US embassy cable - 04THEHAGUE2248

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 THE HAGUE 002248 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PTER, PREL, NL 
SUBJECT: DUTCH RESPONSE: ENDING STATE SPONSORSHIP OF 
TERRORISM 
 
REF: STATE 187644 
 
1. (SBU) Summary: The Dutch share U.S. concerns regarding 
state sponsorship of terrorism, but differentiate their level 
of concern with regard to the specific states named on the 
U.S. list.  The Dutch - both bilaterally and in their EU 
Presidency capacity - regularly press Syria and Iran 
regarding their continuing support for terrorism.  With 
regard to Libya, the Dutch see "movement in the right 
direction" but believe that Libya still needs to prove 
itself.  Sudan remains "a question mark."  The Dutch do not 
deal officially with North Korea (and consider its weapons of 
mass destruction program a more pressing issue in any case), 
and do not believe that Cuba is involved in state sponsorship 
of terrorism.  End Summary. 
 
2. (SBU) Poloff delivered reftel message September 3 to 
Senior Policy Officer for Political Affairs Wouter Jurgens. 
In response, Jurgens argued that the Netherlands is "very 
much on the same page" as the U.S. with regard to countering 
state sponsorship of terrorism, but noted that there is "not 
the same level of concern" for each state on the U.S. list. 
Jurgens noted that he would pass the message to regional 
offices within the MFA, so that they could consider further 
capacities in which to raise concerns about state sponsorship 
of terrorism. 
 
Iran 
---- 
 
3. (SBU) Regarding Iran, Jurgens noted that state sponsorship 
of terrorism is one of the "official four areas of concern" 
that are addressed in all official EU contact with the 
Government of Iran.  Jurgens stated that the Dutch also 
believed Iran held Al-Qaida members in custody and would be 
open to discussions about this, although he believed a 
"window of opportunity" was closing with conservative 
elements on the rise in Tehran. 
 
Syria 
----- 
 
4. (SBU) Jurgens said that the Dutch have repeatedly raised 
with Syria their concerns about Syrian support for the 
terrorist organizations mentioned reftel.  He stressed that 
the organization of terrorist attacks against Israel topped 
the list of Dutch concerns regarding both Syria and Iran. 
Jurgens noted the Dutch would continue to address this issue 
via the instruments available in the new EU trade cooperation 
agreement and through the Barcelona process. 
 
Libya 
----- 
 
5. (SBU) Jurgens noted that Libya has made "important 
movement in the right direction," including the recent 
signing of an agreement about the LaBelle Disco case.  He 
stated, however, that Libya will need to continue to prove 
itself in the future.  He believed the Dutch and EU would 
want to engage with the Government of Libya to find ways to 
further improve Libya's status with regard to rejecting state 
sponsorship of terrorism.  Jurgens called Libya "the most 
promising candidate" for reform in this area. 
 
Sudan 
----- 
 
6. (SBU) Jurgens called Sudan "a question mark."  Although 
Sudan appeared to have improved since the time "when Osama 
bin Laden was resident there," he said, it was unclear how 
serious or sustained such improvements would ultimately prove 
to be. 
 
North Korea 
----------- 
 
7. (SBU) With regard to North Korea, Jurgens noted that the 
primary Dutch concern continues to be weapons of mass 
destruction.  Jurgens observed that since the Dutch have no 
official contact with the Government of North Korea, they 
have no real opportunity to discuss their concerns with 
Pyongyang.  He suggested, however, that the state sponsorship 
of terrorism issue could be raised by other EU members or 
generally in international fora. 
 
Cuba 
---- 
 
8. (SBU) Turning to Cuba, Jurgens stated that the EU has seen 
no clear signal that Cuba is involved in terrorist 
activities.  Jurgens noted that Cuba is not actively 
cooperating with international counterterrorism activities 
such as with UNSCR 1373, and the Dutch do remind the 
Government of Cuba that it must live up to international 
standards and obligations.  Nevertheless, since the Dutch "do 
not see concrete questionable activities at this point" 
Jurgens concluded that terrorism is "not at the top of the 
agenda with Cuba - and probably will not be." 
SOBEL