CWC: DISCUSSION WITH GENERAL KHOLSTOV ON STATUS

C O N F I D E N T I A L THE HAGUE 000745

SIPDIS

STATE FOR ISN/CB, ISN/CTR, VCI/CCA,
SECDEF FOR OUSD-P/ISP/TSPCPP/CTR
JOINT STAFF FOR DD PMA-A FOR WTC
NSC FOR LUTES

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/11/2019
TAGS: PARM PREL RS CWC
SUBJECT: CWC: DISCUSSION WITH GENERAL KHOLSTOV ON STATUS
OF RUSSIAN DESTRUCTION PROGRAM AND REQUEST FOR ASSISTANCE

REF: MOSCOW 291222Z JUL 09

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

This is CWC-72-09.

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SUMMARY AND INTRODUCTION
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1. (SBU) The 14th Session of the Conference of
States Parties was held at the Organization for the
Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague
from November 30 through December 4. On November
30, Victor Ivanovich Kholstov, serving as Head of
the Russian Delegation, delivered the National
Statement on behalf of the Russian Federation. He
informed the Conference that Russia had very
recently met its forty-five percent destruction
target ahead of schedule and he expressed gratitude
to the international donor community for their
contributions, noting specifically the United
States Government and the Nuclear Threat
Initiative. (Reftel)


2. (SBU) Immediately following the delivery of the
Russian National Statement, Kholstov met privately
with Andrew Weber, Assistant to the Secretary of
Defense for Nuclear and Chemical and Biological
Defense Programs. The conversation focused on
three main topics: Russian perception of the U.S.
chemical demilitarization program and its inability
to meet the 2012 deadline; a Russian request for
assistance at Kizner; and possible U.S.-Russian
cooperation on chemical and biological defense.
Russian participants included Elena Rodyushkina
(Ministry of Trade),Konstantin Gavrilov (Russian
Delegation to the OPCW),and Vladimir Ladanov
(Russian Delegation to the OPCW). U.S. participants
included Col Craig Campbell (ATSD Military
Assistant),Sarah Rodjom (OSD Policy),Lynn Hoggins
(DTRA),and Jennifer Smith (U.S. Delegation to the
OPCW). Translation for General Kholstov was done
informally by Vladimir Ladanov.

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CHEMICAL DEMILITARIZATION AND THE 2012 DEADLINE
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3. (SBU) Weber opened the discussion by inviting
Kholstov to Washington and to the U.S. chemical
demilitarization sites to discuss issues of mutual
interest. Weber informed Kholstov that he also
extended an invitation to the incoming OPCW
Director- General, Ahmet Uzumcu. Weber said that
the United States and Russia have a shared interest
in addressing the Chemical Weapons Convention
destruction deadline. He said that he knows that
Russia is still trying to meet the 2012 deadline,
but offered that there is no shame in missing it
given Russia,s strong commitment and effort.


4. (C) Weber asked Kholstov hypothetically what
Russia would do if they were not going to meet the
deadline and what their diplomatic strategy would
be. Kholstov did not answer the question directly.
Instead he stated that he recognizes that the new
Administration is doing its utmost to fulfill its
Chemical Weapons Convention obligations and that
Russia has not been critical of the U.S. program (a
point he reiterated several times). He then went
on to say that Russia has not fully evaluated how
it would handle missing the deadline, but that they
would likely look at the U.S. approach and how it
has progressed since 2006. He recounted the U.S.
progress to date and how original projections have
been surpassed.
Qbeen surpassed.


5. (C) Weber closed this topic by thanking Russia
for not openly criticizing the U.S. program and for
their recent support at the IAEA on the Iranian
resolution. He briefly commented on Iran and a
small but noisy group that is critical of the U.S.

program. He then turned to the assistance request.

