Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09STATE38617
2009-04-18 01:57:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Secretary of State
Cable title:  

CWC: U.S. RESPONSE TO OPCW LEGAL ADVISER ON

Tags:  PARM PREL CWC IZ 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0000
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHC #8617 1080215
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 180157Z APR 09
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE IMMEDIATE 0000
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON IMMEDIATE 0000
RUEHGB/AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD IMMEDIATE 0000
UNCLAS STATE 038617 

SIPDIS - THE HAGUE FOR CWC DELEGATION

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PARM PREL CWC IZ
SUBJECT: CWC: U.S. RESPONSE TO OPCW LEGAL ADVISER ON
U.S. SUPPLEMENTAL DECLARATION ON IRAQ

REF: THE HAGUE 245 (CWC: URGENT LEGAL QUESTIONS ON U.S.
SUPPLEMENTAL DECLARATION ON IRAQ)

UNCLAS STATE 038617

SIPDIS - THE HAGUE FOR CWC DELEGATION

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PARM PREL CWC IZ
SUBJECT: CWC: U.S. RESPONSE TO OPCW LEGAL ADVISER ON
U.S. SUPPLEMENTAL DECLARATION ON IRAQ

REF: THE HAGUE 245 (CWC: URGENT LEGAL QUESTIONS ON U.S.
SUPPLEMENTAL DECLARATION ON IRAQ)


1. (U) This is an action request for all addressees on
Monday, April 20, 2009, see paras 4-6.


2. (U) Background: On April 14, U.S. delreps to the
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
(OPCW) met with OPCW Technical Secretariat (TS) Legal
Adviser Santiago Onate and other OPCW TS representatives
to discuss the legal sufficiency of the U.S.
Supplemental Declaration on chemical weapons recovered
in Iraq. Onate's legal view is that a U.S. decision to
submit this information via an official declaration form
might cause the TS to raise a number of potentially
difficult technical and verification questions, most
importantly why the U.S. did not declare these weapons
at time of recovery and invite the TS to verify
destruction. Onate suggested that the U.S. might
consider appending the information on recovered rounds
to Iraq's initial declaration, perhaps in the same
category as other narrative descriptions of past
activities. The United States would need agreement from
Iraq on this informal submission and coordinate this
decision with the UK. (NOTE: The UK is submitting an
informal letter to the OPCW on CW rounds that it
recovered in Iraq. End note.).


3. (U) A subsequent telephone conversation between Onate
and L/NPV (M.Brown) and DoD/OGC (J.Wager) on 16 April
2009 revealed that, in Onate's opinion, the CWC, under
these particular conditions, does not require a formal
declaration (CW Form 1.0) to report the results of the
recovery and destruction of the Iraqi chemical
munitions. He explained his rationale was based on his
assessment that the purpose of that form was to permit
verification of destruction, which, in this case, had
already occurred. As a result, an informal letter from
the United States to the TS, for transparency purposes,
that provides information on the recovered CW is the
preferred approach. A written Memorandum for the Record
(MFR) on the 16 April 2009 telephone conversation with
Onate has been prepared, along with an MFR of the events
leading up to the interagency decision on how to provide
the information to the TS. In light of the phone
conversation and subsequent decisions, Washington will:

1) prepare a letter from the United States to the TS to
request the withdrawal of the U.S. supplemental
declaration; and

2) prepare a letter from the United States to the
Director-General of the OPCW that outlines, for
transparency purposes, the CW recoveries by U.S. forces
in Iraq.


4. (U) Action Request: CWC Delegation The Hague.


A. Using the letter provided by Washington, Del should
seek return of the U.S. supplemental declaration and
cover letter, and inform the appropriate TS officials
that, instead of the supplemental declaration, the
United States now plans to submit a letter from the U.S.
National Authority to inform the TS of the rounds
recovered in Iraq. We do not believe it appropriate,
however, to append this letter as an annex to the Iraqi
declaration, although we recognize that the TS may want
to file them together, or to number them in a similar
manner, for administrative reasons. The U.S. letter
will refer to the 2007 letter from the United States and
UK foreign ministers, which was cited in and annexed to
UNSCR 1762 (29 June 2007). That letter informed the
Security Council that "all appropriate steps have been
taken to secure, remove, disable, render harmless,
eliminate or destroy (a) all of Iraq's known weapons of
mass destruction and ballistic missiles with a range of
greater than 150 kilometers and (b) all known elements
of Iraq's programs established to research, develop,
design, manufacture, produce, support, assemble and
employ such weapons and delivery systems, subsystems and
components thereof."


B. Del should inform the Iraqi delegation of this
planned approach and seek any comments.


C. Del should brief the UK del on this matter.


D. Absent any strong objections from the TS or the Iraq
or UK delegations, the interagency cleared letter
transmitting this information will arrive separately and
should be signed by Dr. Robert Mikulak and delivered to
the Director-General.


5. (U) Action Request: Embassy Baghdad. Post should draw
on the above background to inform appropriate Iraqi
officials.


6. (U) Action Request: Embassy London. Post should draw
on the above information to update appropriate UK
officials.
CLINTON