VZCZCXRO1955
RR RUEHAST
DE RUEHVI #1898 1781450
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 271450Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY VIENNA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4018
INFO RUEHGB/AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD 0086
RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN 0217
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS VIENNA 001898 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/AGS AND INR/EU 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV EUN MARR KPAO IZ AU
SUBJECT: AUSTRIA EXTENDS PARTICIPATION IN EU'S IRAQ TRAINING 
MISSION "EUJUST LEX" 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) On June 22, Parliament's Steering committee 
unanimously voted to extend Austrian participation in the 
EU's integrated mission to support rule of law in Iraq 
(EUJUST LEX) to December 2007.  Parliament authorized the 
government to deploy up to three Justice Ministry trainers 
and up to two Interior Ministry trainers.  Reporting to the 
committee, Foreign Minister Plassnik stressed that Austria 
was able to detail "highly qualified female experts from the 
Justice and Interior ministries" to this mission - a fact 
which "made her particularly proud."  At the same time 
Plassnik acknowledged to legislators that full details of 
this mission still had to be worked out. 
 
¶2. (SBU) According to Plassnik, the EU's rule of law mission 
seeks to train up to 770 senior Iraqi officials in the area 
of crime investigation (particularly criminal judges, police 
officials, and prison guards).  The training will take place 
either in EU countries or "in the region," but not inside 
Iraq, the Foreign Minister said.  Through June 30, 495 Iraqi 
officials had received training in 14 different courses. 
 
¶3. (SBU) In a related development, Parliament approved 
dispatching "up to two" Austrian Justice Ministry officials 
to the Kosovo planning team.  The EU has tasked this team 
with preparing the ground for a rule-of-law mission in 
Kosovo.  The team should to be operational in the first half 
of 2007.  This initiative is a result of an UN request to 
the EU to take over police and justice tasks from the UN's 
UNMIK mission. Austria currently has up to 24 officials 
participating in UNMIK. 
 
Kilner, CDA