VZCZCXRO6478
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHBK #2595/01 2820935
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 090935Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY BANGKOK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8571
RHMFIUU/US CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION WASHINGTON DC
RHMCSUU/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/COMDT COGARD WASHINGTON DC
INFO RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUCNEXC/EXPORT CONTROL AND RELATED BORDER SECURITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC
RUEAWJL/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BANGKOK 002595 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR ISN/ECC JFRIEDMAN, ACHURCH, ROWEN, LSPRINGER, 
EAP/MLS DSMITH, MFORINO, AWEST 
CBP/INA FOR BMCCRAY 
DEPT OF ENERGY FOR NNSA TPERRY 
AMEMBASSY HANOI FOR JBOCKLAGE 
AMEMBASSY KUALA LUMPUR FOR MMCNAMARA 
AMEMBASSY PHNOM PENH FOR MSWEENEY 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ETTC KNNP KSTC MNUC PARM PREL TH VN CB CH
SUBJECT: EXBS: THAILAND/VIETNAM/CAMBODIA ADVISOR MONTHLY 
REPORTING CABLE - SEPTEMBER 2009 
 
BANGKOK 00002595  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
SUMMARY 
 
¶1. (U) Commonwealth Trading Partners (CTP) conducted an 
Anti-Corruption and Integrity Awareness Workshop in Thailand, 
Sep. 14-15. Advisor conducted meetings with post and 
Vietnamese officials in Hanoi and a visit to Lao Cai border 
crossing, Sep. 21-25.  Advisor met with officials from 
Thailand's senior civil service training institute to discuss 
organizational codes of conduct on Sep. 29.  EXBS continues 
to assist DEA in transferring chemical analysis equipment to 
Vietnam's Ministry of Public Security.  Advisor conducted 
consultations in Washington, D.C., Aug. 31-Sept. 1. 
 
SITE ASSESSMENTS AND MEETINGS 
 
¶2. (U) Advisor and Program Assistant visited Lao Cai border 
crossing, Sep. 22-23.  Lao Cai is Vietnam's main border 
crossing into Yunnan, China.  Customs officials told us that 
in 2008, 644 thousand tons of imported goods and 499 thousand 
tons of exported goods passed through the crossing station. 
Commodities are mostly consumer goods.  Volume is expected to 
increase significantly over the next few years as the 
Kunming-Haiphong highway is completed.  As China will more 
feasibly be able to export for the global market from this 
region, it's likely that dual-use commodities will also begin 
to flow through this point.  This would also increase the 
utility of a Megaports facility at Haiphong.  Border Army 
officials said they were using a set of EXBS-provided night 
vision binoculars in the district, and had a significant list 
of additional desired equipment.  This list can be refined 
during upcoming training seminars. 
 
¶3. (U) Advisor met with the Vice Director and other officials 
from Vietnam's Forensic Science Institute on Sep. 25.  The 
Forensic Institute is part of the Ministry of Public 
Security.  Although the Institute has worked with DEA for 
some time, this was their first exposure to the EXBS program. 
Advisor briefed officials on EXBS objectives and activities, 
and then updated them on efforts to transfer surplus chemical 
analysis equipment (gas chromatography - mass spectrometry) 
from DEA to the Institute, including installation and 
technical training.  One of the officials had previously 
trained on this equipment in the U.S.  Institute officials 
agreed that this equipment would be useful in analyzing 
suspected WMD compounds, and agreed to work closely with 
Customs and other agencies in doing so. 
 
¶4. (U) Advisor briefed officials from the Vietnamese General 
Department of Customs on proposed FY10 EXBS activities. 
Officials expressed their appreciation for the excellent 
training received at RADACAD in July, and agreed that the 
proposed FY10 program seemed logical and useful.  They will 
examine the proposals in more detail and provide any 
additional comments as soon as possible.  They also commented 
that they have found the material presented in past workshops 
very useful, and suggested that it be stored on a website to 
facilitate wider distribution.  This would be particularly 
useful for briefing superiors and other high-level policy 
officials, as well as enforcement officers at remote border 
locations. 
 
¶5. (U) Advisor participated in embassy Hanoi's Maritime 
Security Working Group on Sep. 25.  Advisor discussed the 
upcoming USCG Boarding Officer Course for the Marine Police, 
and described other maritime law enforcement training with 
Thailand and Cambodia.  Advisor solicited suggestions for 
future multilateral training events to facilitate greater 
regional maritime cooperation. 
 
¶6. (U) Advisor and the Asia Regional Anti-Corruption Advisor 
from the American Bar Association (ABA) met with officials 
from King Prajadhipok's Institute (KPI), Thailand's senior 
civil service training facility, on Sep. 29.  The meeting had 
been requested by KPI following the EXBS Anti-Corruption 
 
BANGKOK 00002595  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
Workshop (see below) to provide more detailed information 
regarding organizational codes of conduct.  Officials agreed 
that it might be useful for KPI to revise its code in 
accordance with international best practices, which could 
then be used as a model for other organizations in the Thai 
bureaucracy.  Officials agreed to brief KPI senior management 
on this proposal, and to follow-up with a request for 
additional assistance as necessary. 
 
TRAINING CONDUCTED 
 
¶7. (U) Commonwealth Trading Partners (CTP) conducted an 
Anti-Corruption and Integrity Awareness Workshop in Thailand, 
Sep. 14-15.  The workshop was hosted by King Prajadhipok's 
Institute, with additional presentations by the Thai National 
Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), the Regional 
Anti-Corruption Advisor of the American Bar Association and 
post's Resident Legal Advisor from the Department of Justice. 
 Fifty-two officials from several government and private 
organizations attended, including the NACC, KPI, Public 
Sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC), Office of the 
Auditor General, and the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO). 
 KPI, AMLO and Customs officials expressed interest in 
additional assistance; Advisor will follow-up. 
 
EQUIPMENT DELIVERED 
 
¶8. (U) Advisor delivered 19 personal radiation detectors to 
Thai Customs on Oct. 8 (documents forwarded separately). 
 
IMMINENT TRAINING/EQUIPMENT UPDATE 
 
¶9. (U) U.S. Coast Guard will conduct WMD Boarding Officer 
Courses for the Vietnamese Marine Police in Haiphong and Phu 
Quoc, Oct. 12-23.  Distribution of radiation pagers will 
occur during the course so that user training can be 
conducted concurrently.  CTP will conduct a UNSCR 1540 
Implementation Workshop in Phnom Penh, Oct.  14-16. 
DOE/INECP will conduct an Industry Outreach Seminar with the 
Thai Ministry of Commerce on Oct. 21.  They will also conduct 
follow-up meetings concerning establishment of national 
Commodity Identification Training with Thai Customs and the 
Police on Oct. 22. 
 
¶10. (U) Other pending actions include the final phase of 
Vietnam's Tracker Demonstration Project and a visit by 
Vietnamese officials to Korea for briefings on the YesTrade 
export control system. 
 
SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS 
 
¶11. (U) None. 
 
¶12. (U) Points of contact for the EXBS Program are: William 
Comley, Regional Advisor, comleywa@state.gov, (66-2) 
205-4621; Kamolrat Chotesungnoen (Dao), Thai Program 
Assistant, Kamolrat@state.gov, (66-2) 205-4403; Nguyen Thi 
Huong Giang, Vietnam Program Assistant, NguyenGH@state.gov, 
(84-4) 3850-6241. 
ENTWISTLE