CWC: WRAP-UP FOR JUNE 15-22, 2009

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 THE HAGUE 000371 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR ISN/CB, VCI/CCA, L/NPV, IO/MPR SECDEF FOR OSD/GSA/CN,CP> JOINT STAFF FOR DD PMA-A FOR WTC COMMERCE FOR BIS (BROWN AND DENYER) NSC FOR LUTES WINPAC FOR WALTER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PARM PREL CWC SUBJECT: CWC: WRAP-UP FOR JUNE 15-22, 2009 REF: A. STATE 59827 ¶B. STATE 58248 ¶C. THE HAGUE 352 ¶D. THE HAGUE 324 This is CWC-34-09. -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (SBU) As instructed in Ref A, U.S. Delreps met with Mohadeb Gheton of Libya on June 22 to deliver the U.S. non-paper detailing specific requests for greater transparency and information about Libya's conversion of its former Chemical Weapons Production Facility (CWPF) at Rabta and the destruction of its remaining chemical weapons stockpile. ¶2. (SBU) The Western European and Others Group (WEOG) continued its series of meetings with the candidates for Director-General, meeting with German Ambassador Peter Gottwald, Federal Commission for Arms Control and Disarmament, on June 16. Consultations were held on Article X on June 18 to discuss preparations for ASSISTEX 3, an international exercise planned for 2010 in Tunisia. Facilitator Said Moussi (Algeria) convened his final consultation on Article VII and encouraged candidates to come forward to replace him. ¶3. (SBU) Delreps also met with the Head of the Implementation Support Branch to discuss possible Technical Secretariat (TS) funding of Iraqi participants in a joint U.S./UK National Authority Training Course, and with TS representatives to discuss U.S. comments on the 2008 Verification Implementation Report (VIR). -------------- MEETING WITH LIBYAN DELEGATE -------------- ¶4. (SBU) On June 22, Delreps Beik and Granger met with Libyan Delegate Mohadeb Gheton to deliver the U.S. non-paper and talking points as instructed in Ref A. Gheton had expected the new Libyan Permanent Representative, Ambassador Ahmed Hassan Ahmed Walid, to join the meeting, but he did not appear. Delreps emphasized the need for greater transparency and detailed information about Libya's conversion of its former Chemical Weapons Production Facility at Rabta and the destruction of its remaining chemical weapons stockpile, noting that the same request will be made in Tripoli by the U.S. Embassy. ¶5. (SBU) Gheton stated that he would convey the non-paper to Tripoli that afternoon and relay any questions or comments that he received from his government. He agreed that a meeting of Libyan and U.S. experts before the Executive Council meeting in July would be useful but could not say whether the Libyan delegation could travel then; he promised to stay in touch. -------------- WEOG -------------- ¶6. (SBU) On June 16, the Western European and Others Group (WEOG) was introduced to the German candidate for Director-General (DG),Amb. Peter Gottwald. Gottwald made an impressive presentation, speaking in near-perfect English and THE HAGUE 00000371 002 OF 005 demonstrating a solid command of the substantive issues facing the OPCW. Notably, he was the first candidate to address how the DG -- and the TS for that matter -- does not set policy but rather serves and supports States Parties. ¶7. (SBU) Gottwald declared that the top challenge facing the OPCW is making it sustainable and "fit for the 21st century." Demilitarization, however, remains the top priority at present. With regards to 2012 and the prospects that States Parties may miss the destruction deadline, he believes that the DG's role is to help chart a possible solution. He did not want to address directly what would happen if States Parties missed the deadline, preferring instead to allow States Parties to utilize the remaining three years to complete destruction as much as possible. Destruction, nevertheless, is bigger than 2012 and includes, for example, Iraq and abandoned CW in China. He also argued that the nonproliferation regime is the best way for the chemical industry to demonstrate a "clean bill of health." Gottwald recognized that international cooperation and assistance are motivating factors for some countries to join the convention but reiterated that the OPCW is not -- and should not become -- a technical cooperation organization. ¶8. (SBU) Delrep asked about Gottwald's view of the current TS tenure policy. Gottwald noted merits and drawbacks to the policy and suggested looking at how the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna employs its tenure policy with discretion as a possible model for the OPCW. Gottwald made several comparisons to the IAEA, most notably in the search for a new DG. Whereas in Vienna he recognizes the process is becoming muddy, he appealed in WEOG for a continued, mature approach, one that places consensus