US embassy cable - 03THEHAGUE3039

UNCLAS E F T O SECTION 01 OF 02 THE HAGUE 003039 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
NOFORN 
 
STATE FOR AC/CB, NP/CBM, VC/CCB, L/ACV, IO/S 
SECDEF FOR OSD/ISP 
JOINT STAFF FOR DD PMA-A FOR WTC 
COMMERCE FOR BIS (GOLDMAN) 
NSC FOR CHUPA 
WINPAC FOR PEASE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/10/2013 
TAGS: PARM, PREL, CWC 
SUBJECT: CHEMICAL WEAPONS CONVENTION (CWC): MEETINGS WITH 
TECHNICAL SECRETARIAT ON IT ISSUES 
 
 1.  (U) This is CWC-134-03. 
 
2.  (U) Del reps met on 24 November 2003 with OPCW Technical 
Secretariat (TS) Administration Division head Herb Shultz and 
 
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Information Support Branch head Greg Linden to relay U.S. 
concern regarding the pace of the TS effort to achieve a 
working digital information technology (IT) system.  The 
system would include TS acceptance of States Parties 
electronic submissions of their industrial data declarations, 
TS provision to States Parties' redacted data declarations in 
 
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electronic format, and TS ability to store, protect, and 
manipulate digital information it obtains. 
 
3.  (U) Del reps relayed Washington's concern that TS 
implementation of electronic data processing and analysis of 
data declarations was projected to take two years and queried 
ways that the work might be completed more expeditiously. 
Reps inquired whether increased funding or provision of 
"cost-free" experts would speed the process.  Shultz and 
Linden responded that at this point, additional resources 
would not necessarily speed the process; the TS effort was 
exactly where it needed to be.  They promised to reconsider 
whether additional resources might advance the project more 
quickly and advise Del reps accordingly. 
 
4.  (U) Shultz and Linden reviewed the history of the 
CTFS/RDBMS development effort, summarized why the proposed 
additional time/effort was necessary, and discussed why 
additional resources may not be the answer.  They noted that 
four ISB personnel are dedicated to this effort, and about 
the same number of staff are dedicated to the TS' 
contractor's efforts in Washington, noting that this level of 
effort put the CTFS/RDBMS integration effort at the top of 
ISB's task list. 
 
5.  (U) Shultz and Linden noted that part of Linden's initial 
task after he joined the OPCW earlier this year was to bring 
into the process senior Verification and International 
Cooperation Divisions managers (Horst Reeps, Carlos 
Trentadue, Magda Bauta), as well as other potential future TS 
users.  ISB personnel worked with them to determine data and 
analytic needs, to co-opt them in the development process so 
that the software developed by ISB meets TS users' needs and 
is not ignored.  They noted that for the first time in OPCW 
history, TS users are engaged in the requirements end and are 
supportive of ISB's effort.  Their input has changed the 
RDBMS functionality requirements, software on which TS 
development ceased around 1999.  Users' required capabilities 
include UDOC site selection, verification reporting, and 
other cross-TS tasks. 
 
6.  (U) Shultz and Linden noted that the development effort 
is an incremental process, and functionality will be brought 
on line as it becomes available; the TS won't wait until 
everything is completed to begin its advertising and 
marketing efforts.  Indeed, they expect that an EDIT/RDBMS 
testbed will be available for demonstration to interested 
delegations and TS units in mid-January.  Linden also noted 
that the TS could accept electronic data submissions now, but 
they would have to be printed off and data entry clerks 
re-enter the data into the current ACCESS databases.  The TS 
currently does not have the capability to receive and 
securely store large amounts of digital data.  Linden also 
promised to provide Del reps a short summary of the tasks, 
costs, and timelines envisaged. 
 
7.  (U) Del reps noted that the U.S. needs to be able to 
submit electronic declarations as soon as possible, and to 
receive redacted declarations of other SPs in electronic 
format.  The TS needs to be able to manipulate digital data 
in order to minimize clerical errors resulting from data 
entry as well as to be better able to analyze declarations to 
get a more complete picture of chemical activities relevant 
to the Convention.  Linden responded that it might be 
possible to provide redacted declarations in an adobe-type 
format, pages of text that would be machine searchable, as a 
first step.  Del reps welcomed the idea, and encouraged the 
TS to provide more details. 
 
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8.  (SBU) Del reps discussed the problem of the U.S. 
footprint on the software development effort.  Shultz 
re-emphasized the existing suspicions of other delegations 
and non-U.S. TS personnel regarding the U.S. effort and the 
importance of the TS being able to sell the integrated system 
as a TS product.  Del reps, Shultz and Linden agreed to 
minimize the apparent U.S. engagement on the issue by having 
monthly lunches offsite where Linden and Shultz would provide 
del reps updates on status and problem areas, probably 
beginning in mid-January 2004, after the massive TS software 
upgrade and data migrations are completed. 
9.  (SBU) In a short conversation on 2 December, Linden 
advised Del rep that he had drafted the short memo requested 
by the del reps summarizing TS plans and timelines for 
integrating the CTFS (renamed EDIT within the TS), the RDBMS, 
and security shell, and introducing the new TS capabilities 
to both the TS and States Parties.  Rather than providing it 
to only the U.S. delegation, the DDG Brian Hawtin requested 
that the document be published as a formal TS document, to 
begin the TS campaign to advise States Parties of its plans 
regarding electronic industry data submissions and the 
associated timelines.  The document is still under review and 
will be issued in the next few weeks. 
 
10.  (U) At the request of AC/CB, Del rep set up a short 
meeting with Shultz and Linden on the margins of EC-36. 
AC/CB rep relayed its support for Linden's efforts.  Linden 
welcomed a VC/CCB suggestion that the TS ask the regional 
groups to provide volunteers to submit electronic industrial 
data declarations once the TS is ready to test its new 
system.  VC/CCB also raised the issue of States Parties that 
independently developed their own read/write software for 
making electronic industry declarations and asked Linden 
whether ISB was considering developing software interfaces 
for the TS system in these instances.  Linden cited his 
concern regarding a recent meeting with the facilitator on 
the Declarations Handbook (Ruck - Germany), noting that the 
software developers had been unaware that declaration formats 
could still change and emphasizing the severe impact on 
timelines such changes would have for the TS software 
development effort.  Linden cited his concern regarding a 
recent meeting with the facilitator on the Declarations 
Handbook (Ruck - Germany), noting that the software 
developers had been unaware that declaration formats could 
still change and emphasizing the severe impact on timelines 
such changes would have for the TS software development 
effort.  (Note: Subsequently, Commerce rep noted that Ruck 
has been instructed not to tinker with declaration 
formats--specifically the 'tabular' formats--until the CTFS 
was in place.  Ruck is addressing how States Parties input 
data into specific fields, not changing which fields would 
need to have data entered.) 
 
11.  (U) Ito sends. 
SOBEL