Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09LISBON254
2009-05-13 15:03:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Lisbon
Cable title:  

PORTUGAL-US BILATERAL COMMISSION; PROGRESS ON ISAF

Tags:  PREL MARR MOPS PGOV OVIP PO 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0007
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHLI #0254/01 1331503
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 131503Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY LISBON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7615
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUVACEA/65 CES LAJES FIELD PO
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RHFQAAA/USAFE RAMSTEIN AB GE
C O N F I D E N T I A L LISBON 000254 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/21/2019
TAGS: PREL MARR MOPS PGOV OVIP PO
SUBJECT: PORTUGAL-US BILATERAL COMMISSION; PROGRESS ON ISAF
AND LAJES AIR BASE

Classified By: DEPUTY POL/ECON COUNSELOR TROY FITRELL FOR REASONS 1.4 (
b, d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L LISBON 000254

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/21/2019
TAGS: PREL MARR MOPS PGOV OVIP PO
SUBJECT: PORTUGAL-US BILATERAL COMMISSION; PROGRESS ON ISAF
AND LAJES AIR BASE

Classified By: DEPUTY POL/ECON COUNSELOR TROY FITRELL FOR REASONS 1.4 (
b, d)


1. (C) Summary. The U.S.-Portugal Bilateral Commission met
in Lisbon on May 4 as part of its regular semi-annual meeting
schedule and reviewed the state of the bilateral
relationship. Portuguese MFA PolDir Brito said the GOP
continues to study options to make good on the Prime
Minister's promise to double troop commitments to
Afghanistan, and that the Foreign Minister should have the
defined position in time for his meeting with Secretary
Clinton June 4. The political decision on this issue must be
approved by the Defense Council, chaired by President Cavaco
Silva. Brito also said Portugal would support the U.S. in
the Human Rights Commission election and solicited U.S.
support for Portugal's Security Council candidacy. Labor
issues at Lajes Air Base in the Azores dominated the
Bilateral Commission's discussions and the delegations agreed
to a preliminary text of an agreement to resolve the wage
dispute. End summary.

BILATERAL COMMISSION MEETS
--------------

2. (U) The U.S.-Portugal Bilateral Commission met in Lisbon,
Portugal May 4 to review the bilateral relationship and plan
cooperative ventures for the coming year. The U.S. side was
led by Ambassador Thomas Stephenson, who was joined by
Defense A/DUSD Marilee Fitzgerald. The Portuguese delegation
was led by MFA Political Director Ambassador Nuno Brito,
joined by Ministry of Defense Political Director Paulo Vizeu
Pinheiro and Major General Rui Mora de Oliveira, Air Force
Zone Commander for the Azores. Following a Bilateral
Commission tradition, additional officials joined the
proceedings for separate meetings with relevant officials.
EUR/WE Office Director Pamela Spratlen met with the MFA's
European Correspondent and the Office Director for Europe and
Central Asia, and Embassy Maputo's Sarah Horton met with the
MFA's Office Director for Africa and the Ministry of
Interior's International Cooperation staff.


3. (U) Delegations discussed the general state of the

bilateral relationship and exchanged views on international
affairs, including Russia, the Middle East, and the next NATO
Summit. The delegations then reviewed specific bilateral
topics, including military cooperation, science and
technology cooperation, Azorean cooperation, and issues
regarding the Technical and Labor Committees related to the
U.S. Air Force facilities and operations at Portugal's Lajes
Air Field in the Azores. The joint statement issued at the
end of the meetings is attached at the end of this cable.


4. (U) In referring to the strength of the bilateral
relationship, Brito noted the Government of Portugal (GOP)
was ready to finalize agreements on our proposals regarding
HSPD-6 and Combating Crime. Brito also said Portugal would
vote for the U.S. at the Human Rights Council election (Note:
Portugal did so on May 12) and solicited our support for
Portugal's candidacy for the UN Security Council. Brito
agreed with Ambassador Stephenson's suggestion that we
include the Ministries of Justice and Internal Affairs at
future Bilateral Commission meetings, given the strength of
the cooperative programs with those ministries.


