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OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHC #4391 2801506
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O 071446Z OCT 09
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO USMISSION USUN NEW YORK IMMEDIATE 0000

UNCLAS STATE 104391 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PTER CT UNSC
SUBJECT: STATEMENT FOR SIXTH COMMITTEE ON UN 
COUNTERTERRORISM ISSUES 
 
REF: A. USUN 840 
     ¶B. STATE 62265 
     ¶C. STATE 103127 
 
¶1. This is an action request.  Please see paragraph 3. 
 
¶2. SUMMARY:  The Sixth Committee will address the CCIT on 
October 6, 7 and 23.  Negotiations on the CCIT have foundered 
for nine years on two issues:  (1) the scope of an exemption 
for military activities and (2) exemption of national 
liberation movements.  USG redlines are that military 
activities must be exempted using standard language from 
previous antiterrorism conventions, and that violent acts of 
national liberation movements must not be exempted.  By 
contrast, the OIC wants to exempt military activities only if 
they are in compliance with international law and wants 
national liberation movements (with the Palestinians 
particularly in mind) exempted by the Convention.  The United 
States continues to support a Comprehensive Convention on 
International Terrorism that would strengthen this existing 
legal regime and reinforce the critical principle that no 
cause or grievance justifies terrorism in any form.  However, 
we firmly believe that any successful resolution to the 
outstanding CCIT issues must be predicated on a shared and 
clear understanding that a comprehensive convention on 
terrorism cannot provide a pretext for terrorist groups to 
claim their criminal acts are excluded from the scope of the 
CCIT in the name of national liberation, resistance to 
foreign occupation, or any other justification or motivation. 
 Furthermore, it should not reach state military action, 
which is subject to other international legal regimes. 
 
¶3. ACTION REQUEST: In discussions commencing October 6 on 
CCIT negotiations, USUN may wish to draw on points from the 
following draft statement. 
 
BEGIN STATEMENT 
 
The United States reiterates both our firm condemnation of 
terrorism in all its forms and manifestations as well as our 
commitment to the common fight to end terrorism.  All acts of 
terrorism - by whomever committed - are criminal, inhumane 
and unjustifiable, regardless of motivation, especially when 
they indiscriminately target and injure civilians.  An 
unwavering and united effort by the international community 
is required if we are to succeed in preventing these heinous 
acts.  In this respect, we recognize the United Nations, 
central role in coordinating the efforts by member states in 
countering terrorism and bolstering the ability of states to 
prevent terrorist acts.  We express our firm support for 
these UN efforts. 
Through the UN system, 16 international legal instruments 
have been completed.  These instruments provide a thorough 
legal framework for cooperation among states directed toward 
prevention of terrorist acts and ensuring the prosecution and 
punishment of offenders, wherever found.  We note the ongoing 
efforts to further enhance this legal framework and promote 
full and effective implementation of the provisions of these 
instruments.  We believe the four latest counter-terrorism 
instruments adopted in 2005 - the Nuclear Terrorism 
Convention, the Amendment to the Convention on the Protection 
of Physical Nuclear Material, and the two Suppression of 
Unlawful Acts Protocols - are valuable additions to our 
collective efforts to combat terrorism. (We are seeking 
domestic legislation so that we can become party to and fully 
implement these newest instruments.)   We also note the 
recent meetings of the Legal Committee of the International 
Civil Aviation Organization to consider updates to the two 
civil aviation security Conventions -  the 1970 Hague 
Convention and the 1971 Montreal Convention.  We believe this 
international legal framework for countering terrorism must 
continue to be supported and developed, with states joining, 
implementing, and -- where needed -- refining these existing 
instruments. 
The United States continues to support a Comprehensive 
Convention on International Terrorism that would strengthen 
this existing legal regime and reinforce the critical 
principle that no cause or grievance justifies terrorism in 
any form.  We firmly believe that any successful resolution 
to the outstanding CCIT issues must be predicated on a shared 
and clear understanding of two fundamental principles: 
-- First, a comprehensive convention on terrorism cannot 
provide a pretext for terrorist groups to claim their 
criminal acts are excluded from the scope of the CCIT in the 
name of national liberation, resistance to foreign 
occupation, or any other justification or motivation. 
-- Second, as with other recent counterterrorism instruments, 
a comprehensive convention should not reach state military 
action, which is subject to other international legal 
regimes. 
We continue to believe that the Coordinator's 2002 text best 
reflects these fundamental principles by incorporating text 
which 162 states have accepted in the Terrorist Bombings 
Convention.  The text found in the Bombings Convention, as 
well as four other recent counterterrorism instruments, was 
itself the subject of careful compromise.  We are not 
persuaded that there are deficiencies with this text that 
need to be remedied.  While we appreciate the efforts of 
those who have attempted to offer proposals to finalize the 
CCIT text, to date those proposals have not been supported by 
those who object to the Coordinator,s 2002 text.  We stand 
prepared to carefully consider any new proposal that is 
consistent with the fundamental principles we have outlined, 
and encourage other states to do likewise. 
 
