Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09THEHAGUE518
2009-08-31 15:24:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy The Hague
Cable title:  

CWC: CONSULTATIONS ON THE SELECTION OF A NEW

Tags:  PARM PREL CWC 
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TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3199
INFO RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC PRIORITY
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C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 000518 

SENSITIVE
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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, DENYER AND CRISTOFARO)
NSC FOR LUTES
WINPAC FOR WALTER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/31/2019
TAGS: PARM PREL CWC
SUBJECT: CWC: CONSULTATIONS ON THE SELECTION OF A NEW
DIRECTOR-GENERAL FOR THE OPCW

REF: A. SECSTATE 89818

B. THE HAGUE 00451

Classified By: Janet E. Beik for reasons 1.4 (B) and (D)

This is CWC-49-09

------------------------
SUMMARY AND INTRODUCTION
------------------------

C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 000518

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, DENYER AND CRISTOFARO)
NSC FOR LUTES
WINPAC FOR WALTER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/31/2019
TAGS: PARM PREL CWC
SUBJECT: CWC: CONSULTATIONS ON THE SELECTION OF A NEW
DIRECTOR-GENERAL FOR THE OPCW

REF: A. SECSTATE 89818

B. THE HAGUE 00451

Classified By: Janet E. Beik for reasons 1.4 (B) and (D)

This is CWC-49-09

--------------
SUMMARY AND INTRODUCTION
--------------


1. (SBU) Dr. Robert Mikulak, ISN/CB Director and
U.S. Representative to the Executive Council (EC),
visited The Hague August 27-28 to consult with key
delegations on the selection of a new Director-
General (DG) for the Organization for the
Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
Accompanied by Delreps, he met with Ambassador
Jorge Lomonaco (Mexico),the EC Chairperson;
Ambassador Werner Burkart of Germany; Ambassador
Zhang Jun and Delegate Chen Kai of China; Delegates
Konstantin Gavrilov and Vladimir Ladanov of Russia;
Ambassador Jose Medeiros of Brazil; Delegate Jan
Lodding of Sweden (representing the EU presidency);
and Ambassador Peter Goosen and Delegate Marthinus
van Schalkwyk of South Africa. Mikulak shared U.S.
analysis on the strongest three DG candidates (ref
A) and inquired about other delegations' views of
the candidates' strengths and how the process will
unfold in the next few weeks.


2. (SBU) Chairperson Lomonaco was confident that
delegations' earlier concerns about the process for
selection have faded following agreement during the
July Executive Council session to his Road Map, and
he expressed optimism about narrowing the field of
seven candidates before the October session of the
EC. Other delegations are not yet revealing their
governments' choices (many not yet determined),but
they shared their analyses of the various
candidates' prospects. All agreed on the
importance of staying in close contact in the weeks
leading up to the next Council session.

--------------
MEETING WITH THE EC CHAIRPERSON
--------------


3. (C) Mikulak met first with Mexican Ambassador
Lomonaco to discuss how the EC Chairperson plans to
work through his Road Map into October. Delrep
Beik and Mexican delegate Blanca Polo also
participated in the meeting. Lomonaco noted that

August is really a vacation month with very few
delegations in town and even less activity. He
believed the process questions that preceded the
July EC have been settled; he said South African
Ambassador Goosen feels he has accomplished what he
set out to do on the DG search and will now turn
his attention to other issues he considers of more
importance (the deadlines for CW destruction).


4. (C) Lomonaco said he sees a kind of reversal of
roles -- prior to July, everyone was pursuing him,
now he must solicit information from all the
delegations, many of them reluctant to reveal their
preferences among the candidates. He was well
aware that many countries would not make an early
decision on a single candidate, but said he would
seek preferences at both the top and bottom of the
list in order to identify the candidates with less
support. He was optimistic that the field of seven
could be narrowed before the EC session in October,
but said he would convene a consultation in mid-
September if necessary to put pressure on
QSeptember if necessary to put pressure on
delegations to provide him with information. Two
of the strong candidates (he did not name the two)

are likely to have other prospects and may drop out
for that reason. Lomonaco thought he knew the
weakest candidate and possibly "number six" but
needed to confirm those hunches through
consultations.