5. (C) Both sides were pleased that a Foreign Minister Amado
- Secretary Clinton meeting had been scheduled for June 4.
Brito noted Amado would also meet with Members of Congress
while in Washington and that Minister of the Economy Manuel
Pinho was interested in visiting Washington as well.

NATO SUMMIT
--------------

6. (U) Both delegation leaders noted that Portugal is
expected to host the next NATO Summit, in 2010 or 2011.
Brito said he expected NATO's new Strategic Concept would be
ready for approval by that time and would be the signature
issue of the summit. In discussing reforms at NATO
Headquarters, Brito noted that consensus must be retained as
the basis of decision-making authority, but that the
Secretary General needed to be able to run the bureaucracy
efficiently. Brito stressed the GOP's pleasure with Dane
Anders Fogh Rasmussen as the new Secretary General.


7. (C) Brito noted the GOP would use only one summit site,
unlike Strasbourg/Kehl. On the margins, Brito's deputy, Rui
Maciera, told us the Portuguese were evaluating sites, but
the early front-runner was Madeira, an autonomous island in
the Atlantic Ocean, which hosted the NATO Parliamentary
Assembly in 2007. Maciera said only a few locations had the
necessary tourist infrastructure and that they did not wish

to paralyze Lisbon or the Algarve with security precautions.


8. (U) When asked by Ambassador Stephenson about Portugal's
commitment to increased troop strength in Afghanistan, Brito
said the GOP was studying options and would make a
significant increase and would fill an ISAF strategic need.
Brito added that he expected Foreign Minister Amado to have
that defined position before his June 4 Washington meeting
with Secretary Clinton. Ministry of Defense (MOD) Political
Director Paulo Vizeu Pinheiro said the decision will be made
by Portugal's Defense Council, chaired by President Cavaco
Silva. This body meets when needed, and Cavaco Silva is
expected to call for a meeting soon.

MIDDLE EAST
--------------

9. (U) Brito noted the GOP's desire to build on the Annapolis
Conference. Noting that Germany and Portugal had advocated
upgrading EU relations with Israel during their respective EU
presidencies, Brito said the GOP now seeks additional
pressure on the new Israeli government. On a related note,
Brito said he appreciated U.S. policy on Iran, noting that it
is Iran's turn to take genuine steps forward. He continued,
however, that progress with Iran cannot be a precondition for
movement on Palestinian territories, which Brito said the new
government of Israel has suggested. Iran and
Israel/Palestinians are related, he said, but not linked.
Brito warned that while the EU still regards Hamas as a
terrorist organization, "EU voices" are calling for all
involved parties to be at the negotiating table.

RUSSIA
--------------

10. (U) Brito appreciated our comments on a "restart" with
Russia and said Georgia would dominate NATO-Russia relations
for the near future, but that NATO's exercises in Georgia
were necessary. Brito noted with satisfaction that the
NATO-Russia Council had resumed meeting, saying that he
thought it should have been activated immediately upon the
invasion of Georgia. Brito said the GOP fully understands
the need to diversify its energy sources and that the gas
crisis in early 2009 tarnished Russia's image as a reliable
supplier, a point he believed even Vladimir Putin understood.

LABOR ISSUES AT LAJES AIR BASE
--------------

11. (U) Brito noted that the issue of how to calculate annual
pay raises for Portuguese employees of the USAF at Lajes Air
Base had become an irritant for the bilateral relationship.
Discussions on resolving this issue in recent years had
centered around removing a contentious wage survey and
replacing it with the higher of the DOD civilian pay increase
and the GOP civil service pay increase. Brito suggested that
he and Ambassador Stephenson take key delegation members
aside to pursue negotiations, which resulted in a tentative
agreement on the Work Regulations that have now been shared
with Washington offices, including DOD's Office of General
Counsel. This preliminary agreement is contingent upon
approval of the Washington interagency process.