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REQUEST FOR ADDITIONAL DEMILITARIZATION ASSISTANCE
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6. (C) Kholstov summarized the recent Russian
request for U.S. assistance at Kizner, as well as a
meeting he had with other U.S. Defense officials in
early November. He stressed the importance of
continued cooperation at Shchuch,ye and thanked
Weber for his involvement at Novocheboksarsk.
Kholstov stated that the assistance would be used
to purchase equipment at Kizner to supplement the
equipment provided by Canada and added that the
amount needed is less than what the U.S. provided
at other Russian sites. He said that in early
November he provided details on the amount of funds
needed, but was not given a definitive (yes or no)
answer on continued U.S. assistance. He further
added that he needs an answer from the United
States soon so that Russia can move forward with
plans for Kizner.


7. (C) Weber said that there are still internal
discussions underway in the United States. Weber
made a number of recommendations to General
Kholstov to help facilitate a USG decision.


8. (C) Weber recommended that Kholstov provide
written clarification on the assistance requested
and prioritize the request. Weber added that
candid clarity on Russia,s budget situation would
be useful for decision makers. Weber proffered
that Kholstov could use his experience at
Shchuch,ye to determine what U.S. assistance would
be most useful at Kizner, but added that it is
unlikely that the U.S. will be able to commit to
that level of assistance at Kizner. (Weber
reinforced this point several times.)


9. (C) Weber recommended that the written request
be sent to OSD Policy, but stated that it could
also be sent to him and he can ensure that the
appropriate offices receive it. Additionally, he
recommended that Russia broach this subject more
broadly within the USG since the final decision
will come from the interagency. He suggested
sending a request to the NSC (Gary Samore) and the
State Department (Rose Gottemoeller).


10. (C) Weber encouraged Kholstov to consult with
Congress, similar to the U.S. consultations with
the Duma, to discuss the potential problems with
the ceiling levels for funding.


11. (C) Weber also informed Kholstov that the
United States is internally reviewing the entire
U.S.-Russia relationship to determine how and what
level of cooperation should be conducted in the
future. Weber added that he would like to see the
review done by the end of the calendar year.


12. (C) Kholstov moved the discussion towards money
provided to Russia to date. Kholstov said that it
is misleading for the United States to give a
dollar amount in presentations because not all of
that money went to Russia, but rather covered
overhead costs and other contracting expenses.
Kholstov said that his government has asked where
the $1 billion is being spent. Weber offered to
provide a cost breakout so that Kholstov can show
his government where exactly the funds have been
allocated. Kholstov thanked Weber and added that
this will help answer questions on historical
expenditures. Weber concluded discussion of this
Qexpenditures. Weber concluded discussion of this
topic by urging Kholstov to send a written letter
on assistance at Kizner as soon as possible so that
it can impact the ongoing, internal USG decisions
on the U.S.-Russia relationship.

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U.S. - RUSSIA COOPERATION ON CHEM-BIO DEFENSE

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13. (C) Weber continued the discussion of US-Russia
cooperation by asking Kholstov how the two
countries could cooperate in the areas of
protection and medical countermeasures against
chem-bio threats. Weber acknowledged that although
this does not fall under Kholstov,s current
portfolio, Kholstov did work this issue previously.
Kholstov said that the best way forward for
cooperation on this subject would be an
intergovernmental (bilateral) agreement. He said
that such cooperation was mentioned in November
2001, but that there has been no progress since
then. He said he thought the problem was on the
U.S. side. Weber then asked what such a framework
could be titled. Kholstov said that the title
would be dependent on the subject, such as test and
evaluation or manufacturing, but that any framework
could start with an intergovernmental agreement.
Weber concluded by saying that in July the U.S. and
Russian Health Ministries signed a bilateral
cooperative agreement. He added that the U.S.
Health and Human Services department is playing a
bigger role in research and development on medical
countermeasures for chem-bio threats but that the
Department of Defense still has the largest role to
play in this endeavor. After a few summary
remarks from both sides, the meeting concluded.


14. (U) Beik sends.
LEVIN