5. (C) By October, Lomonaco would like to reduce a
field of four to two through informal sessions,
using secret ballots as needed. He hopes to return
to the OPCW "spirit of consensus" when it reaches
the final round during the Council meeting, but
realized that it may not be possible. He said that
Ambassador Dani (Algeria) will likely not withdraw,
since Dani believes he has lined up solid support
through the endorsements of the African Union and
Arab League. Lomonaco did not believe that support
for Dani would hold up in a series of straw polls.
He feels Dani has assured that he will stay in the
race, but that he has not garnered enough support
to win. Delrep noted that Dani himself has a vote
in the EC and could block consensus on any other
candidate. Lomonaco envisions a late night session
at the end of the EC, using OPCW's array of
experience (informal sessions, small groups, etc.)
to hammer out a consensus.


6. (C) Lomonaco then asked for the U.S.
"confession" of preferences, stating that he will
hold everyone's declarations of support in
strictest confidence. Using points from the
guidance (ref A),Mikulak explained the U.S. choice
of the top three candidates (Freeman/ UK, Gottwald/
Germany, Uzumcu/ Turkey) but that no decision has
been made. Dani (Algeria) and Thalmann
(Switzerland) have the least support in Washington,
he said, although no candidate has been ruled out.
Mikulak also noted that we are urging Germany and
the UK to work things out between their candidates.


7. (C) With regard to other issues at the Executive
Council, Lomonaco said that the budget is the only
other agenda item that requires a decision.
Destruction issues will arise and he expects
Iranian "trouble" on the report of the EC visit to
the U.S. destruction facilities, but he does not
mind whether the report is noted by the Council or
not. The DG decision is of greater importance to
most delegations than the budget, and he expects a
repeat of last year's budget debates, likely ending
in the same or a similar compromise on the numbers
of inspections of other chemical production
facilities (OCPFs).

--------------
MEETING WITH GERMAN AMBASSADOR
--------------


8. (C) Ambassador Werner Burkart, Germany's
Permanent Representative to the OPCW, invited
Mikulak and Delrep Beik to lunch on August 27.
Although Germany obviously supports Peter Gottwald,
their own candidate, Burkart said that he finds
most delegations in agreement with the U.S.
analysis of the top three contenders. He thought
the Swiss candidate might well drop out early, but
was not sure whether the Finnish candidate would do
so. He said Germany had received support for
Gottwald from about five countries, including
Russia, with another telling his government that
Gottwald was their second choice. Mikulak asked
whether Germany and the UK would meet to sort out
Qwhether Germany and the UK would meet to sort out
their mutual candidates; he said they had not
discussed the competition among close allies and
would likely not do so until late in the process.
Neither the previous nor current EU presidencies
had addressed the three competing EU candidates and
Burkart did not believe they would do so.



9. (SBU) On destruction issues, Burkart said that
the deadlines would remain an active issue in the
Council for political reasons, although he thought
the DG search would dominate the EC in October. He
said Russia would likely meet the 45% deadline for
destruction, but said it was becoming increasingly
apparent that they could not possibly finish by

2012. Germany is considering assistance to Iraq
for the destruction of its remaining chemical
weapons, including the possible use of robots to
take samples inside the bunker. Mikulak suggested
that Germany and the U.S. could usefully meet to
coordinate offers of assistance, and Burkart agreed
-- proposing sometime after the German meeting with
the Iraqis in Amman in October.


10. (SBU) Burkart agreed that it would be useful to
discuss the impasse over schedule 2A/2A* low
concentrations at the Berlin meeting of close
allies at the end of September to try to persuade
the UK to be flexible. New ideas would be needed
on the other outstanding industry consultations
(frequency of inspections and OCPF site selection
methodology),and Burkart did not foresee anyone
wanting to take them on.

--------------
MEETING WITH CHINESE AMBASSADOR
--------------


11. (SBU) Mikulak met with Chinese Ambassador Zhang
Jun on August 27; Delreps Beik and Granger and
Chinese delegates Chen Kai and Li Dong also
participated in the meeting. Zhang, recently
returned from extended leave in China, told Mikulak
that he had not yet discussed the DG selection with
Lomonaco but wants to do so soon. Noting that
China has been keen to have rules and a clear
procedure in place to avoid any messy situations,
Zhang said that he is happy with the Road Map
proposed by Lomonaco in July and that there is no
need for more technical discussions on procedure.


