U/S BURNS AND FS RAO REVIEW PROGRESS ON U.S.-INDIA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 NEW DELHI 002121 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/16/2019 TAGS: PREL PARM TSPL KNNP ETTC ENGRG TRGY IN SUBJECT: U/S BURNS AND FS RAO REVIEW PROGRESS ON U.S.-INDIA STRATEGIC DIALOGUE Classified By: Ambassador Timothy J. Roemer for Reasons 1.4 (B and D) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY. Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and Under Secretary for Political Affairs Bill Burns discussed progress on the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue and Prime Minister Singh's official state visit to Washington November 22-26. Over the course of an initial one-on-one meeting, a bilateral session, and a regional issues lunch (septel),they agreed both governments are on the "same page" regarding the visit. Burns and Rao expressed support for the idea of a Green Initiative with a focus on clean energy and food security. Looking to Copenhagen, Rao was generally positive on the Danish proposal to draft a short accord and focus the discussion on domestic initiatives. Burns and Rao agreed to pursue a MOU on counterterrorism, a systematic nonproliferation dialogue, and a possible roadmap for liberalizing U.S. export controls vis-a-vis India. Rao confirmed that India would announce its reactor sites in the near future (the announcement was made the evening of October 16) and continued to review the Part 810 license assurances. Rao sought public U.S. support for India's aspirations for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council. Burns explained that the United States continued its internal review of UN Security Council reform. END SUMMARY. The PM Visit and Beyond -------------- ¶2. (SBU) On October 16 Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and visiting Under Secretary for Political Affairs Bill Burns, joined by Ambassador Roemer, Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asia Bob Blake and NSC Acting Senior Director Anish Goel, discussed the progress of the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue and Prime Minister Singh's official state visit to Washington November 22-26. Rao remarked that the Indian government was keen to make the Prime Minister's Washington trip a "landmark visit" and expressed appreciation for Secretary Clinton's personal oversight of the Strategic Dialogue. Rao welcomed the general agreement on the tangible outcomes for the PM's visit and hoped for a joint statement that would send a strong message regarding future bilateral, regional, and global collaboration. Rao and Burns credited the series of high-level visits with establishing the foundation for a successful summit. The Strategic Security Dialogue, the Education Dialogue, the Women's Empowerment Dialogue and the Global Issues Forum would meet before November to identify outcomes for the joint statement. Burns shared Rao's optimism regarding the "enormous potential" of the bilateral partnership, as well as her conviction to leverage the PM visit to further tangible progress on bilateral cooperation. Green Initiative and Climate Change -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Both Rao and Burns expressed support for the idea of a Green Initiative as a creative way to approach the interrelated issues of clean energy and food security. They concurred on areas for energy cooperation and technology transfer, including renewable, solar, and wind energy. Rao shared Prime Minister Singh's plan to mainstream the climate change debate as part of an overall inclusive growth strategy. Both sides saw merit in a joint research center and a possible USD 100 million Green Fund to finance new technology and innovation projects (drawn from USG, Indian government, and private sector contributions). Burns anticipated that attracting private sector investment to the Green Fund would not be problematic, but acknowledged that identifying government funding could require more time. He underlined that announcing the intention to establish such a fund might demonstrate both governments' practical approach to the issues. Rao reminded Burns that GOI awaited a response to its MOU on Clean and Efficient Energy and Climate Change that Deputy Planning Commissioner Ahluwalia presented to Energy Secretary Chu on September 11. Observing common ground on the "key ingredients," Burns cautioned the USG may decide against a broad MOU. On food security, Rao and Burns hoped to focus efforts on food processing, farm-to-market links, and weather forecasting. Rao promised that a revised non-paper on agriculture would be forthcoming. NEW DELHI 00002121 002 OF 003 ¶4. (C) Burns observed that the December UN Climate Conference in Copenhagen "loomed large" over the Prime Minister's visit, and stressed the importance of Indian cooperation on climate issues. He told Rao that President Obama had responded favorably to the Danish proposal for a brief political accord followed by legal drafting after the conference. Rao confirmed the Danes had pitched the same proposal to the GOI and India was "absolutely willing" to share its domestic initiatives on climate change, including solar energy and reforestation. The GOI would not object to reorienting the conversation in this manner, so long as it did not appear that India had bowed to external pressure. Strategic