VZCZCXYZ0022
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHJA #1847/01 2770315
ZNR UUUUU ZZH (CCY ADX0E2D49A MSI3880 611)
R 030315Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0238
INFO RHMFIUU/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC
AMEMBASSY SINGAPORE

UNCLAS JAKARTA 001847 
 
SIPDIS 
 
C O R R E C T E D  C O P Y (ADDED ADDRESSEE) 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/RSP; IO/T; PM/PPA; OES/STC;EEB/TRA 
DEPT PASS TO DOE/NSSA - JMILLER 
SINGAPORE FOR DHS/COAST GUARD - SSTOERMER 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETRD EWWT KNNP KTIA ID
SUBJECT: DOE Megaports Initiative on the Table, but Has Hurdles to 
Overcome 
 
REF: Jakarta 526 
 
¶1. (U) Summary.  After over 2 years of limited bilateral talks on 
the Megaports Initiative, the Department of Energy (DOE) presented 
anew the Initiative to the Indonesian government and offered a draft 
agreement to implement the program in Indonesia.  DOE's proposal for 
future cooperation includes providing and installing the Megaports 
radiation-detection infrastructure at Jakarta's Tanjung Priok Port, 
the largest sea container port in the country.  The DOE 
representatives responded to Indonesia's concerns about entering 
into a Megaports partnership.  These concerns included: data 
sharing, a perceived excess of port/customs security initiatives 
with unclear interrelationships, and implementation issues such as 
the destination of screened cargo, efficiency impacts, equipment 
location, and operation and maintenance.  The meeting helped dispel 
false impressions and allay Indonesian concerns about the Program. 
The Foreign Ministry (MFA) will coordinate a response after further 
Indonesian interagency consideration.  End Summary 
 
¶2. On September 15 in Jakarta, Jeffrey Miller and Charles Massey of 
DOE's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) discussed the 
Megaports Initiative with an Indonesian government interagency 
group.  Miller and Massey gave a detailed presentation on the 
radiation-detection program focusing on implications for Indonesia's 
seaports.  After a lengthy discussion, DOE presented a draft 
Megaports Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).  MFA hosted the 
meeting, run by Bunyan Saptomo, Director for North and Central 
American Affairs.  Representatives from the following Indonesian 
agencies attended: MFA, Customs, Bapeten (Nuclear Regulatory 
agency), Ministry of Transportation, Ministry of Trade, the State 
Secretariat, the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and 
Security Affairs, the National Intelligence Agency, and the Tanjung 
Priok Port Authority.  This meeting was the first formal bilateral, 
interagency discussion on the Megaports Initiative since 2005. 
 
¶3. The DOE presentation helped to dispel misconceptions about the 
program; however interlocutors raised some recurring issues.  The 
first was related to data sharing.  According to Customs officials, 
Indonesian law would prevent them from sharing any information 
unless it is approved on a case-by-case basis by the Director 
General.  Customs believes that the law would apply to data 
generated by the DOE-supplied Megaports systems if Customs is 
operating the equipment.  Miller and Massey sought to clarify 
whether this restriction is related to all data that would be 
generated by the DOE-supplied radiation detection system, or only 
proprietary information, such as the name of a shipper or 
intelligence-related information.  Customs officials said that they 
would consult with their Director General on the subject.  This is 
an important issue because basic to the Megaports Initiative is the 
exchange of information on how the system is working and any 
information on detections or seizures; this would not include 
proprietary or intelligence data. 
 
¶4. A second issue was the perception of too many USG proposals for 
seaport security initiatives with unclear interrelationships.  An 
MFA representative said that given the overload of proposals, 
trainings and programs, it would take time to review this proposal 
and reach agreement.  Third, port authorities and others were 
concerned about who would operate and maintain the equipment, where 
it would be placed in the crowded port, and how it would affect 
traffic flow.  Fourth, several participants were under the mistaken 
assumption that the Megaports system would only screen U.S. bound 
containers and questioned the need for Megaports given the 
relatively low volume directly to the U.S. from Indonesia.  DOE 
emphasized that Megaports is a global cargo 
security/nonproliferation program and the objective is to screen 
containerized cargo regardless of destination.  A Megaports 
installation in Indonesia would screen imports, exports, and any 
transshipped or transiting cargo.  Finally, there was some debate 
about the need for a legally binding agreement.  (Note: In past 
years, MFA had requested a "legally binding" agreement.  DOE also 
left a standard MOU (not legally-binding) with MFA for their 
consideration. Based on discussions at the margins of the meeting, 
Saptomo appears to favor a non-legally binding agreement.  Several 
years ago DOE and Indonesia started their Megaports discussions with 
a non-legally binding MOU, and Miller told Saptomo that DOE is 
willing to negotiate, finalize, and sign such an MOU. End Note.) 
 
¶5. MFA will coordinate a response after further consideration by the 
Indonesian government.  Tanjung Priok, the largest port in the 
country, located in Jakarta, is proposed as the first Indonesian 
port if Megaports is implemented in Indonesia.  Miller and Massey 
also discussed with MFA the possibility of simultaneous 
implementation at Tanjung Priok and Surabaya; DOE would be open to 
this if MFA proposed it.  Of the issues raised by the Indonesian 
government, Miller and Massey consider the data sharing issue as 
most significant, requiring further clarification from Indonesian 
Customs.  They believe that they resolved most of the other concerns 
 
 
during the meeting and were pleased by receptive statements from 
several agencies.  Miller noted that the issues raised by Indonesian 
officials are issues that Megaports representatives continue to 
encounter in other seaports, and thus far have not been 
insurmountable.  DOE told the Embassy that Indonesian concerns (para 
3 and 4) could be resolved and that a visit to a Megaports site in 
another country might help allay concerns.  Miller and Massey 
extended such an invitation to the Government of Indonesia for its 
consideration during the meeting.  Finally, DOE invited Indonesian 
officials to contact other countries participating in Megaports to 
understand how they addressed similar concerns. 
 
¶6. (U) J. Miller contributed to and approved this message. 
 
HUME