12. (C) Zhang noted that Beijing has not decided on
"the one" to support but that China would like to
see someone not only with disarmament expertise but
also with capabilities to handle issues skillfully
and diplomatically. Citing the need for the next
DG to be balanced in his approach, Zhang said that
Japanese abandoned chemical weapons (ACW) in China
should receive as much attention as other
destruction efforts. Zhang also said that
destruction needs to be balanced with non-
proliferation, including counter-terrorism, and
that international cooperation and assistance needs
appropriate attention.


13. (C) Observing that there is not a clear North-
South divide in CW disarmament, Zhang said that it
should not be assumed that China automatically will
support a candidate from a developing country.
Zhang also noted that there is no need for other
candidates to join the race late as the current
seven candidates offer a good choice. He shared
his view that the Indonesian candidate, while being
strong in some respects, has less expertise than
others. Zhang said that China is open to
considering all candidates and noted that some
(without naming who) have visited Beijing already.
He expressed his desire to coordinate with the
QHe expressed his desire to coordinate with the
U.S., saying that the key players in the OPCW need
to coordinate their positions. Zhang asked Mikulak
if he had heard that Russia is rumored to have
problems with the Turkish candidate; Mikulak
responded that he had not heard that. He shared
with Zhang the current U.S. thinking on the top

three candidates, noting that there is no single
favorite yet.


14. (SBU) Mikulak and Zhang also discussed the
budget, agreeing that it would be best to avoid a
drawn-out battle on it like last year. Zhang said
that China was not ready for a sharp increase in
OCPF inspections. Mikulak, agreeing that there
should not be a sharp increase until other issues
relating to OCPFs are addressed, observed that the
DG has proposed only a slight increase for 2010.
Zhang stated that the Chinese government is under
pressure from Chinese industry on inspection
numbers and that a delegation is set to visit The
Hague to discuss the matter.

--------------
MEETING WITH RUSSIAN DELEGATION
--------------


15. (SBU) Mikulak and Delreps Beik and Smith met
with Russian delegates Konstantin Gavrilov and
Vladimir Ladanov on August 27. Gavrilov opened
with a dismal forecast for the DG selection,
voicing concern over the number of candidates and
projecting that consensus would not be reached by
October. Feeling that unilateral withdrawal by DG
candidates would be unlikely, Gavrilov shared a
strong preference for the use of straw polls as a
selection tool because the anonymity of these straw
polls would enable individual delegations to stray
from the candidates that might have their regional
or organizational support.


16. (C) With regard to specific candidates,
Gavrilov reiterated his view that the United States
supports the UK candidate, Freeman, based on the
U.S./UK "special relationship." He stated that NAM
countries do not support Freeman, and Moscow has
"real problems" with Freeman. He also projected
that Freeman may be lobbying to keep his DDG
position and would be unlikely to withdraw without
confirming his retention of that position. Gavrilov
also predicted U.S. support for the Turkish
candidate, Uzumcu, calling this the "Trojan horse."
Yet his perception is that this candidate is well
qualified and he noted that Uzumcu had traveled to
Moscow to request the support of the Russian
Federation for his candidacy, the only candidate to
do so to date, although the Indonesian candidate
was due to visit Moscow next month.


17. (C) Gavrilov predicted that the final three
candidates would include Freeman, Uzumcu, and one
of the NAM country candidates, the last to be
determined by straw poll. Gavrilov and Delrep
discussed the perceived support for Dani, noting
that the African Union and the Arab League pledged
their support for Dani only, while the Organization
of the Islamic Conference endorsed both Uzumcu and
Dani (before the Indonesian candidate was
nominated). Delrep said the NAM support for Dani
may be more shallow than the endorsements would
suggest. Gavrilov emphasized the importance of
U.S./Russian coordination on the DG selection over
the coming weeks.


