OPEN SKIES: JUNE 15: RUSSIA LAST HOLDOUT ON JUNE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 USOSCE 000140 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR VCI/CCA, EUR/RPM, EUR/PRA JCS FOR J-5 OSD FOR ISA (PERENYI) NSC FOR NILSSON, HAYDEN EUCOM FOR J-5 E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OSCE PARM PREL KCFE SUBJECT: OPEN SKIES: JUNE 15: RUSSIA LAST HOLDOUT ON JUNE 2010 DATES FOR SECOND REVIEW CONFERENCE; NORWAY TO INTRODUCE NEW AIRCRAFT ¶1. (SBU) Summary: At the Open Skies Consultative Commission (OSCC) on June 15 consensus continued to emerge supporting the draft decision on proposed dates for the U.S.-chaired Second Review Conference (June 7-9, 2010). Russia awaits a final go-ahead from Moscow, but assured USDel that it fully expects to join consensus on the draft decision at the next plenary in July. Norway intends to introduce a new Open Skies observation aircraft with digital sensors, depending on progress made by the Informal Working Group on Sensors regarding decisions on certification procedures. On the margins of the plenary, Turkey said it had ideas for the Second Review Conference and suggested an informal planning meeting in September. The next OSCC plenary will be held on July 13 under the chairmanship of Bosnia and Herzegovina. End Summary. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Russia Not Yet Ready to Agree to Dates - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶2. (SBU) During the June 15 OSCC plenary (chaired by Bosnia and Herzegovina - Davidovic),Sweden (Boda) and Georgia (Giorgadze) supported the draft decision which proposes that the U.S.-chaired Second Review Conference on the Implementation of the Treaty on Open Skies take place in Vienna, June 7-9 (OSCC.DD/4/09). ¶3. (SBU) Russia (Federyakov),on the margins of the plenary, informed USDel (Neighbour) that the draft decision had circulated throughout the Russian interagency but still needed the blessing of one more agency before Russia could join consensus, which it expected to do at the next OSCC plenary in July. He expressed full agreement with USDel on the rationale for the dates proposed and the need to adopt the decision before the summer recess. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Norway Intends to Deploy New Aircraft - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶4. (SBU) Norway (Brandsrud) informed the OSCC of its intention to replace Norway's current (Hercules) Open Skies observation aircraft with a new unarmed training version of a P-3N (Norwegian type) Orion equipped with digital sensors. The certification of Norway's new aircraft depends on further progress being made in the Informal Working Group on Sensors (IWGS),which would go beyond the "OSCC Chairperson's Statement on Specifications for Allowed Video Sensors" and allow the OSCC to take appropriate decisions on the use of digital sensors and certification procedures for aircraft that employ them. Before the plenary began, Norway (Mortensen) informed USDel that it would refrain from mentioning its suggestion for an international workshop on digital target reading and analysis on available digital data until it had full U.S. support. USDel (Wright) said that the U.S. chair of the IWGS had received Norway's proposal and had begun consultations in Washington. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Report on Recent Observation Flights - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶5. (SBU) Spain (Anson Soro) announced that a recent successful observation flight over Russia and Belarus had taken place onboard the Spanish C130 Hercules with participants from Spain, France, and Portugal. The Russian Federation (Federyakov) informed the OSCC that since the last plenary in May it had carried out four observation missions over Croatia, Estonia, Germany, and Latvia, and had participated as observer in an additional four missions conducted by Benelux, Turkey-U.S., Spain, and UK-Slovenia. Turkey (Ercan) announced that it had flown two observer missions, the first over Russia and the second over Ukraine. All speakers thanked their cooperating partners for USOSCE 00000140 002 OF 002 successful missions. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Lithuanian Confiscated Film Issue, Closed - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶6. (SBU) Russia (Federyakov),referring to the Lithuanian statement in the OSCC plenary on May 18, regretted that Russian airport officials had confiscated duplicate film in the possession of Lithuanian representatives as a "technical error." Federyakov said the matter was investigated and that such an error would "not happen again." - - - - - - - - - - - - Summer Departures Begin - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶7. (SBU) Under any other business, Romania (Matei) announced the return to Bucharest of Lieutenant Colonel Maria-Cristina Nicolai Apetroaie; her successor arrives in July. The senior military advisers of Slovenia (Brigadier Marjan Grabnar) and Lithuania (Colonel Darius Kalibatas) also depart Vienna this summer. - - - - - - - - - - - - Margins of the Plenary - - - - - - - - - - - - ¶8. (SBU) USDel (Wright) learned on the margins of the plenary that both Turkey and Latvia had been advised by Germany that a revision to the annual quota distribution decision (adopted March 23 - OSCC.DD/3/09) was necessary in light of Latvia's choice (due to budget shortfalls) not to conduct a planned shared mission with Turkey over Bosnia and Herzegovina. Mission recommends Washington consider whether it might be necessary to receive clarification from the German delegation on its legal/procedural point of view. ¶9. (SBU) Turkey (Ercan) informed USDel that it had ideas for the Second Review Conference and suggested an informal planning meeting after summer recess in September. One topic for the conference might be the accession of Central Asian states to the Open Skies Treaty. - - - - - - - Next Plenary - - - - - - - ¶10. (SBU) The Chair (Davidovic) announced that the next OSCC plenary would convene on July 13 under the chairmanship of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Scott