US embassy cable - 03THEHAGUE2530

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 THE HAGUE 002530 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EB/ESC/TFS, S/CT, EUR/ERA, EUR/PGI, INR/EC, IO/PHO 
TREASURY FOR ZARATE 
JUSTICE FOR OIA/FRIEDMAN 
FBI FOR LORMEL 
BRUSSELS ALSO FOR LEGATT 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/30/2008 
TAGS: ETTC, PTER, EFIN, IZ, NL, EUN 
SUBJECT: TERRORIST FINANCE: CONSULTATIONS OF EB/TFC DEPUTY 
DIRECTOR GOFF IN THE NETHERLANDS 
 
Classified By: DCM Daniel R. Russel Reason 1.5(b) and (d) 
 
1.  (SBU) SUMMARY:  Ed Goff, Deputy Director EB/ESC/TFC, met 
Sept 11-12 with Dutch officials, bankers, 
and U.S. Embassy staff to share ideas in the war on terrorist 
financing.  These officials reiterated Dutch commitment to 
furthering terrorist financing efforts both domestically and 
in the EU.  They said the Dutch are willing to advance the 
terrorist financing agenda during their upcoming EU 
presidency with Finance Ministry 
officials particularly stressing the need for progress in 
enacting a new EU anti-moneylaundering directive.  Goff and 
Embassy officials discussed the utility of an early small 
informal conference of terrorist finance action officers from 
selected US Embassies in Europe to set the stage for progress 
during the Irish, Dutch, and UK EU presidencies.  End 
summary. 
 
Meetings with Embassy Officers 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
2.  (SBU)  Emboffs related to Mr. Goff their excellent 
ongoing cooperation w/ Dutch counterterrorism authorities, 
especially on terrorism finance and transportation security 
issues.  They noted the upcoming EU presidencies of Ireland 
and the Netherlands and observed that the two had agreed to 
cooperate with each other in order to provide more continuity 
in the Presidency.  It was suggested that since the 
Department has a number of objectives for the EU in the 
counterterrorism finance arena, it might be appropriate for 
officers responsible for the working level management of such 
issues to meet in an informal setting before the New Year in 
order to orient newly participating Emboffs, to brief 
Department priorities, and to explore other possibilities for 
action.  It would be appropriate, in this context, to include 
terrorist finance action officers from the Hague, Dublin, 
USEU, Rome (the current EU President), and  London, 
additional European posts that may have issues of concern as 
well as working-level representatives of Washington agencies. 
 Representatives from Embassies Berlin, Paris and Spain might 
be included for their insight into EU controversies.  In any 
case it was thought that it would be appropriate to keep the 
meeting small and informal enough to enable free and frank 
discussions. 
 
Finance Ministry 
-------------------------- 
3.  (SBU) Accompanied by Econoff Todd Kushner, on Friday, 
Goff met with officials from the Integrity Division of the 
Ministry of Finance:  Margreet H.M. Wenting (action officer 
on designation issues), Klaas Werkhorst (Division Director) 
and Dr. EYC Lightart, (Deputy Division Director).  These 
officials highlighted their roles in ensuring Dutch financial 
institutions receive designations promptly and in an easily 
usable format.  This process, they said, has been greatly 
systemized since the days immediately after 9/11/01 and now 
is largely conducted electronically.  Werkhorst revealed that 
the GONL is preparing legislation that would require 
financial institutions upon the request of the Finance 
Ministry to search their records for transactions of 
individuals and entities who are not designated but are of 
interest.  Wenting noted the need for clear identifiers of 
individuals who are designated, so that financial 
institutions can review their records with greater precision. 
 Mr. Goff observed that practice had evolved since the 
initial designations, and 
that now the USG undertakes extensive efforts  to ensure that 
detailed identification information is provided, when 
available.   Wenting explained Dutch procedures for handling 
situations where a financial institution uncovers accounts 
held by a person or entity that matches or partly matches a 
designation but cannot conclude that the account and the 
designee are the same; in those situations, the name and 
account information are turned over to the Dutch security 
service (AIVD) which has two weeks to determine if the 
account holder and the designee match.  If the AIVD does not 
come back with an affirmative decision, the accounts are 
unfrozen. 
 
4.  (SBU) Finance officials also noted that terrorist finance 
was high on the list of items the Dutch Finance Ministry 
wants to tackle during the 2004 (latter half) Dutch EU 
presidency.   In particular, the Dutch would like to promote 
enactment of a third EU money laundering directive that would 
incorporate the latest FATF thinking.  They were very open 
and interested in exploring how U.S.-EU cooperation against 
terrorist financing could be intensified in the period 
leading up to and through the Dutch EU presidency. 
 