18. (SBU) Gavrilov stated that the Russian
Federation is interested in changing their
reputation within the organization and wants more
of a presence, particularly in key positions. He
complained that the U.S. and UK have substantial
Qcomplained that the U.S. and UK have substantial
influence and hold inflated numbers of key
positions, stating that the U.S. has personnel in
31 key positions. When Mikulak challenged his
figures, Ladanov replied that this might include
American "sympathizers."


--------------
MEETING WITH BRAZILIAN AMBASSADOR
--------------


19. (SBU) Mikulak and Delrep Smith met with
Brazilian Ambassador Jose Medeiros on August 27.
Medeiros stated that he had not yet received
instruction from capital regarding a preference for
DG candidates. He shared his personal view that
the Indonesian candidate was not impressive and
notm]j(QjBD}DG selection,
Medeiros alerted Mikulak that the Iranian
delegation is actively consulting with other
delegations to encourage that the EC visit report
not be noted in the next EC session. He expressed
that this was ludicrous and shared his frustration
over the erroneous understanding of the Iranian
delegation of the term, and action, of "noting" a
document.


21. (C) At the close of the meeting Mikulak
inquired about Medeiros' view of the United States
destruction deadline discussions. Medeiros
suggested that the EC mandate consultations be made
by the EC Chair on this matter, indicating that
this mandate would "strengthen his hand." Mikulak
stated that he did not feel that a mandate from the
EC was necessary and that this may actually lead to
the EC discussing the matter substantively rather
than empowering the Chair to lead the process.
Medeiros stated that his interest is procedural
only and he believed this would be "the issue"
following the DG selection.

--------------
MEETING WITH SWEDISH DELEGATION
--------------


22. (C) Mikulak and Delrep Granger met with Swedish
delegate Jan Lodding, representing the EU
presidency, on August 28. Lodding mentioned that
Sweden is still formulating its national position,
like most other EU members, in advance of it being
discussed at the September 4 meeting of the EU's
Disarmament Working Group. Based on the seven
candidates' presentations at the July EC session,
Lodding said the Indonesian's position has
weakened, the Turk's position has strengthened, and
all three EU candidates remain strong. Lodding
noted that Turkey and the UK were the first
countries to start actively campaigning. He
portrayed the UK candidate as representing
continuity, contrasting him with the Turkish
candidate who was brave enough to question a number
of the OPCW's "sacred cows" -- e.g., implementation
of the tenure policy -- that other candidates shied
away from.


23. (C) When Mikulak mentioned the U.S.' top three
candidates, Lodding agreed but was adamant in
including the Finn among the strongest four
contenders. Lodding agreed with EC Chairperson
Lomonaco's approach to determine the least likely
candidates as a way to narrow the field. When
Mikulak suggested that the Swiss likely will drop
out of the race soon, possibly followed by the
Indonesian and Finn, Lodding responded that he
agreed on the Swiss and the Indonesian but
Qagreed on the Swiss and the Indonesian but
disagreed on the Finn, viewing him as being as
electable as the German. Mikulak and Lodding

discussed the mechanics of straw polls and how they
could be used to narrow the field further before
the final recommendation is chosen by consensus.

--------------
MEETING WITH SOUTH AFRICAN AMBASSADOR
--------------


24. (C) On August 28, Mikulak and Delreps Beik and
Smith met with South African Ambassador Peter
Goosen and delegate Marthinus van Schalkwyk.
Goosen said the July Executive Council went well;
South Africa had had a number of "irons in the
fire" but got through them all. He said the DG
candidates' presentations were "fine" and he was
satisfied with the Road Map process outlined by the
Chair, but thought that Lomonaco could have saved
himself a lot of trouble if he had followed
Goosen's suggestion of issuing a statement on his
plans as Chair from the beginning. Beyond the
African Union's support for Dani, Goosen felt his
government was seriously considering the
candidates' presentations as it makes its decision,
but that the decision may be for reasons other than
"the well being of the OPCW." Goosen has asked
Pretoria for a priority list of the candidates.