above everything else. In this fashion, Gottwald admitted that he would willingly step aside to allow for a consensus candidate to emerge if it was clear he would not win. ¶9. (SBU) French Ambassador Blarel asked how Gottwald would go about filling senior management positions and also raised the issue of choosing the next Deputy Director-General (DDG). Gottwald conceded that a non-WEOG DDG would be likely if the next DG came from WEOG; and, while he stressed the need for qualified staff, he acknowledged the importance of geographic spread, particularly among senior-level positions. In response to a Spanish question on the OPCW's role in counter-terrorism, Gottwald argued that the OPCW's primary goal is to raise awareness of the threat, then to facilitate an exchange of best practices, and finally to win over the chemical industry to this cause. In response to Ireland's question on improving the inspection and verification regime for other chemical production facilities (OCPFs),Gottwald stated that the DG can help alter attitudes but ultimately the responsibility would fall to States Parties, and specifically the EC, to set policy priorities. ¶10. (SBU) After Gottwald's presentation, Dutch Ambassador Pieter de Savornin Lohman (WEOG Vice- QAmbassador Pieter de Savornin Lohman (WEOG Vice- Chair) raised the proposed dates for EC sessions in 2010 and said that he would raise the conflicts with U.S. national holidays with the EC Bureau and the TS. As in previous years, Switzerland and Austria proposed reducing the number of ECs from four to three. The UK delegate noted that the timing of EC sessions is as important as the number in order to make best use of the EC's time and to THE HAGUE 00000371 003 OF 005 lessen the amount of work deferred from one session to the next. -------------- MEETING WITH IPB HEAD MARK ALBON -------------- ¶11. (U) On June 17, Delreps Robinson and Granger met with Implementation Support Branch (IPB) Head Mark Albon to discuss a proposed U.S./UK training course for the Iraqi National Authority, including the possibility of IPB funding travel and related costs for Iraqi participants and of the TS conducting a session on the proper handling of OPCW classified information. Delreps provided an approximate cost, the number of Iraqi participants and the planned time frame for the training. Although there are several OPCW-sponsored National Authority workshops and training events scheduled for later this year, Albon acknowledged that the U.S./UK training was probably unique in the hands- on experience it would provide. He agreed to consider funding Iraq's participation if training materials from the course would be provided to IPB for use in their own future training events. -------------- ARTICLE X CONSULTATIONS -------------- ¶12. (U) On June 18, Article X facilitator Maciej Karasinski convened a meeting to discuss Secretariat preparations for ASSISTEX 3, an international exercise being planned for 2010 in Tunisia. Like the previous two ASSISTEX exercises (held in Croatia in 2002 and Ukraine in 2005), ASSISTEX 3 will exercise key elements of an investigation of alleged use and the delivery of assistance in the aftermath of a chemical attack. Handouts from the presentations have been forwarded separately to Washington. ¶13. (U) DDG John Freeman opened by emphasizing the importance of the exercise and expressing gratitude for Tunisia's offer to host it. Assistance and Protection Branch (APB) Head Gennadi Lutay then gave a presentation on objectives and the status of preparation. He reminded delegations of the invitation the Secretariat had sent (dated April 22, 2009),and noted that the deadline for applications to participate in the exercise is September 15, 2009. The next planning meeting is scheduled for July 2009. ¶14. (U) Inspectorate Management Branch (IMB) Head Renato Carvalho then explained that the exercise also includes a program for observers and a demonstration day. The TS is currently working on the script for the exercise, and plans to train certain participants (interpreters, individuals playing victims of the attack, etc.) two days before the exercise itself. Lessons learned from the exercise will be used as the basis for a follow-up training plan, and a final report from the exercise should be available by December 2010. ¶15. (U) In the question and answer period that followed, Czech delegate Jitka Brodska requested the TS continue providing regular updates on the status of preparations for the exercise. Brodska also asked what new areas ASSISTEX 3 would focus on, taking into account lessons learned in previous exercises. Carvalho replied that the TS had learned from the last exercise that certain Qlearned from the last exercise that certain operating procedures for investigations of alleged use did not work as well as expected, so the TS THE HAGUE 00000371 