Identifier | Created | Classification | Origin |
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09THEHAGUE706 | 2009-11-20 14:45:00 | UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY | Embassy The Hague |
VZCZCXYZ0002 OO RUEHWEB DE RUEHTC #0706/01 3241445 ZNR UUUUU ZZH O 201445Z NOV 09 FM AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3496 INFO RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC PRIORITY RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY RHMFIUU/DTRA ALEX WASHINGTON DC//OSAC PRIORITY |
UNCLAS THE HAGUE 000706 |
1. (U) Delrep attended the Eleventh Annual Workshop on Coordination of Article X Assistance and Protection held November 1-3 in Doha, Qatar. The workshop was co-sponsored by the OPCW Technical Secretariat (TS) and the Qatari National Committee for the Prohibition of Weapons, Qatar's CWC National Authority. Approximately 50 participants attended, half of whom came from various Qatari security and emergency response agencies. The other half came from 23 countries, six of whom were national delegates from The Hague and the remaining were representatives of national authorities from capitals. The UN also sent an official from its logistics department. Del has sent ISN/CB by email a copy of the complete participant list. 2. (U) The TS Assistance and Protection Branch provided most of the briefings on a broad overview of the status of implementation of Article X. The workshop was thus geared toward substance/policy discussion and not practical training for first responders. The emphasis in the briefings was on the need to develop national/regional capacities because the TS does not have the capacity to respond to every incident of a chemical weapons (CW) attack in a timely fashion. Using its own Assistance, Coordination and Assessment Team (ACAT) as an example, the OPCW's only fly-away rapid response resource, the TS would ideally like to develop a network of regional response teams that can better serve the needs of States Parties in times of a real crisis. 3. (U) Each participating country was given the opportunity to make a national presentation on its protective program and current efforts to assist other States Parties in protecting against a CW attack. Eleven countries made national presentations: China, Iran, the Czech Republic, Serbia, Switzerland, India, the UK, Colombia, Peru, Sierra Leone and Mexico. Copies of those national presentations which were made available, as well as all of the TS briefings have been sent separately to ISN/CB. 4. (SBU) China sent a representative from its Ministry of National Defense, Senior Colonel Tang Cheng, who previously worked in the TS Verification Division. Tang provided a detailed briefing, including slides with pictures, on China's defensive and assistance programs. Iran sent its most junior delegate from The Hague, Ali Gholampour, who delivered a verbal presentation without slides on Iran's Article X programs. While Iran had given initial priority to equipping its armed forces with defensive equipment against a CW attack, Gholampour said recent efforts have shifted to providing the civilian population with humanitarian/medical assistance in case of a CW attack. Gholampour noted the shift in focus was due to the very real threat of a CW attack in Iran's "dangerous neighborhood" and its own experience as a previous target. Iran is developing a research institute on responding to CW attacks and has begun to incorporate CW awareness in its school system. Gholampour ended his presentation with the reminder that Iran's proposal to establish an international victim's network Qto establish an international victim's network remains under consideration by the OPCW policy- making organs; Delrep intervened to oppose such a network. (Del Comment: Overall, Gholampour was far more constructive than he acts during consultations and meetings in The Hague. End Comment.) 5. (SBU) It was made clear to Delrep throughout the conference, by both TS officials and participants from Latin America, that the U.S. is doing far more under Article X than we are given credit for in the OPCW. Delrep learned that the U.S. has been providing general assistance in the CBRN/hazmat protective field to Caribbean and South American countries; however, the U.S. has not claimed credit for such assistance under Article X. Specifically, TS officials told Delrep that the U.S. had provided hazmat trailers to Caribbean countries. These trailers have been extremely useful in training first responders in the region, and the TS officials asked Delrep if the U.S. can provide more such trailers. Additionally, the Mexican representative told Delrep about CBRN first response training provided by the U.S. in Mexico in mid-October. During its national presentation, Peru also thanked the U.S. for its assistance. As long as any U.S. assistance includes some aspect of protection against a CW attack, TS officials indicated that the U.S. should be claiming credit for providing Article X assistance so that the TS can include it in its annual report. 6. (SBU) In one of its presentations, the TS indicated that it plans to conduct technical visits to verify offers of assistance (made under Article X paragraph 7) from the following countries: the U.S., Germany, India, Moldova, Pakistan and the UK. The TS conducted its first such visit in 2007 to China. After the presentation, the TS official approached Delrep privately and said that the U.S. should expect to receive a written formal request from the Assistance and Protection Branch sometime in early 2010. While acknowledging that the U.S. offer is broad and general in scope, the TS official maintained that the TS still wishes to visit to physically verify the items being considered for offer. The TS official noted the success of a visit in 2008 to Australia, which has a broad offer for Article X assistance similar to that of the United States. The TS has conducted 19 such technical visits to date and is trying to avoid using the term "inspection" to describe such visits. 7. (U) The TS Office of Special Projects announced its intention to host a table-top exercise on chemical safety and security with Poland in May or June 2010. The exercise plans to simulate an attack on a chemical plant by a non-state actor; more information on the exercise will be released prior to the Conference of the States Parties (CSP) in The Hague. The goal of the exercise is to help reduce the risks of toxic chemicals being used by terrorists, to develop national response capacities, and to improve coordination efforts with other entities, such as the European Union (EU). 8. (U) SMITH SENDS. GALLAGHER |