READOUT: NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL MEETING APRIL 8,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 USNATO 000145

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/09/2019
TAGS: PREL PHSA PARM MOPS AF XA RS KN
SUBJECT: READOUT: NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL MEETING APRIL 8,
2009

REF: USNATO 75

Classified By: Classified by Charge d'Affaires Walter E. Andrusyszyn fo
r reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

(C/NF) Summary from the NAC Meeting:

-- AFGHANISTAN: (C) Allies discussed the need to move forward
with the implementation of Afghanistan-related decisions from
the April 3-4 NATO Summit, including the creation of a NATO
Training Mission - Afghanistan and the development of a
broader political and practical relationship with Pakistan.
Allies also discussed the need to maintain pressure on the
Karzai government over the issue of a law which would
restrict the rights of Shia women. The UK stressed the need
for provincial buy-in and empowerment in counternarcotics
efforts. Canada briefed on recent cooperation between
Afghanistan and Pakistan, particularly on border issues.

-- BALKANS: (C) The U.S., UK, and France asked that NATO
Military Authorities submit the Balkans Periodic Mission
Review (PMR)-which will assess the advisability of downsizing
KFOR-sufficiently early to allow for an informed discussion
at the Defense Ministerial on June 11-12. The U.S. welcomed
the PMR as the appropriate process to consider KFOR
downsizing in a unified manner and on the basis of conditions
on the ground.

-- AFRICA: (C) The U.S. confirmed that the USS Halliburton
will participate in the SNMG1 port visit to Karachi. Bulgaria
expressed concern over the increasing number of piracy
incidents in recent days, particularly one involving 16
Bulgarian crew members, and argued that these incidents
illustrate the need for a continuing NATO involvement in
counter-piracy efforts.

-- IRAQ: (C) The Chairman noted that the SYG is currently
in Iraq and has plans to visit NTM-I and meet with senior
Iraqi leadership.

-- RESPONSE TO TERRORISM: No discussion.

-- STATEMENTS ON POLITICAL TOPICS: (C) The Czech Republic
briefed on recent European Union (EU) events, including the
EU-U.S. Summit and EU statements on protests in Moldova, the
North Korea missile launch, the new Afghan law on women, the
planned April 9 opposition rally in Tbilisi and the recent
attack of a senior Russian opposition leader. Turkey briefed
on the second forum of The Alliance of Civilizations held on
April 6-7 in Istanbul and encouraged possible synergies
between NATO and this UN initiative. The UK briefed on
activity in the UN Security Council (UNSC) noting recent
debates on Haiti and ongoing discussion on the North Korea
missile launch.

--AOB: (C) The Council discussed the draft NAC statement on
the North Korea missile launch and several Allies, notably
Germany and France, raised issues on parts of the language in
the statement. A meeting of the Political Committee was later
called to discuss these various drafting issues. The Chairman
raised the request by the Military Committee (MC) to convene
a NRC CHODS meeting at the end of April and the Council
agreed to allow the meeting.

END SUMMARY.

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(C) Afghanistan: The Deputy Secretary General commented that
the Alliance should move expeditiously to implement the
Afghanistan-related decisions from the April 3-4 NATO Summit,
particularly the setting up of a NATO Training
Mission-Afghanistan (NTM-A) and the ANA Trust Fund. He said
that a list of the contributions was being compiled by the
IS. The Chairman of the Military Committee also asked
nations to confirm their contributions with the SHAPE Force
Generation Cell. The U.S. was joined by the UK, Canada,
Turkey, and Italy in agreeing on the need to move quickly on
NTM-A, with most arguing that the initial command and control
and implementing arrangements should be completed in time for
endorsement at the June Defense Ministerial. Lithuania
reported that it was lifting all its national caveats for
forces in Afghanistan.

(C) Canada asked how the Alliance would carry out the
agreement in the Summit Declaration on Afghanistan to "build
a broader political and practical relationship between NATO
and Pakistan," pointing out that the Political Committee had
been tasked some time ago to look into this issue. Turkey
also raised the relationship with Pakistan, arguing that
public diplomacy issues were of significant enough concern to
justify the designation of a NATO Contact Point Embassy in
Islamabad. In addition, Turkey asked Allies to consider the
possibility of a North Atlantic Council visit to Pakistan.
In response, the Deputy Secretary General said the issue
remained with the Political Committee. At the same time, he
also reported that the International Staff had been in
contact with the Pakistani Embassy and that a NATO Team was
scheduled to travel to Islamabad to follow up on the
establishment of the legal basis for a NATO Liaison Element.
(Note: Mission's ideas on the NATO-Pakistan relationship can
be found in USNATO 75.)

(C) Canada urged Allies to keep the proposed Shia law on
marriage on the "front burner." Turkey agreed that that
diplomatic pressure should be applied to President Karzai and
other Afghan leaders to prevent the law from moving forward,
but cautioned that Western pressure should not be applied in
so public a manner that it turns into a campaign issue during
the upcoming elections.

