VZCZCXYZ0000
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHC #1540 0681036
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 072227Z MAR 09
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE IMMEDIATE 4577-4578
INFO RUEHRL/AMEMBASSY BERLIN PRIORITY 9895-9896
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY 9280-9281
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 9178-9179
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 2596-2597
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 3229-3230
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO PRIORITY 4966-4967
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 5160-5161

UNCLAS STATE 021540 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
C O R R E C T E D  C O P Y (ADDING SENSITIVE CAPTION) 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL AF PK
SUBJECT: RESPONSE TO DUTCH POINTS ON MARCH 31 AFGHANISTAN 
CONFERENCE 
 
REF: STATE 21115 
 
¶1.  (U) This is an action request.  Please see paragraph 5. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) On March 6, the Political Counselor at the Embassy 
of The Netherlands in Washington conveyed an informal Dutch 
response to the U.S. non-paper outlining our concept for a 
Ministerial conference on Afghanistan.  The Dutch envision 
the conference as laying the foundation for a new Afghanistan 
Compact once the current Compact expires in 2010.  They 
propose the format consist of UN and Dutch co-chairs, with 
the UNSYG formulating the statement of conclusions.  For the 
formulation of the statement of conclusions, they have 
suggested preparations be coordinated at UN Headquarters in 
New York, assisted by a Friends of the Chair Group, which 
would include The Netherlands.  They also have requested the 
Friends group follow the format of the Joint Coordination and 
Monitoring Board (JCMB), a group based in Kabul.  In response 
to our suggestion that Pakistan be incorporated formally into 
the agenda, the Dutch indicated they would prefer to focus on 
Afghanistan while acknowledging the regional context of the 
broader situation. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) While we agree with most elements of the Dutch 
approach, we are concerned the process outlined by The 
Netherlands for preparation of the Chairman's statement would 
detract from UN Special Representative Kai Eide's role as 
Chairman of the proposed conference and his broader position 
as a key leader in the international community for 
Afghanistan.  In addition, we believe the Joint Coordination 
and Monitoring Board is not appropriate for this task. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) We also believe it is crucial to address the 
linkages between the common issues faced by both Afghanistan 
and Pakistan, and will continue encouraging their formal 
inclusion in the agenda. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Action Request:  Department requests that Charge 
deliver the following points to the appropriate high-level 
officials of the Government of The Netherlands: 
 
--Thank you for your prompt and considered reply to our 
proposal for a Ministerial Conference on Afghanistan on March 
31, hosted by The Netherlands. 
 
--We wholeheartedly concur with your characterization of the 
nature of the meeting, and with the proposed co-chairmanship 
by the United Nations and the Government of The Netherlands. 
 
--As stated in our non-paper, we believe the key deliverable 
of the conference will be a chairman's statement issued under 
SRSG for Afghanistan Kai Eide's name. 
 
--Such a statement would further our shared goal of 
reinforcing SRSG Eide's position as an international leader 
for issues on Afghanistan. 
 
--To that end, we believe that preparation of the chair's 
conclusions should be undertaken by SRSG Eide in Kabul rather 
than by UN Headquarters working with a Friends of the Chair 
group in New York.  Having said that, SRSG Eide will travel 
to New York this month. 
 
--SRSG Eide will consult all stakeholders, especially your 
government as co-chair, in the drafting process.  This 
process worked well for the Paris International Conference in 
Support of Afghanistan in June 2008, and we believe it is the 
best model for the March 31 conference. 
 
--We also ask that you reconsider our request to broaden the 
agenda of the meeting to encompass Pakistan as well as 
Afghanistan. 
 
--As you are aware, the U.S. government is in the final 
stages of completing a strategic policy review for 
Afghanistan and Pakistan, something for which we received 
substantial input from the international community. 
 
--This review process has made it abundantly clear that the 
problems faced by Afghanistan and Pakistan spring from a 
common source:  violent extremism, sustained by 
narcotrafficking, economic hardship, and poor governance. 
 
--Furthermore, efforts to achieve our goal of a stable, 
peaceful Afghanistan could be significantly undercut by a 
destabilized Pakistan. 
 
--These common problems require a common solution, and 
broadening the agenda of the conference to include Pakistan 
would demonstrate renewed impetus to bring sustainable 
long-term stability to the region. 
 
--As such, we think it critical that both the framework of 
the conference and the resulting Chairman's Statement reflect 
a decision to address these problems in an integrated manner. 
 
--Given his deep experience and strong understanding of 
Afghanistan and his current role with Pakistan, we would 
expect former SRSG for Afghanistan Jean Arnault to play a 
role in the conference as it moves forward as well. 
 
--We look forward to supporting your work as host of this 
conference, and appreciate your consideration of our proposal. 
CLINTON