VZCZCXYZ0002
RR RUEHWEB
DE RUEHMO #0292/01 0401356
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 091356Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6185
RUEAORC/USCBP WASHDC
RHEBAAA/USDOE WASHDC
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RULSJGA/COMDT COGARD WASHINGTON DC
RECNEXC/EXPORT CONTROL AND RELATED BORDER SECURITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
UNCLAS MOSCOW 000292
SIPDIS
STATE FOR ISN/ECC JFRIEDMAN, ACHURCH, NJOHANSON, LSPRINGER
CBP FOR INA, PLEASE PASS TO TCORWIN
USDOE WASHDC ALSO FOR NNSA, PLEASE PASS TO TPERRY
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ETTC MNUC PARM PREL KSTC KNNP UP RS
SUBJECT: EXBS: RUSSIA ADVISOR MONTHLY REPORTING CABLE - JANUARY
2010
REF: MOSCOW 191
1. Begin summary: BROAD ITEMS OF INTEREST TO ADVISORS AND AGENCY
MANAGERS: The embassy was shut down, as were Russian government
offices, January 1-8 for New Year's and Russian Orthodox holidays.
The Advisor is working with the Human Resources Department in the
embassy and with EXBS Washington on the search for a new EXBS
Assistant. Final agenda and logistical arrangements were put in
place for the EXBS-supported and coordinated bilateral Program
Review and Export Controls Exchange in Washington February 2-4. End
summary.
2. Completed Actions for Reporting Period.
A. Site Assessments and Meetings During the Reporting Period.
i. January 12 - EXBS Advisor met with representatives of the export
controls section within the Security and Disarmament Department of
the Russian Foreign Ministry. Present were the Deputy Director of
the department, Grigory Ivanovich Mashkov; Advisor Anatoliy
Mikhailovich Bulochnikov; Attache Leonid Nikolaevich Kozlov; and
Attache Alexander Odoevskiy. The meeting was organized to present
to MFA the revised agenda of the Program Review in early February
and the Program Plan for ongoing activities allocated among FY08,
FY09, and FY10. In previous meetings, MFA has taken the opportunity
to raise concerns about issues outside the focus of the meeting
agenda, such as the proposed implementation of UNSCR 1540. However,
this time, our discussions remained strictly within the purview of
EXBS. MFA agreed to coordinate review of the agenda among various
Russian government agencies and provide feedback to the Advisor.
MFA offered a few minor comments about Program Plan activities,
which were passed on to EXBS Washington.
ii. January 22 - EXBS Advisor met with representatives of the
export controls section within the Security and Disarmament
Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry. The meeting was
organized to hear the MFA-coordinated Russian government interagency
response to U.S. revisions to the Program Review agenda. Present
were Advisor Anatoliy Mikhailovich Bulochnikov and Attache Alexander
Odoevskiy. MFA indicated several areas in which U.S.
nonproliferation policy did not agree with Russia's, and which it
wanted to see discussed. Changes were subsequently made to the
agenda to reflect those topics (REF 191).
B. Training Conducted During Reporting Period.
i. No training was conducted during this period.
C. Equipment Delivered During Reporting Period.
i. The EXBS Russia program does not distribute equipment.
3. Imminent Training or Equipment Status Update
i. On January 25, the EXBS Advisor and U.S. Customs and Border
Protection (CBP)Program Manager for Russia agreed, following a
telephone conversation, that EXBS would re-approach Rosgranitsa in
February concerning its interest in an IVP to U.S. ports of entry.
Rosgranitsa is a new Russian federal agency charged with security of
border facilities. The visit was postponed to at least March 2010
due to the December and January holidays and the extended medical
leave of the CBP Program Manager. EXBS has been working with CBP on
this trip and may also develop program activities depending on the
outcome of this visit.
4. Significant Developments in Export Controls, Nonproliferation,
or Related Border Security
i. A recent press release issued by Russian Customs describing the
visit of federal and Moscow region customs officials to U.S. ports
of entry in December 2009 contained the following statement: "The
effective functioning of customs in Russia currently is not possible
without interaction with the customs services of other governments."
Validations such as these from the Russian side are useful in
assessing the qualitative value that EXBS-supported activities such
as the December visit add.
5. Country Plans and Other Assistance
i. On January 26, the Advisor participated in a meeting of the
USAID-coordinated Assistance Working Group called to distribute
materials and to explain procedures for the FY 2010 Operating Plan.
As in the past, EXBS will be responsible for coordinating its own
submission with that of the U.S. Civilian Research and Development
Foundation (CRDF) under Program Area 1.2, Combating Weapons of Mass
Destruction.
6. CONTACT INFORMATION. Joan Agerholm is the EXBS Advisor for
Russia and can be reached at AgerholmJA@state.gov, or +7 (985)
410-30-87.
BEYRLE