004 OF 005 will work on improving procedures during ASSISTEX ¶3. Carvalho also reminded delegates that the TS had developed a full-year training program based on lessons learned from the last exercise. He also noted that ASSISTEX 3 will be the first exercise held outside of Europe, which will present new challenges related to deployment and infrastructure. The Cuban delegate praised the TS for making a concrete contribution to the fight against terrorism through such exercises. The Iranian delegation took the opportunity to raise the issue of victims of chemical warfare, and asked whether the exercise will provide an evaluation of the Technical Secretariat's capacity to assist victims of a chemical attack. ¶16. (U) Before closing the meeting, Karasinski announced that he intends to hold another round of consultations before EC-57 in order to discuss a soon-to-be-released TS paper on the Protection Databank. -------------- --- MEETING WITH TS ON U.S. COMMENTS TO THE 2008 VIR -------------- --- ¶17. (U) On June 18, Delreps Robinson and Granger met with Policy Review Branch (PRB) Head Stian Holen and Senior Policy Officer Anna Roccatello to discuss U.S. comments on the 2008 Verification Implementation Report (VIR) per Ref B. Roccatello stated that a draft corrigendum would be circulated in advance of the VIR consultation on June 24; while there might not be time to incorporate all of the U.S. comments into that draft, Roccatello said that the final corrigendum would be released later and would reflect all comments received. -------------- -------------- RENEWED INTEREST IN U.S. AND UK RECOVERY OF CW IN IRAQ -------------- -------------- ¶18. (SBU) Del recently has heard two expressions of interest in the subject above from new South African Ambassador Peter Goosen. The first occurred during a conversation with Delrep in which Goosen mentioned that, in addition to the topic of managing the U.S. destruction deadlines issue, we would need to discuss U.S. and UK "non-compliance" in Iraq (having destroyed CW without declaring) to ensure that neither issue fell victim to political game playing. According to German Ambassador Werner Burkart, Goosen also raised the issue during the Africa Group's meeting with German DG candidate Amb. Gottwald, asking Gottwald how, if DG, he would deal with the issue of U.S. and UK non-compliance with the CWC in Iraq. -------------- ARTICLE VII CONSULTATIONS -------------- ¶19. (U) On June 18, Article VII facilitator Said Moussi (Algeria) convened his last consultation and announced he would be returning to Algiers in late July. OPCW Legal Advisor Santiago Onate opened the consultation with a briefing on progress made in implementing the Convention since his last update in February. Onate also commended the UK for providing the TS with sample declaration forms which have been circulated as models for other States Parties. He highlighted recent amendments QStates Parties. He highlighted recent amendments to Serbia's CWC-implementing legislation that include a provision for on-going review and assessment of implementation, the first provision THE HAGUE 00000371 005 OF 005 of its kind, according to Onate. He also noted that the TS still is waiting for the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic to officially designate their national authorities. Lebanese delegate Rami Adwan later announced that Lebanon, too, is still working on establishing its National Authority. ¶20. (U) Mark Albon (Head, IPB) briefed on recent meetings he had held with ten delegations resident in Brussels on their countries' Art. VII obligations. During the meetings, Albon said that he had encouraged those States Parties to become more active in OPCW programming, including participating in training courses and seminars. Albon then gave an overview of the TS Note on "Evaluation of the Programme for Implementation Support" (EC-56/S/1),which had been deferred from EC-56 to EC-57 to allow for consultations on the paper. ¶21. (U) Delegates from Italy, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands encouraged the TS to draft a new report evaluating the effectiveness of IPB programs. Delegates from Iran, South Africa, and Cuba responded in turn by questioning the usefulness of such an exercise without consensus on the meaning of "effectiveness." Cuba also suggested that such a debate could impact future budget deliberations. Albon agreed to draft another evaluation paper and welcomed constructive suggestions from delegations bilaterally. ¶22. (U) DEL NOTE: In light of his upcoming departure from The Hague, Moussi encouraged delegates to come forward to replace him as Article VII facilitator. While no names have been formally tabled, Delreps have heard informally that Adwan (Lebanon) is interested in taking over as facilitator from Moussi. END NOTE. ¶23. (U) BEIK SENDS. GALLAGHER