25. (C) Mikulak responded that the U.S. is looking
at the candidates' leadership qualities and
authority, and noted the three strongest candidates
as Freeman, Gottwald and Uzumcu. Goosen said that
he was impressed with Freeman's presentation as
being "head and shoulders above the rest." He was
also impressed with the Turkish candidate, who had
clearly worked hard and shown himself as
knowledgeable about the Organization as Freeman
without having been in it. However, he was "not
impressed" by Gottwald; he and van Schalkwyk had
found him patronizing in his references to his
African postings -- a minefield for Africans.
Goosen was disappointed by Sudjadnan (Indonesia)
whom he knows well from Geneva. He found
Sudjadnan's presentation "disappointing" and noted
that Sudjadnan had not been prepared for the
question from the African group (about the
direction of future resources after destruction of
weapons is completed). The African Group had
deliberately asked the same question of all the
candidates, and Sudjadnan was the only one who
failed to answer it (ref B).


26. (C) Goosen gave a lively account of a lunch
hosted by the Polish Ambassador the week before for
which the purpose appeared to be promoting
Krzysztof Paturej as Deputy Director-General. He
noted that would only be possible if the Indonesian
or Algerian candidates were elected, as the Non-
Aligned Movement would not tolerate a WEOG DG with
an Eastern European (and EU) DDG. Delrep noted
that the DDG choice will not be with the members of
the Executive Council, but determined by the new
Director-General. She also noted that the balance
between the DG and DDG positions between developed
and developing countries was the only part of the
PrepCom gentlemen's agreement that had broad
support this past spring, even as many countries
rejected the agreement's plan for the DG position
to rotate this time to the developed nations.
Qto rotate this time to the developed nations.


27. (C) Goosen said he had proposed to the
Chairperson at the Polish lunch that he adopt a
scoring system for EC members' top choices (3, 2 or
1 points for preferred candidates and 0 for those
not mentioned),and asked Mikulak to help promote
the idea to give more concrete proof to the Chair's
conclusions about the strongest and weakest
candidates. Some of the ambassadors at the lunch

had liked the proposal. Mikulak responded that,
from his conversation with Lomonaco the day before,
he seemed to have taken that idea on board,
although perhaps not with numerical scoring.
Goosen and Mikulak agreed that, although some
observer states have strong views, Lomonaco should
only be counting the choices of EC members.


28. (C) On other EC issues, South Africa had sent
representatives to two meetings of the "like
minded" called by Iran on the EC visit to the U.S.
destruction facilities. Iran wants to declare the
U.S. out of compliance, but there was no unity
among the group, and South Africa noted that it had
participated in the visit. Van Schalkwyk said he
had told the group that the report stands, but that
South Africa has draft report language that will
follow previous visit reports. Goosen advised
Mikulak that, while discussion of the deadline is
needed, he himself is cautious of any approach that
would try to extend the deadline.


29. (SBU) On the consultations regarding chemical
weapons destroyed during combat, Goosen emphasized
the forward-looking nature of his approach and said
that the language proposed by the UK, and agreed by
the U.S., was broader than he would have drafted
and may lead to a discussion of what occurred in
Iraq. He was pleased that South Africa was able to
bring the Africa Group "along" on these issues,
modifying some more radical positions.


30. (SBU) One other issue that Goosen plans to
pursue is South Africa and Iran's objection to the
DG's stance on publishing information about the
national origins of TS staff. They have received
the information they requested in private, but
Goosen feels it should be made public, and that the
DG's "emotional" defense at the July EC means that
he is "hiding something." Goosen warned that he
intends to find out what that is.

--------------
DEL COMMENT
--------------


31. (C) These meetings with the Chinese and South
Africans confirmed Chairperson Lomonaco's view that
the procedural questions have dissipated and that
delegations are focusing on the choice of an
individual for Director-General rather than the
process. Having won the support of the EC for his
Road Map, Lomonaco seems determined to complete the
choice in October and he relishes the challenge.
Lomonaco will need to maintain his optimism and
keep up an intensive pace of consultations to
narrow the field from seven to two in a mere seven
weeks.


32. (C) The Turkish candidate appears to have
impressed several key delegations, and may well
surface among the top choices of quite a number of
delegations even though not as first choice. In
this round of meetings, there were fewer negatives
expressed about Uzumcu than for either Freeman or
Gottwald. Del will continue canvassing opinions as
delegations return en masse from the August recess.
End Comment.


33. (U) Dr. Mikulak returned to Washington before
clearing this cable.


34. (U) BEIK SENDS.
LEVIN