5.  (SBU) Reflecting an internal discussion of whether the 
Dutch government should resume welfare payments to Jose Maria 
Sison, who (although designated by the U.S. and EU is still 
resident in the Netherlands), Dr. Ligthart asked about U.S. 
practice on payments to individuals who have had their assets 
frozen.  Mr. Goff explained that it has been standard 
practice to permit individuals whose 
assets have been frozen limited access to resources, a 
practice needed on humanitarian grounds and carried out in 
accordance with  UNSC Resolution 1452.    Finance officials 
were also interested in USG delisting procedures.  They 
observed that eventually courts in one country or another 
will rule negatively on a listing thereby forcing a country 
out of compliance with UNSC Res 1373 or 1390.  Mr. Werkhorst 
wondered what thought had been given to this by the USG.  Mr. 
Goff observed that comprehensive USG reviews of cases ensure 
judicial reversals are unlikely, but acknowledged that it was 
not outside the realm of possibility 
that such a case could arise. 
 
Foreign Ministry 
-------------------------- 
6.  (C) In a separate meeting hosted by Jaap Werner (Foreign 
Ministry Political Affairs Director) that also included 
representatives from MFA's European Affairs and Middle East 
Departments, MFA officials indicated their ongoing attention 
to driving the Dutch interagency process in the direction of 
more and higher quality designations (i.e., not just 
designating terrorist organizations but their supporters, 
fundraisers, and front organizations) and effective law 
enforcement actions against terrorist support networks in the 
Netherlands.  They noted that within the Dutch interagency 
process and within the EU clearinghouse  the ability to draw 
on convincing information regarding the terrorist connections 
of entities considered for designation is key to making that 
happen.  Werner mentioned the recent EU clearinghouse 
discussions regarding possible designation on the six Hamas 
leaders and 4 charity organizations noting that France had 
maintained a hold on the leaders for political reasons and 
that Austria, France, and the UK had reservations on the four 
Hamas-linked charities on informational grounds.  The Italian 
presidency would request more information on the four 
organizations, Werner noted, "but perhaps these countries 
could find and table more information on the charities if 
they wanted to." 
 
7.  (C) Werner continued that EU member states needed to 
ensure they had enough information linking terrorist 
organizations to individuals or entities considered for 
designation to forestall any potentially successful court 
challenges.  He asked whether the Palestinian Authority, now 
that it had taken action against the Hamas financial based, 
could provide more detailed information on Hamas fundraising 
links to European non-profits. 
 
Foreign Ministry officials also raised the following other 
sanctions issues: 
 
Helms-Burton & ILSA - Mr Goff noted that these are outside of 
his office's direct responsibility, but assured the Dutch 
that our policies continue in place.  Werner said that with 
Castro's recent crackdowns on dissent, the EU was reviewing 
its common position toward Cuba on an almost daily basis 
 
Libya: Goff reiterated that per high level statements, U.S. 
sanctions remain in place; 
 
Iraq- The Dutch urged the U.S. to work with the UN to 
designate additional individuals under UNSC Res 1483 in order 
to provide clear guidance to financial institutions regarding 
the accounts they were supposed to take action toward.  They 
noted the existence of Iraq-related accounts frozen in the 
Netherlands stemming from UN resolutions following the First 
Gulf War.  However, the Netherlands would not be able to turn 
these funds over to the Iraq Development Fund until new 
legislation allowing for confiscation of these assets is 
approved and enacted domestically. 
 
Dutch Bankers Association 
------------------------------------------- 
8.  Goff and Kushner also met with Netherlands Bankers 
Association Secretary for Security Affairs Ruud K. Oord and 
ABN AMRO Director of Group Compliance M.A. Dorgelo.  These 
officials reaffirmed the continuing commitment of Dutch 
financial institutions to deny terrorists use of the 
financial system but noted it has been difficult for banks to 
absorb and implement the many new regulations and procedures 
imposed by government authorities in their efforts against 
terrorist financing.  Dorgelo observed that there has been 
very little feedback from security agencies on SARs reporting 
and other efforts by banks to identify suspect transactions 
and individuals.  He emphasized that without feedback the 
edge would go out of the program.  Mr. Oord also observed 
that unlike in the U.S., banks in the Netherlands are liable 
if they freeze in error, even if it is pursuant to official 
direction.  This stands, he stated, in direct contrast to 
U.S. practice where the liability is absorbed by OFAC. 
SOBEL