MEXICO CITY AVIATION SECURITY CONFERENCE:

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 STATE 012414 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ASEC EAIR ECON PREL PTER SUBJECT: MEXICO CITY AVIATION SECURITY CONFERENCE: BACKGROUND AND GUIDANCE ¶1. (U) This is background and guidance sent in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security. Summary and Guidance -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano will travel to Mexico City on February 16-18, 2010 to attend a conference on aviation security. Mexico is hosting the conference and inviting ministers with aviation or public security-related responsibilities from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Panama, and the United States. The ministerial level meeting will take place on February 17, preceded by an ADM level meeting on February 16, 2010. (Note: the countries were chosen by Mexico based on a list of major aviation hubs in the hemisphere. In addition, recognizing that it would be difficult to pull together a fully inclusive meeting in a timely way, the GOM, in consultation with DHS and the Department, sought to invite at least one representative from Central America, the Caribbean and South America.) Mexico has also invited ICAO and the Secretary General of ICAO will attend. This conference represents an opportunity to reiterate that the international community shares responsibility for global aviation security and to identify specific areas on which countries can focus their efforts to strengthen the global aviation network. ¶3. (SBU) Guidance for briefing and responding to questions from host country officials whose countries are invited to the conference is in paragraph 10 below. Posts can also draw from the background below. Post can direct questions about the ministerial to James Blockwood ( 1 202 447-4046, James-Christian.Bloc@HQ.DHS.GOV) at the DHS office of International Affairs. Questions from host country press should be referred to Matt Chandler ( 1 202 282-8010 Matthew.Chandler@HQ.DHS.GOV) in the DHS Office of Public Affairs. End of summary and guidance. Background -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Following the attempted December 25, 2009 bombing of Northwest Airlines Flight 253, President Obama directed DHS to "strengthen international partnerships and coordination on aviation security issues. (In the President's January 7, 2010 Memorandum to Department Heads). Secretary Napolitano dispatched Deputy Secretary Jane Holl Lute January 3-14, 2010 to the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Australia, Nigeria, and Brazil, as well as a January 28, 2010 trip to Canada. At the Spanish government's invitation, Secretary Napolitano discussed aviation security with European counterparts at a meeting of European Union (EU) Justice and Home Affairs ministers in Toledo, Spain on January 21, 2010. At that time, Secretary Napolitano and her European Counterparts released a joint U.S.-EU Declaration on aviation security that captured a growing international consensus (The text is available at http://www.dhs.gov/ynews/releases/pr 1264119013710.shtm). ¶5. (SBU) The U.S.-EU Declaration captured four key areas of focus for this international effort to strengthen aviation security: 1) information collection and identity management, 2) information sharing and collaboration in passenger vetting, 3) technology modernization, and 4) improved international standards, including the coordination of international training and technical assistance to help all countries achieve those new standards. ¶6. (SBU) The conference in Mexico City, along with upcoming similar ministerial meetings planned for Asia (Japan),the Middle East, and Africa, seeks to build on the previous international engagements, and will set the stage for a global ministerial meeting on aviation security later in ¶2010. ¶7. (SBU) DHS anticipates that the Mexico City conference will also result in a joint declaration in which countries communicate their collective will to address aviation security matters and commit to specific steps to enhance international aviation security. STATE 00012414 002 OF 002 ¶8. (SBU) Potential deliverables from the February 17, 2010 aviation security meeting in Mexico City include: commitment to enhance standards in ICAO's Annex 17; support for increased transparency in the ICAO aviation security audit process, the results of which are currently released to only the audited nation; commitment to the ICAO Donors Conference and to coordinate training and technical assistance efforts; agreement to enhance communication on aviation security and threats; and commitment to regular reporting of Lost and Stolen Passport (LASP) information to the Interpol Stolen and Lost Travel Document Database. DHS will also seek bilateral deliverables related to each of the four focus areas outlined above. ¶9. (SBU) DHS will work with those attending to coordinate outreach to those countries in the region not attending. After the meeting in Mexico City, DHS also intends to reach out directly to key partners in the region that Mexico did not invite to the February 17, 2010 conference, including but not limited to: the Bahamas, Barbados, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Ecuador, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, and Uruguay, to discuss conclusions from the meeting and how countries in the region could best work together to share information and improve aviation security hemispherically and globally. DHS is also open to exploring other venues for consultation in the region. Talking Points -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Talking Points. The Aviation Security conference Mexico is hosting provides an opportunity to strengthen aviation security in the Western Hemisphere and around the world. In particular, we hope that the conference will identify specific areas for enhanced cooperation and that the participants will publicly affirm the importance of securing the global aviation system and the role and responsibility every country has in this effort. Secretary Napolitano looks forward to meeting with Minister (insert) in Mexico City and working together to help strengthen global aviation security. She looks forward to hearing the views and priorities of her counterparts. U.S. priorities include commitment to enhance standards in ICAO's Annex 17; support for increased transparency in the ICAO aviation security audit process, the results of which are currently released to only the audited nation; commitment to the ICAO Donors Conference and coordinate training and technical assistance efforts; agreement to enhance communication on aviation security and threats; and commitment to regular reporting of Lost and Stolen Passport (LASP) information to the Interpol Stolen and Lost Travel Document Database. As host of the conference, the Government of Mexico selected the location, date, and participants. Strengthening global aviation security requires broad international cooperation, however, and a sustained effort on the part of every country. The United States will continue to work with partners across the Western Hemisphere both bilaterally and through multilateral fora, including the International Civil Aviation Organization and the International Air Transport Association. For Ottawa: We recognize that Canada's highest aviation security priority on the dates of the conference will be the Olympics, which may make representation at the conference difficult. We are committed to consulting closely with Canada both prior to and after the conference on this issue. CLINTON