US embassy cable - 05ROME3802

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 003802 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR PM/RSAT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: MASS, IT, EXPORT CONTROLS 
SUBJECT: GOI SIGNS BLANKET END-USE, RETRANSFER, AND 
SECURITY ASSURANCES AGREEMENT 
 
REF: STATE 88850 
 
1.  (U)  In May 2005, the Embassy delivered the USG verbal 
note transmitted in reftel to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs 
(MFA).  This note offered the GOI the opportunity to sign 
blanket end-use, retransfer, and security assurances for 
U.S.-origin defense articles, related training, or defense 
services.  On October 18, the MFA replied with the note 
verbale in paragraph two, number 229/411332, providing the 
assurances requested in reftel.  Please note that the body of 
the note from the MFA was in English, with openings and 
closings in Italian that have been translated below.  The 
original note verbale will be sent to PM/RSAT by pouch. 
 
2.  (U)  (Begin text of note verbale) 
 
Il Ministero degli Affari Esteri presenta i suoi complimenti 
all'Ambasciata degli Stati Uniti d'America ed ha l'onore di 
riferirsi alla Sua Nota Verbale protocollo n. 419 del maggio 
2005 per confermarLa quanto seque:  (Translation:  Customary 
opening with reference to our note verbale number 419 of 18 
May 2005.  End translation.) 
 
"The Embassy of the United States of America presents its 
compliments to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Italian 
Republic and has the honor to refer to the provisions of 
United States law that require the Government of the United 
States of America, prior to consenting to a government's 
retransfer of U.S. sold or granted defense articles or 
related training or other defense services (including 
technical data) to the Government of the Republic of Italy, 
to obtain from the Government of the Republic of Italy the 
assurances in paragraphs A and B below (end-use, retransfer 
and security assistances). 
 
In order to expedite such retransfers by having standing 
bilateral end-use, retransfer, and security assurances from 
governments identical to those assurances contained herein, 
the Government of the United States of America proposes that 
the Government of the Republic of Italy agree that: 
 
(A) The Government of the Republic of Italy shall not, unless 
the prior written consent of the Government of the United 
States of America has first been obtained; 
 
(I) Permit any use by anyone not an officer, employee or 
agent of the Government of the Republic of Italy of any U.S. 
sold or granted defense articles or related training or other 
defense service; 
 
(II) Transfer, or permit any officer, employee, or agent of 
the Government of the Republic of Italy to transfer such 
defense articles or related training or other defense service 
by gift, sale, or otherwise; and; 
 
(III) Use, or permit the use of, such defense articles or 
related training or other defense service for purposes other 
than those for which provided. 
 
(B) The Government of the Republic of Italy will maintain the 
security of such articles or services and will provide 
substantially the same degree of security protection afforded 
to such articles or services by the Government of the United 
States of America. 
 
The Government of the United States of America provides 
herein its written consent in advance to the Government of 
the Republic of Italy to retransfer defense articles and 
services not referred to in Annex B to governments listed in 
Annex A. 
 
The Government of the United States of America further 
proposes that the Government of the Republic of Italy agree 
to report to the Government of the United States of America 
all retransfers undertaken on the basis of this advance 
consent by listing all defense articles retransferred, their 
original acquisition value, and the government recipient of 
such articles.  Such report must be provided to the 
Government of the United States of America promptly, but in 
no case later than thirty (30) days after the retransfer. 
 
The Government of the United States reserves the right to 
suspend this advance retransfer consent at any time, with the 
result that the  Government of the Republic of Italy would 
thereby be required to seek from the Government of the United 
States of America on a case-by-case basis advance written 
consent to retransfer U.S. sold or granted defense articles, 
related training or other defense services. 
 
The Ministry's reply stating that the foregoing is acceptable 
to the Government of the Republic of Italy shall together 
with this note constitute an Agreement between the two 
governments to be effective upon the date of the Ministry's 
reply. 
 
Annex 
 
Annex A currently consists of Afghanistan, Albania, Belgium, 
Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Georgia, Hungary, Iraq, 
Israel, Jordan, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Morocco, New 
Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Oman, Tunisia, Turkey, and United 
Arab Emirates, all of which have provided blanket assurances. 
 
 
Annex B (articles for which advance consent to retransfer is 
not granted, but will be determined on a case-by-case basis) 
includes: 1) classified defense articles, 2) defense articles 
with a combined original acquisition value exceeding $7 
million, 3) U.S.-origin defense articles not already in the 
inventory of the proposed recipient." 
 
Il Ministero degli Affari Esteri ha l'onore di informare 
l'Ambasciata degli Stati Uniti d'America che il Governo 
italiano  e d'accordo in merito al contenuto della Nota 
Verbale sopradescritta.  (Translation:  The Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs has the honor to inform the Embassy of the 
United States of America that the Italian Government agrees 
to the content and merit of the above Note Verbale.  End 
translation.) 
 
Il Ministero degli Affari Esteri si avvale dell'occasione per 
rinnovare all'Ambasciate degli Stati Uniti d'America le 
assicurazioni della sua piu  alta considerazione.  (Customary 
closing.) 
 
(Signed)  Rome, 18 October 2005 
 
(End Note Verbale) 
 
3.  (SBU) Comment:  The MFA official who delivered the note 
verbale, Dr. Giovanni Manfredi, stated that this note did not 
have much practical application to the GOI since the GOI does 
not have many surplus defense articles which are covered by 
the blanket assurances.  The GOI agreed to provide these 
assurances, according to Manfredi, because it wants to enter 
into other agreements with the USG, specifically with the 
Department of Defense, and these blanket assurances are a 
necessary step towards entering into further agreements.  End 
comment. 
SPOGLI