations repeatedly raised the APTTA "re-export" study which will look at cross border trade that evades appropriate customs duties in either or both countries. The Canadian chair brought the delegations back into line and remonstrated against trying to refight APTTA in the Dubai Process. ¶12. (SBU) Comment: The Dubai Process has produced results thus far because it is informal, working level, and apolitical, according to our Canadian interlocutor. As this round followed the APTTA negotiating round so closely, APTTA politics crept into the discussion, forcing the Canadians to reduce heightened sensitivities. She said, however, that the Canadians accompanying the process were divided on whether there was slow and steady progress at this round or status quo, but with relationship building. End Comment. RICCIARDONE