(C) The SHAPE Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations Major
General Wright provided an operational update, noting that
Operation TOLO continues. He also said that there was a
recent Shura in Surabi district on March 23 where UNAMA,
CSTC-A and the Provincial Governor met. He argued that this
level of interaction demonstrated progress on the integrated
comprehensive approach. He reported that the Opposing
Militant Forces (OMF) were responsible for the majority of
civilian casualties, with an increase of 50-70 percent in
Improvised Explosive Device (IED) usage. To date, there have
been 125 civilians killed and 247 wounded from OMF IEDs. OMF
is increasingly willing to adopt a strategy of causing
civilian casualties and then manipulating the media to blame
the casualties on ISAF. Wright also noted that OMF were
repositioning from North Helmand province to Central Helmand
with a 40 percent increase in activity due to increased ISAF
presence, protection of poppy and to counter future ISAF
force build-up. He said that
counter-narcotic efforts were increasing with combined ANSF
and Poppy Eradication Force efforts. 4,000 hectares had been
eradicated so far in 2009, an increase of 1,500 hectares

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compared to 2008. However this is only a fraction of the
estimated poppy harvest of 150,000 hectares and the planned
eradication effort of 30,000 hectares across Afghanistan for

2009. Wright also reported that OMF were declaring the
Pakistani ceasefire in Swat as a victory for their cause and
will try to implement ceasefires elsewhere. He said that
there had been a recent meeting between ISAF elements in RC-E
and RC-S with Pakistani counterparts to discuss border
security. LOCs through Pakistan to Afghanistan remain open.
He also reported that--while Election Support Force
requirements were being finalized following the announcements
at the NATO Summit--shortages remain for theatre aircraft and
specialty teams in RC-S.

(C) In response to the operational briefing, the UK said that
poppy eradication was proceeding reasonably well in Helmand
province, but noted some problems with the Poppy Eradication
Force in the "food zone." The UK took the opportunity to
stress the importance of provincial buy-in and empowerment to
an effective counternarcotics strategy.

(C) The Canadian PermRep gave detailed briefing on recent
Afghanistan-Pakistan cooperation, particularly in the field
of border cooperation. (Note: The Canadian PermRep plans to
circulate his speaking notes. Mission will e-mail them to
EUR/RPM when they become available.)

(C) Balkans: The U.S., UK, and France asked that NATO
Military Authorities submit the Balkans Periodic Mission
Review (PMR)-which will assess the advisability of downsizing
KFOR-sufficiently early in May to allow for an informed
discussion at the Defense Ministerial on June 11-12. The
U.S. expressed support for the PMR process as the appropriate
venue to consider KFOR downsizing as an Alliance on the basis
of conditions on the ground. Deputy Secretary General (DSYG)
Bisogniero said the deadline for PMR submission was being
pushed up from late- to mid-May, but Chairman of the Military
Committee Admiral Di Paola cautioned that SHAPE needed
sufficient time to prepare the PMR properly.

(C) The DSYG said the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo
(EULEX) declared full operating capability (FOC) on April 6,
but will remain understaffed until early autumn. As a
result, he said KFOR would be keeping a particularly close
watch on developments, particularly in northern Kosovo. MG
Wright reported that KFOR has initiated daily patrols in the
area of new Kosovo Albanian construction efforts in northern
Kosovo due to resultant tensions there. The UK announced
that it had deposited an additional 1 million pounds into the
Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC) drawdown fund.

Africa: The U.S. confirmed that the USS Halyburton will
participate in the Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 (SNMG1)
port visit to Karachi. Bulgaria expressed concern over the
increasing number of piracy incidents in recent days, noting
that five that had occurred in the previous 48 hours. He
reported that one of these five ships had 16 Bulgarian crew
members on board. Bulgaria argued that these incidents
illustrate that the need for a continuing NATO involvement in
counter-piracy efforts. The Chairman of the Military
Committee acknowledged that attacks were becoming more
frequent as the weather improved, but noted that they were
taking place outside the primary zone where NATO and other
international efforts had been focused. He argued that this
demonstrated the need for an enduring commitment to the

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counter-piracy effort, as well as the need for a greater
density of international vessels with a counter-piracy
mandate in the region.

(C) Iraq: The Chairman noted that Secretary General de Hoop
Scheffer was in Iraq to visit NTM-I and meet with senior
Iraqi leadership.

(C) Statements on Political Subjects: The Czech Republic
briefed on recent European Union (EU) events noting the
progress made and various issues discussed at the EU-U.S.
Summit. The Czech delegate also noted recent EU statements
issued on protests in Moldova, the North Korea missile
launch, the new Afghan law on women, the planned April 9
opposition rally in Tbilisi, and the recent attack on a
senior Russian opposition leader. Turkey briefed on the
second forum of The Alliance of Civilizations held on April
6-7 in Istanbul and commended the work of the conference in
promoting intercultural understanding by involving
organizations such as the Arab League, the Council of Europe
and the UN. The Turkish delegate advocated the possibility of
synergies between NATO and this UN initiative in the future.
Spain supported the Turkish proposal. The UK briefed on
activity within the UNSC noting that debate is ongoing within
the UNSC on Haiti and on the North Korea missile launch.

(C) Any other Business:

-- North Korea: After an initial Council discussion of a
proposed text for a NAC statement on the North Korea missile
launch, PermReps agreed to task the Political Committee to
finalize the statement on an urgent basis. (Note: The
Political Committee did finalize the text which was agreed by
the Council under a silence procedure later in the day. The
text of the statement will be reported septel.)

-- Russia: Following their informal discussion the day
before, the DSYG asked PermReps to formally agree to the
scheduling of an NRC Ambassadorial on April 29 and an NRC
Chiefs of Defense (CHODs) meeting in early May. He also said
that if the CHODs meeting were approved, NRC Military
Representatives would meet, probably on April 21, to prepare
the meeting. A meeting of NRC Foreign Ministers would then
follow in late May or early June. In agreeing to this
proposed schedule, U.S. Charge Andrusyzyn said that it would
be important to provide political guidance for use by the
CHODs in their meeting. In this connection, he suggested
that the CHODs' agenda be focused on practical cooperation in
a limited number of areas of mutual interest, such as
Afghanistan, the fight against terrorism, counter-piracy, and
search and rescue at sea.
ANDRUSYSZYN