C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 STATE 036077

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/23/2015
TAGS: OSCE PARM PREL NATO
SUBJECT: CFE/VCC: NON-PAPER FOR DISTRIBUTION TO ALLIES ON
STATUS OF VCC AD HOC GROUP OF EXPERTS

REF: A. A. AC-319-DS(2008)0003

B. B. 08 USNATO 102

Classified By: Donna A. Phelan, Acting VCI/CCA Office Director.
Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D).


1. (U) This is an action message. Mission is requested to
distribute to Allies the non-paper contained in para six
below.


2. (C/REL NATO) Background. Ref A indicates that in April
2008 the Verification Coordination Committee (VCC) tasked
experts to review Vienna Document 1999 (VD 99) implementation
issues in advance of the 2009 Annual Implementation
Assessment Meeting (AIAM). Ref B elaborates, noting that the
tasking was prompted by a perception that Allies were
restrained from participating in the 2008 AIAM by the lack of
Allied consensus on outstanding VD 99 implementation
concerns, and it was intended to better prepare Allies for
discussions at the next AIAM. Between April 08 and the AIAM
in March 09, experts met every month except August to discuss
and coordinate positions. The results of this exercise were
generally positive as evidenced by 1) detailed Allied
discussions on all outstanding VD 99 implementation issues,
2) active Allied participation in the 2009 AIAM, which was
notably higher than in the previous year, and 3) the
introduction of two Allied-prepared and supported papers as
national submissions at the AIAM. Having diligently
considered the comprehensive list of issues before it, and
having forwarded to Vienna those issues on which Allies found
common ground, Washington believes that the ad hoc group of
experts has completed its task.


3. (C/REL NATO) In its first meeting following the AIAM on
March 6, 2009 the group of experts seemed eager to build on
the process followed in 2008. The Chair invited Allied
experts to identify additional issues that experts could
discuss in 2009. The Chair itself suggested experts review a
paper on a VD 99 implementation analysis that Russia produced
for the AIAM, or reconsider the list of issues developed in
April 2008. Other Allies advocated a chapter-by-chapter
review of VD 99, while one Ally suggested experts look a

t
potential implementation issues for ACFE. In the end, experts
agreed that it was premature to consider future work, but the
Chair asked experts to be prepared to discuss the FSC annual
Survey of Suggestions (for the 2009 AIAM) at the next meeting
on April 23.


4. (C/REL NATO) It is Washington's position that the group
of experts was established to address specific issues on a
case-by-case basis as tasked by the VCC. Experts completed
their most recent tasking, to review implementation of VD 99,
prior to the 2009 AIAM in February.


5. (SBU) The past year's work was useful and Washington is
satisfied that experts effectively identified and discussed
the most significant implementation issues associated with VD

99. In addition, experts developed and assessed a number of
proposals to address these issues, forwarding those having
broad Alliance support to Vienna for further development.
Having completed this tasking, Washington expects the group
of experts to wait for further tasking from the VCC before
outlining a plan for, or beginning, future work. End
Background.


6. (C/REL NATO) Mission is requested to distribute the
following non-paper to Allies through the IS, ACCS.

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At the March 7, 2008 VCC meeting Allies tasked experts to
review Vienna Document 1999 (VD 99) implementation issues in
advance of the 2009 Annual Implementation Assessment Meeting
(AIAM). In the months that followed, Allies developed a
number of position papers, which effectively prepared Allies
for discussions in Vienna. The United States recognizes the

STATE 00036077 002 OF 002


value of the work accomplished in the group of experts and
notes with satisfaction that the group's comprehensive
approach allowed Allies to participate more actively in the
2009 AIAM.

During the VCC meeting of experts on March 6, 2009, it was
suggested that the group begin to consider topics that
experts could address in 2009. The resulting discussion
included a number of suggested tasks for experts, including,
inter alia:

- conduct a chapter-by-chapter review of VD 1999 (this topic
was raised by Russia at the 2009 AIAM),
- assess the Russian AIAM paper on VD 1999 implementation,
- revisit the list of topics that formed the basis for work
in 2008, and
- identify and discuss potential ACFE implementation issues.

Further dialogue was postponed until the next meeting,
scheduled for April 23, in the expectation that, in the
interim, the FSC would publish its annual AIAM Survey of
Suggestions. Experts were asked to be prepared to discuss the
Survey at the next meeting with a view to identifying
implementation issues for further study.

We believe that it would be useful for the VCC to discuss
what should be the appropriate role of the Group of Experts
in the months ahead. The United States sees the VCC as the
main Allied forum for discussion of issues and reaching
decisions pertaining to implementation of VD 99
and CFE. When informal coordination, specific technical
expertise, and/or extended discussion are required, the VCC
has the option of establishing a sub-group to deal with
continuing technical issues (such as the Data Management
Experts Group (DMEG)), or of calling for experts to meet on
an ad hoc basis to perform such functions as allocating
inspection opportunities, deconflicting inspection schedules,
and evaluating specific issues. The United States supports
and participates in all such meetings. However, experts
respond to consensus-based taskings of the VCC. Thus, the
2008 VCC tasking to conduct a review of VD 99 implementation
issues was specifically targeted at increasing the value of
the 2009 AIAM. In completing their review and discussion
prior to the 2009 AIAM, experts successfully closed out this
tasking.

The VCC is vested by the NAC with responsibility for
coordinating and making recommendations on activities in arms
control verification that have been agreed by countries as
being appropriate for handling on a cooperative basis within
the Alliance. When there is doubt about such agreement, the
VCC may decide to seek policy guidance, primarily from the
HLTF. In the view of the United States, many of the
suggestions made at the last meeting of VCC experts could
have broader policy implications. As such, the VCC should
consider seeking policy guidance from the HLTF before
deciding whether to create a new ad hoc tasking for experts.


The United States would like to raise this issue in the VCC
and respectfully requests the Arms Control and Coordination
Section (ACCS) to include the topic "Experts' Ad Hoc Agenda"
on the VCC agenda for April 23, 2009. We would welcome a
discussion in the VCC on the role of this group of experts
and on potential new taskings for it from the VCC.

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CLINTON