MILITARY COOPERATION
--------------

12. (U) The MOD's Vizeu Pinheiro provided updates on ongoing
cooperative efforts. He said the Portuguese review of a U.S.
proposal for an airspace training initiative north of Lajes
Air Base had concluded that the proposal was viable and that
experts had defined an appropriate area for the purpose. He
said Portuguese Air Force (PAF) officials would meet with
U.S. counterparts in late May or June to complete the study.
Regarding the resurfacing of the runway at Lajes Air Base,
Vizeu Pinheiro said the Portuguese Air Force technical staff
had accepted the U.S. cost sharing and technical proposals
and had transmitted them to the MOD for political approval.


13. (U) In regard to direct cooperation, Vizeu Pinheiro said
the Portuguese Navy (PN) hoped to develop mine sweeping and
explosive ordnance disposal skills in conjunction with U.S.
counterparts. The PN is also interested in amphibious
exercises and would like briefings on the cost and use of
underwater unmanned vehicles. The PAF used only 10 of the 15
available pilot training slots in the U.S. due to an
unexpected increase in costs. Both delegations noted that
Portugal will host DOD's African Center for Strategic Studies
(ACSS) seminar in 2010, the first time ACSS has ever held its
seminars in Europe.

AZOREAN COOPERATION; SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
--------------

14. (U) Col. Poore, Commander of the U.S. 65th Air Base Wing

at Lajes, presented the annual Economic Impact Analysis that
demonstrated a total impact on the Azorean economy of $93
million in FY2008 from the U.S. presence there. The two
delegations submitted status reports on other infrastructure,
public diplomacy, and economic development projects and on
the workings of the Labor and Science and Technology
Committees.

COMMENT
--------------

15. (C) As usual for these semi-annual meetings, this
iteration of the Bilateral Commission was a success, but
within limitations as the Portuguese have been reluctant to
change the static nature of the Bilateral Commission. New
leadership on the Portuguese side in the persons of Brito and
Vizeu Pinheiro indicate a willingness to orient the meetings
toward action and set the bar a bit higher. A problem has
been the Portuguese desire to use this forum to present
proposals rather than solve problems. Vizeu Pinheiro's
participation is an upgrade from the Portuguese MOD.
Previously, MOD representatives had to return to the MOD to
get his approval for any ideas that were presented. Brito
and Vizeu Pinheiro each have long experience with the U.S.
and are among our most useful interlocutors.


16. (C) After years of effort on the arcane wage survey
issue, we have apparently reached agreement. While the
commission's accomplishment is a preliminary step, it is an
important one. Brito noted that the GOP is eager to have
this agreement be a deliverable for the FM Amado - Secretary
Clinton meeting on June 4. For that to be the case, we have
some work to do.


Joint Statement
--------------

17. (U) Begin text:

In the 25th gathering of the Bilateral Commission in Lisbon,
Portugal on May 4, 2009, Portugal and the United States
reaffirmed the enduring political and military alliance. The
two delegations reviewed recent developments in the Middle
East and Russia and previewed issues related to the next NATO
Summit, which will be held in Portugal.

Portugal and the United States also reviewed the positive
progress made since the last Bilateral Commission meeting in
military cooperation, the science and technology sector,
cooperation programs with the Azores, and mission
requirements at Lajes Air Base.

Delegations addressed the issue of the refurbishment of the
degraded runway at Lajes Air Base, with a view to ensure the
future of this active facility for civilian and military use.
Delegations also noted that the review of an Airspace
Training initiative is well underway.

The two delegations noted the progress of ongoing bilateral
negotiations aimed at solving the long-standing issue of
annual wage increases for the Portuguese employees of the
U.S. military contingent at Lajes.

End text.


For more reporting from Embassy Lisbon and information about Portugal,
please see our Intelink site:

http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/portal:port ugal

STEPHENSON