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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ZAGREB 000476 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: HR NATO PREL UNGA
SUBJECT: REGIONAL SEMINAR IMPLEMENTING UNSCR 1540 IN EUROPE 
 
¶1.  SUMMARY. The first UNSCR 1540 seminar held in Europe 
since UNSCR 1810,s adoption in April 2008 took place on June 
5-6, 2008, in Rakitje, Croatia. Croatia and Romania hosted 
the workshop, entitled "United Nations Security Resolution 
1540: A Path for Further Implementation," in cooperation with 
the NATO International Staff and the Regional Arms Control 
Verification and Implementation Assistance Center (RACVIAC). 
RACVIAC provides arms control training, promotes confidence 
building and security measures, and seeks to broaden 
cooperation in South Eastern Europe.  A total of 43 
participants from 10 States, several international and 
regional organizations, and states from outside the region 
participated in the workshop. 
 
¶2. The workshop,s focus was on increasing the level of 
reporting as well as preparing states for implementation, 
encouraging participating states to increase their commitment 
to UNSCR 1540,s obligations, and discussing UNSCR 1810,s 
shift in emphasis from reporting to implementation. Romanian 
and Croatian participants gave comprehensive briefings on 
their efforts to enact export control laws consistent with EU 
standards. As evidenced by their hosting of this seminar, 
both countries are focused on strengthening security 
cooperation in the region and used the event to highlight 
their regional leadership role. END SUMMARY. 
 
Europe,s First Regional Forum 
------------------------- 
 
¶3.  As the first regional forum held in Europe since the 
April 2008 adoption of UNSCR 1810, the workshop served as a 
forum for states in the region to focus on the UNSCR 1540 
reporting and implementation measures reiterated in UNSCR 
1810, which extended the work of the 1540 Committee for three 
years.  The workshop had five sessions: Session I - Building 
the government structure to coordinate national 
implementation of UNSCR 1540; Session II - Creating 
synergy--international tools and recommendations to support 
UNSCR 1540 implementation; Sessions III and IV - Capacity 
building--strengthening national legal framework and 
institutions; Session V - regional ownership and 
international support for implementation. (NOTE: Tom Wuchte 
of ISN/CPI, the U.S. 1540 Coordinator, has a copy of the 
slides from all of the presentations.) 
 
¶4.  In opening remarks speaking on behalf of the UN 1540 
Committee, Mr. Toma Galli, First Secretary of Croatia,s UN 
delegation reminded participants that implementation of 
Resolution 1540 (2004) is a long-term and continual process 
beginning with submission of a report; there was a continuing 
need to exchange experiences on the priority assigned to the 
issue of weapons of mass destruction; concrete challenges 
exist with reporting by smaller or less-developed states with 
respect to the implementation of the resolution; and the UN 
Office of Disarmament Affairs (ODA) remained firmly committed 
to furthering international disarmament and non-proliferation 
instruments by working with the 1540 Committee. Speakers from 
Norway and the United States reinforced these themes and 
talked about how UNSCR 1810 gave support for national action 
plans as the best way forward and how regional efforts are 
vital to strengthen 1540 implementation. Delegations welcomed 
the U.S. explanation on ways to obtain technical assistance. 
The participating UN experts were effective in explaining the 
value of reporting and encouraged states to post their 
national action plans and matrices on the UN website. 
 
¶5.  During the second session, speakers from international 
organizations pointed out how adherence and strong 
implementation of UNSCR 1540 is complementary to and 
strengthens other global nonproliferation regimes, including 
the Australia Group, the Missile Technology Control Regime, 
and the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. The web of 
constraints of all of these regimes works in concert to 
mitigate proliferant behavior. During the capacity building 
sessions, speakers from Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania, and 
Turkey gave detailed briefings on their comprehensive and 
largely successful efforts to pass export control laws and 
other legislation required to conform with EU model export 
control legislation. Although the representative from Serbia 
did not give a presentation, Dragana Mladenovic of the 
Serbian MFA noted that this workshop had been particularly 
 
ZAGREB 00000476  002 OF 002 
 
 
useful as Serbia is beginning early work on taking steps to 
join all of the nonproliferation regimes. She indicated that 
what Serbia learned at the workshop would clarify the scope 
of the effort that will be required, and that they had met 
the right people from the region who can help them. 
 
¶6.  The following countries sent representatives to the 
workshop: Australia, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Greece, 
Italy, Norway, Romania, Serbia, Turkey, and the U.S.  The UN 
1540 Committee, the EU, the IAEA, and the NATO International 
Staff also participated. 
 
¶7.  Possibilities for useful follow-up to this seminar would 
be for other attending governments to host similar regional 
workshops in coordination with the 1540 Committee and 
like-minded states focusing on: 
 
-- Implementation of anti-proliferation financing best 
practices; 
 
-- Leveraging private sector resources/expertise regarding 
1540 and through the increased emphasis in the 1540 Committee 
via 1810; 
 
-- Determining value-added role of Interpol,s contribution 
to the effort to combat the biological weapon threat; 
 
-- Case studies in operational 1540 cooperation; 
 
-- How to best garner political support in establishing a 
NATO Trust Fund, or other regional financial and in-kind 
contributions, to build national/regional 1540 technical 
capacity. 
Bradtke