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R 071847Z APR 09
FM AMCONSUL MONTREAL
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 0207
DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
TSA HQ WASHINGTON DC
INFO DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION WASHINGTON DC
FAA NATIONAL HQ WASHINGTON DC
USEU BRUSSELS 0015
AMEMBASSY LONDON 
AMEMBASSY OTTAWA 
AMEMBASSY MEXICO 
AMEMBASSY DAKAR 
AMEMBASSY ROME 
AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 
AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 
AMEMBASSY TOKYO 
AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES 
AMEMBASSY RIYADH 
AMEMBASSY SINGAPORE 
AMEMBASSY BERLIN 
AMEMBASSY BRASILIA 
AMEMBASSY DOHA 
AMCONSUL MONTREAL

UNCLAS MONTREAL 000115 
 
 
PASS TO ALL DHS/FAA REPRESENTATIVES 
DOT FOR OST 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAIR ECON PREL PTER ICAO XX
SUBJECT: RESULTS OF ICAO'S TWENTIETH AVIATION SECURITY PANEL MEETING 
 
¶1.  Summary. Transportation Security Administration officials 
led the U.S. delegation to the International Civil Aviation 
Organization's (ICAO) Twentieth Aviation Security Panel of 
Experts (AVSECP) meeting and presented two U.S. working paper 
proposals and an information paper on the supply chain approach 
to air cargo security, introducing unpredictability into an 
aviation security regime, as well as a report from the first 
meeting of a U.S.-chaired New and Emerging Threats Working 
Group.   The U.S. delegation gained wide support among panel 
members for U.S. proposals, notably for the concepts of supply 
chain security and unpredictability as a supplemental tool in 
enhancing baseline security in the airport environment.    End 
Summary. 
 
 
BACKGROUND 
 
¶2.  The AVSECP, an expert advisory body established by ICAO, is 
responsible for developing new aviation security Standards and 
Recommended Practices (SARPs), among other duties. The Panel 
submits recommendations the ICAO Council, which may adopt and 
incorporate the SARPs into Security Annex 17 to the Convention 
on International Civil Aviation (Chicago Convention) governing 
international aviation security. The Twentieth Meeting of the 
Aviation Security Panel (AVSECP/20) was held in Montreal from 30 
March - 3 April 2009. Cindy Farkus, the Transportation Security 
Administration's Assistant Administrator for the Office of 
Global Strategies, led the U.S. delegation. 
 
 
U.S. PROPOSALS 
 
¶3.  The United States received universal support and positive 
feedback on its two working papers and one information paper. 
All will be referred to the ICAO Council for further 
consideration and approval.  The U.S. papers can be accessed on 
ICAO's secure website. 
 
¶4.    Report of the New and Emerging Threats Working Group. 
This paper detailed the process, discussion, and outcomes of the 
first meeting of ICAO's New and Emerging Threats Working Group 
(NETWG) held from 6 to 8 January 2009 in Washington, D.C., 
including experts from eight countries and ICAO staff. 
Discussions were focused on the use of risk assessment and 
management models for the process of analyzing the threats (both 
nature and likelihood) and civil aviation's vulnerabilities to 
those threats, i.e. the risk as a means of identifying gaps in 
the mitigating measures in Annex 17 -- Security. The group also 
discussed in detail a consolidated list of threats passed, on a 
restricted basis, to the working group by the G8 Roma-Lyon 
Transportation Security Subgroup. Through small, focused 
discussion groups, the NETWG reached consensus on four 
categories of threats: artfully concealed weapons; person-borne 
improvised explosive devices; vehicle-borne improvised 
explosives devices; and air cargo. In sum, the group made 
significant progress in identifying potential gaps in existing 
measures and providing recommendations for consideration by the 
panel. 
 
¶5.  The NETWG report group was passed to the Amendment 12 
working group, which is tasked with identifying and proposing 
language for new Standards and Recommended Practices to be 
included in Amendment 12 to Annex 17 -- Security.  The panel 
agreed to allow a change in the name of the group in order to 
address the notion of `evolving' threats.  The next NETWG 
meeting is tentatively scheduled for the first week in June 2009 
and will be hosted by the co-chair, the United Kingdom.   The 
report generated positive comments regarding the importance of a 
proactive approach to threats rather than a reactive one and 
several states mentioned their concern over cyber-threats.  The 
UK will ask its own experts and those from a recently convened 
EC workshop on cyber-threats (nfi) to make a presentation during 
the next working group meeting. 
 
¶6.  Air Cargo Supply Chain Management.  This paper outlined the 
elements and benefits of supply chain screening and "chain of 
custody" requirements for securing air cargo, which emphasizes 
effective security management of the entire air cargo supply 
chain. The supply chain approach to air cargo security has been 
implemented successfully in the Republic of Ireland and the 
United Kingdom (UK); is under consideration by Canada and the 
European Commission as a way of increasing air cargo security; 
and is similar to an initiative undertaken by the International 
Air Transport Association, referred to as "Secure Freight." The 
United States has developed a system, modeled after those in 
Ireland and the UK, referred to as the Certified Cargo Screening 
Program, to provide a mechanism by which industry may achieve 
100 percent screening without impeding the flow of commerce. 
Benefits include decreased air carrier delays and expedited 
supply chain flow; the ability to build bulk configurations that 
can be tendered without re-screening; the ability to ship 
certain cargo types without potential invasive screening later 
in the chain; and the ability to maintain in-house packaging 
integrity. 
 