END STATEMENT 
 
¶4.  (U) Department further requests USUN draw from the 
following points, if needed, should the case of Luis Posada 
Carriles be raised (likely by the Governments of Cuba and/or 
Venezuela) , following negotiations in the Sixth Committee on 
CCIT.  (Background Note: The Governments of Cuba and 
Venezuela claim that Posada, a Cuban exile, was allegedly 
involved in the bombing of a Cubana airliner, which had 
departed Caracas before its destruction in mid-air in 1976. 
Posada is also alleged to have been involved in bombings of 
tourist facilities in 1997 in Havana, Cuba, and in a plot 
against Fidel Castro during the Ibero-American Summit in 
Panama in 2000.  Posada was taken into custody May 17, 2005, 
by the Department of Homeland Security for entering the 
United States without inspection.) 
 
BEGIN REMARKS: 
 
- Contrary to the statements you have heard, the United 
States has taken a number of actions with respect to Luis 
Posada-Carriles ("Posada"). 
 
- In taking these steps, the United States has acted 
consistent with international law as well as our domestic 
legal framework that provides for due process and various 
constitutional safeguards. 
- These safeguards provide that an individual cannot be 
brought for trial or extradited unless sufficient evidence 
has been established with respect to the charges; in the 
United States, this standard is described as "probable cause." 
 
- Let me give you a brief overview of steps the United States 
has taken with respect to Posada within this legal framework: 
 
- Posada entered the United States illegally in early 2005. 
 
- Posada was detained by immigration authorities in the 
United States on May 17, 2005, and he was, in accordance with 
U.S. law, placed in removal proceedings. 
 
- The immigration judge who handled the removal proceedings 
ordered that Posada be removed from the United States on 
September 27, 2005. 
 
- This order remains in effect.  The United States has been 
seeking ways to implement it consistent with the terms of the 
order and U.S. obligations under the Convention Against 
Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or 
Punishment. 
 
- Specifically, at the time the immigration judge ordered 
Posada removed, the immigration judge also determined that 
Posada could not be removed to either Cuba or Venezuela as it 
was more likely than not that he would be tortured if he were 
so transferred.  As a matter of U.S. immigration law, the 
United States is not in a position to remove Posada to either 
country. (For use if appropriate) 
 
- Moreover, the United States sought and obtained a criminal 
indictment in U.S. federal court charging Posada with 
violations of our immigration laws.  On April 8, 2009, new 
criminal charges were brought against Posada in that case, 
accusing him of lying about his involvement in certain 
terrorist bombings in Havana, Cuba.  The case is currently 
scheduled for trial early next year. 
 
- In the meantime, Posada remains subject to the order of 
removal issued by the immigration judge and is without legal 
status in the United States. 
 
- He is also subject to an Order of Supervision from the 
Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs 
Enforcement (ICE), which imposes certain restrictions on 
Posada, including reporting and monitoring requirements. 
 
- In sum, the United States continues to be engaged in an 
ongoing series of actions, consistent with our legal 
requirements and due process, with respect to Posada. 
 
END REMARKS 
CLINTON