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RUEHWR/AMEMBASSY WARSAW PRIORITY 4035
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 USNATO 000046 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NOFORN 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/24/2017 
TAGS: NATO PREL AF
SUBJECT: NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL READOUT JANUARY 24, 2007 
 
Classified By: DCM Richard G. Olson for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
¶1. (C) SUMMARY: 
 
-- Afghanistan: SYG reported that Pakistan PM Aziz will 
address the NAC on January 30.  The outgoing JFC-Brunssum and 
ISAF Operational Commander General Back presented his 
analysis of NATO,s efforts in Afghanistan stating that the 
Alliance's goals are too high.  He called for more leadership 
from, and greater coordination with the UN, and advocated 
continuing support for tribal agreements such as the one in 
Musa Qala.  The General opposed ground-based spraying to 
reduce poppy production.  Back also proposed tasking the 
drafting of an &exit strategy8 for Afghanistan, which was 
not supported by PermReps. 
 
-- Kosovo: SYG stated that UN Special Envoy Ahtisaari will 
address the NAC on 16 February.  The Chairman of the Military 
Committee (CMC) provided a briefing on transition plan for 
KFOR during the settlement period, to include a new 
&international civilian presence8 (ICP).  Several PermReps 
called for high-level NATO-EU political talks, with Spain, 
Italy, and Germany urging caution during the complex period 
ahead. 
 
-- Iraq: CMC noted the Italian scoping team mission to Iraq 
has concluded and said that SHAPE advice on gendarmerie 
training is expected by the end of January.  Spanish PermRep 
noted his country's 399,000 Euro contribution to NTM-I. 
 
-- Missile Defense: Ambassador Nuland advised PermReps about 
U.S. missile defense plans with Poland and the Czech 
Republic; UK PermRep welcomed the announcement. 
 
END SUMMARY. 
 
Afghanistan 
----------- 
¶2. (C) NATO Secretary General de Hoop Scheffer reminded the 
NAC of the upcoming January 30 session with Pakistan Prime 
Minister Aziz.  The SYG called for enlarging NATO,s 
political dialogue and military cooperation with Pakistan, 
including (on the military side) through the Tripartite 
Commission (TPC).  CMC General Henault briefed the results of 
the January 11 TPC meeting, which was held in Islamabad at 
the four-star level.  He said that discussion of Pakistan's 
contentious proposal for fencing and mining the border was 
omitted as part of a compromise brokered by COMISAF Richards 
to permit the meeting to go forward.  CMC said that ISAF 
mil-mil relations with Pakistan were &very good,8 and that 
military activities coordinated with Pakistan on the border 
had been successful in recent weeks. 
 
¶3. (C) Outgoing Commander of Joint Forces Command (JFC) 
Brunssum and ISAF Operational Commander General Gerhard Back 
gave a dour report on Afghanistan and provided his 
intentionally "thought-provoking" recommendations.  Back 
suggested NATO had set its goals too high in Afghanistan, 
which had resulted in an impatient and disappointed Afghan 
population that is suspicious of ISAF's motives.  Noting that 
Afghanistan has never has a strong central government, he 
thought the approach of reaching tribal agreements, such as 
those in Musa Qala and Khost, was promising and that NATO 
should collect evidence on how effective the agreements prove 
to be, and then decide whether to support more such 
agreements.  On counter-narcotics, he recommended against 
"short term actions that endanger our troops," such as 
ground-based spraying, until more progress is made in 
alternative livelihoods for adversely affected farmers.  The 
General called for more pressure on the UN to provide the 
 
USNATO 00000046  002 OF 003 
 
 
necessary coordination and leadership to civilian 
reconstruction efforts and the necessary link to security 
efforts.  He spoke out against both the forced repatriation 
of Afghan refugees in Pakistan and the fencing and mining of 
the border, arguing that, instead, there should be major 
efforts to improve conditions for refugees in Pakistan and in 
the Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) to 
"dry up the swamp" of Taliban recruits.  General Back 
cautioned against the use of "body counts."  He emphasized 
that the CJSOR was the minimum military requirement and must 
be filled.  Most controversially, he recommended the NAC task 
NMAs to draft an "exit strategy" withdrawing ISAF maneuver 
forces by the end of 2010, only leaving residual mentoring 
and training teams in place.  He advocated planning force 
rotations through 2010 to assure an orderly exit strategy, 
not a piecemeal drawdown by nations on their own schedules. 
 
¶4. (C) Back received support among PermReps for his call for 
greater coordination of civilian and military efforts, a more 
active UN role, opposition to the mining and fencing of the 
border, and avoiding a focus on "body counts."  Many PermReps 
disagreed with his call for an exit strategy (specifically, 
Norway, The Netherlands, UK, Bulgaria, Romania), saying it 
was important not to set a date since the Afghan people 
needed reassurance NATO would not leave prematurely.  Dutch 
PermRep Schaper said NATO should think about a "handover 
strategy" rather than an "exit strategy," while others said 
that NATO should define conditions for a handover, rather 
than specifying a date for withdrawal.  Spanish PermRep 
Benavides supported Back's call for an "exit strategy," but 
said it should not be made public.  Italian PermRep Moreno 
said Italy was considering doubling its commitment to train 
customs officers and doing more to train the ANP. 
 