¶7.  The air cargo working paper received positive responses from 
Australia, the UK, Mexico, Singapore, Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, 
Italy, Senegal, Japan, Argentina, and India.  Nearly all 
expressed support for supply chain security principles and 
highlighted similar efforts in their own countries.  The UK 
noted that this was one area in aviation security where the 
international community was implementing measures "ahead of the 
game" instead of reacting to events.    Cautionary messages from 
panel members centered on discouraging "unilateral measures" and 
imposing 100 percent physical screening requirements.  The panel 
then agreed to add elements of the U.S. paper to guidance 
material, referred the matter to the Amendment 12 working group 
to explore ways to incorporate supply chain elements to SARPs, 
and urged the creation of a joint Secretariat study group on the 
facilitation/aviation security aspects of the supply chain.  The 
final panel report further reflected its endorsement of supply 
chain security management and that the concept should be 
"considered for inclusion in Annex 17." 
 
¶8.  Building Unpredictability into an Aviation Security Regime. 
This information paper offered the premise that civil aviation 
faces an adaptive and motivated enemy whose choice of target and 
attack method depends significantly on the perceived and actual 
vulnerability of the security system. Terrorists can analyze a 
static system easily by identifying where, how, and when 
resources are used, thereby allowing them a greater opportunity 
to identify weaknesses, circumvent the system, and exploit 
vulnerabilities. By implementing various security measures 
within existing security layers in an unpredictable and random 
approach, terrorists' plans can be frustrated, attacks may be 
deterred, and countermeasures can be deployed flexibly and 
quickly in response to emerging threats. 
 
¶9.  Qatar, Mexico, Canada, Switzerland, Brazil, Germany, 
Singapore and Saudi Arabia intervened to express their 
appreciation for the working paper and the concept of 
introducing unpredictability into an aviation security regime. 
Mexico said that it was a valuable tool for states with limited 
resources.   Saudi Arabia suggested it be addressed as a 
"strategic objective" during a possible future international 
aviation conference and Canada asked that the Amendment 12 
working group consider adding language in Annex 17 that reflects 
the principle and benefits of the approach.  Some debate 
centered around cautioning against reducing baseline security in 
order to add in unpredictable elements and around the idea of 
maintaining passenger comfort by retaining common practices from 
one destination to another.  In the end, the chair summarized by 
saying that unpredictability was a key element in the evolution 
from excelling at screening to developing innovative and new 
measures to thwart terrorists. 
 
 
OTHER KEY ISSUES 
 
¶10.   Other objectives met at this meeting included: 
 
  a)  Encouraging threat-related information sharing among 
Contracting States; 
 
  b)  Supporting a proposal to establish a Technological Working 
Group to advise the Panel on security-related technologies for 
liquids, aerosols and gels and other threats; 
 
  c)  Urging the creation of a temporary working group to 
develop a revised security plan of action       that will take 
global security in a new and focused direction; 
 
  d)  Urging greater transparency in the ICAO Universal Security 
Audit Process (USAP); 
 
  f)  Encouraging an exchange of information between Donor 
States in the provision of assistance to       developing 
nations to avoid duplication of effort and wasted resources; 
 
  g)  Monitoring discussions related to a possible requirement 
for 100 percent staff screening and; 
 
  h)  Conducting bilateral meetings with member states and 
participating in sidebar discussions. 
 
 
¶11.  Coordinating Assistance to States (Partner/Donor Meeting-). 
ICAO staff provided an overview of a new ICAO coordinated 
development database of assistance programs offered worldwide 
and especially in Africa.   ICAO's Implementation Support and 
Development Branch encouraged States to send in data regarding 
training and assistance programs and nominations for subject 
matter experts to conduct training worldwide.   ICAO previewed 
its new "Go Team"  concept which mirrors TSA's Aviation Security 
Sustainable International Standards Teams program (ASSIST), 
which sends a group of veteran security experts to collaborate 
with local security officials to address several security needs 
at one time (following an initial security assessment of 
training needs, equipment, current aviation programs, and 
aviation security legislation). The teams work to build aviation 
security capacity, practices, and sustainable institutions 
through local alliances. 
 
 
CONCLUSION 
 
¶12.  The U.S. delegation achieved its goals of gaining 
international support for its three paper proposals.     The 
U.S. looks forward to future collaborative and proactive work 
with the aviation security panel, its working groups and 
contracting states, to identify new, evolving and emerging 
threats, share threat information, increase transparency in the 
universal security audit program, and strengthen Annex 17 and 
guidance material to include the concepts of supply chain 
security in air cargo and unpredictability, among other 
objectives. 
 
¶13.  We greatly appreciate Posts' assistance in this effort and 
their ongoing support for international civil aviation matters. 
Please direct questions or requests for additional information 
pertaining to this cable to  Jillene.MacCreery@dhs.gov (tel.: +1 
571-227-2244). 
 
 
FAUX-GABLE MCCLENNY