Cooperation - CT, Defense, and Export Controls -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Burns recommended both governments pursue practical areas of collaboration identified by Home Minister Chidambaram following his September visit to the United States, including coastal security, policing megacities, and rail security. Acknowledging the time needed by the GOI for an interagency review, Burns promised to try to send the GOI a draft counterterrorism MOU by next week. The MEA hoped New York Police Department Commissioner Raymond Kelly would accept the government's invitation to conduct a workshop on policing megacities in India. Rao also sought U.S. support for the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT),which India introduced in the UN in 1996. ¶6. (C) Burns and Rao appreciated the value of a systematic nonproliferation dialogue, especially considering opportunities in multilateral fora over the next several years. Rao welcomed President Obama's call for universal disarmament and congratulated the President on winning the Nobel Peace Prize. Rao flagged Pakistan's views on the Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty. ¶7. (SBU) Burns and Rao agreed that defense cooperation was an area of great potential and Rao said the GOI looked forward to welcoming Defense Secretary Gates to India. Following the End Use Monitoring (EUM) agreement, both governments anticipated increased access for U.S. defense companies to the India market. Burns observed that the benefits of EUM extended beyond defense sales, as subsequent joint exercises and training would lead to greater mutual understanding. Ambassador Roemer suggested that the United States and India consider increased cooperation on humanitarian and disaster relief and anti-piracy efforts, even if specific agreements would not be reached by November. ¶8. (SBU) Burns affirmed that the United States will attempt to draft a roadmap for the first phase in liberalizing U.S. export controls applicable to India. The roadmap would outline several steps each government must take to move forward. The Prime Minister's visit would provide momentum for the next phase in reexamining the issue. Rao encouraged the USG to review its entities list and consider removing Indian defense labs, as it was "absolutely clear" such labs were not engaged in WMD development or deployment. She also requested that the United States reconsider space research entities, to move the bilateral partnership to "the final frontier." Civil Nuclear Cooperation -------------- ¶9. (C) Rao confirmed the GOI's intention to announce reactor park sites for U.S. firms "very soon." (These were announced on the evening of October 16.) With regard to the reprocessing consultations, she agreed that both sides needed to address issues of multiple facilities, physical security, and a safeguards program. Burns urged the GOI to assume a "problem-solving" approach to the third round of reprocessing negotiations planned for November 5-6 in Vienna. Ambassador Roemer asked whether the GOI had reviewed examples of similar arrangements with others, such as Japan, as a possible precedent. He also inquired whether the Part 810 license assurances provided by other countries -- including the UK, Germany, and China -- and shared with the GOI helped allay NEW DELHI 00002121 003 OF 003 India's concerns with this process. J/S Kumar responded that the Department of Atomic Energy was considering the draft reprocessing arrangement text and promised a response within several days. A/S Blake asked whether the GOI had made its IAEA declaration of facilities public. Rao responded, "We have done what we needed to do and are prepared to tell the world." Other Summit Outcomes -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Burns and Rao agreed to pursue the following Strategic Dialogue outcomes: the Obama-Singh Higher Education Fund, the CEO Forum -- including "cross fertilization" opportunities in the education and health sub-dialogues, the Global Disease Detection Program, and polio eradication. After addressing the opening of the Indian consulates in Seattle and Atlanta during the one-on-one, Rao said the GOI would try to resolve several issues. Rao relayed the GOI's approval of the upcoming World War II MIA Accountability Command (JPAC mission) to India in early November, but would review the mission's progress before committing to future commitments. UNSC Reform -------------- ¶11. (C) Rao told Burns that while India appreciated Ambassador Susan Rice's willingness to clarify the U.S. stance, the GOI continued to pursue "passionately" a permanent seat on the UN Security Council (UNSC). She did not believe differences on Security Council reform were insurmountable and hoped the United States would support India's aspirations in a joint statement released during the PM's visit. Rao proposed the United States consider the joint statement between India and China as a potential model of including a UNSC nod. Burns said Ambassador Rice valued the consultations with Indian Permanent Representative Puri. He explained the Obama administration continued its systematic internal review on Security Council Reform and pledged to consult India and others as the review progressed. He cautioned, however, against any expectation of a public step forward on this issue during the Singh visit. ROEMER