¶5. (C) In response to a question on counter-narcotics, 
DSACEUR General Reith said President Karzai had decided 
against ground-based spraying for this year, and would rely 
again on manual eradication.  In Helmand Province, 
eradication would be focused on the central regions where 
development zones were already in place.  The governor of 
Helmand also wanted eradication in outlying areas to show 
farmers they would pay a price for going along with Taliban 
control. 
 
Kosovo 
------ 
¶6. (SBU) The SYG briefly touched on the Serbian election 
results, saying that the elections occurred without incident, 
and called on Serbia to form a new government without delay. 
He outlined the status process timeline and said that 
following the January 26 Contact Group meeting, UN Special 
Envoy Ahtisaari would travel to the region on 2 February to 
present his proposal to both parties.  The SYG mentioned that 
Ahtisaari would address the NAC, most likely on 16 February. 
The SYG again expressed his hope that the Transatlantic Lunch 
on 26 January would pave the way for in-depth NATO-EU 
discussions on the way ahead in Kosovo. 
 
¶7. (C) The CMC briefed the NAC on the proposed three-phased 
plan for KFOR operations during the upcoming time period from 
UN Special Envoy Ahtisaari,s status proposal announcement to 
a UNSCR and the start of a new &international civilian 
presence8 (ICP) in Kosovo.  CMC stated that the military 
committee will present to the NAC a &Transitional 
Directive8 that will provide KFOR with the framework for 
operations from the time of a UNSCR until the stand-up of an 
ICP, (predicted to be 120 days).  Several PermReps (including 
NL, BE, IT, UK, NO) expressed strong desire for higher level 
political discussions with the EU on Kosovo.  The Spanish, 
Italians and Germans expressed caution concerning the complex 
 
USNATO 00000046  003 OF 003 
 
 
period ahead and emphasized the need to help the moderate 
faction in Serbia to form a government.  The UK PermRep 
stressed the priority of getting a settlement and supporting 
Ahtisaari.  The German PermRep mentioned that members 
representing the EU Troika would be traveling to Belgrade in 
February to discuss the status of stabilization and accession 
talks.  Lastly, the SYG mentioned that he intends to visit 
both Belgrade and Pristina at some point during the upcoming 
settlement period, when the timing is right and in 
consultation with Ahtisaari. 
 
Darfur 
------ 
¶8. (SBU) The SYG noted that the ongoing African Union (AU) 
Summit will address Darfur, a possible AU peacekeeping 
mission in Somalia, and the selection of a new AU Chairman. 
The SYG will report next week on the outcome of this summit, 
including any implications it might have for NATO,s 
involvement in Darfur and any future role in Somalia. 
 
Iraq 
---- 
¶9. (SBU) CMC noted that the Italian scoping team had 
concluded its visit to Iraq,s national police headquarters 
and potential training sites.  He said SHAPE advice on 
gendarmerie training was expected by the end of January.  CMC 
informed the NAC that the first senior NCO course began at 
Kirkush and a Mobile Training Team (MTT) will deliver the 
NATO leadership and management modules.  Spanish Ambassador 
Benavides noted Spain,s 399,000 Euros contribution to NTM-I. 
 
Missile Defense 
--------------- 
¶10. (C) Following up her informal briefing to PermReps at 
their weekly luncheon on January 23, Ambassador Nuland drew 
from guidance (State 07445) to officially advise the NAC that 
the U.S. had formally requested that bilateral negotiations 
begin with both the Czech Republic and Poland on placing U.S. 
missile defense (MD) assets in their countries.  She noted 
the valuable contributions that Denmark and the UK have 
already made in support of our MD architecture and informed 
the NAC that the U.S. was also acting in a completely 
transparent manner with Russia.  Both CZ and PL PermReps 
stated their nations, willingness to begin negotiations, 
their desire to keep Allies informed throughout the process, 
and the importance of this issue to NATO in enhancing Allied 
security, as well as the security of Europe as a whole.  The 
UK PermRep welcomed the U.S. announcement, noting the 
important support provided to the U.S. MD system by the UK 
radar site at RAF Fylingdales.  (Note: The Ambassador 
separately circulated a letter to all PermReps with a copy of 
the points in State 07445, Para 5.) 
 
State of the Union Speech 
------------------------- 
¶11. (U) Ambassador Nuland drew PermReps, attention to the 
President's State of the Union address, noting that the 
President had put strong emphasis on energy security and 
independence, as well as the need for bipartisan support for 
efforts to secure Iraq.  She also highlighted President 
Bush's mention of NATO in the context of its leading the 
fight in Afghanistan.  Copies of the State of the Union 
address were made available to PermReps. 
 
 
 
NULAND