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File: 950925_93612401.txtVISIT OF UN SECRETARY GENERAL'S ENVIRONMENTAL Filename:93612401 PATHFINDER RECORD NUMBER: 12401 GENDATE: 950629 NNNN TEXT: ENVELOPE CDSN = LGX889 MCN = 91287/04815 TOR = 912870946 PTTCZYUW RUEKJCS5039 2870946---RUEALGX. ZNY HEADER P 140946Z OCT 91 FM JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC INFO RUFGAID/USEUCOM AIDES VAIHINGEN GE RHEPAAB/TAC IDHS LANGLEY AFB VA//IDHS// RHCGSRB/COMUSARCENT FT MCPHERSON GA//AFRD-DSO// RUWSMXI/MAC INTEL CEN SCOTT AFB IL//IN// RUCJACC/USCINCCENT MACDILL AFB FL//CARA// RUQYSDG/FOSIF ROTA SP RUEOFAA/COMJSOC FT BRAGG NC//J2// RUEALGX/SAFE P 140913Z OCT 91 FM AMEMBASSY KUWAIT TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3900 RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0201 INFO RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0240 RUCPDC/USDOC WASHDC RHEBAAA/DOE WASHDC RUEHZM/GCC COLLECTIVE BT CONTROLS LIMITED OFFICIAL USE SECTION 01 OF 03 KUWAIT 05039 DEPT PASS EPA FOR TIME TITUS DEPT FOR NEA/ARP, EB/OGE AND OES/ENV USUN FOR AMBASSADOR PICKERING USDOC FOR NOAA FOR JOHN ROBINSON USDOE FOR IE FOR JOHN BRODMAN E.O. 12356: N/A /*********** THIS IS A COMBINED MESSAGE ************/ BODY TAGS: SENV, UNDP, KU SUBJECT: VISIT OF UN SECRETARY GENERAL'S ENVIRONMENTAL REPRESENTATIVE MARGARET ANSTEE REF: USUN 3433 1. THIS IS AN ACTION MESSAGE. SEE PARAGRAPH 15. 2. SUMMARY: DURING A THREE-DAY VISIT TO KUWAIT OCTOBER 7-10, THE UN SECRETARY GENERAL'S PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE ON THE ENVIRONMENT, MARGARET ANSTEE, REVIEWED PROGRESS MADE TO DATE IN DEALING WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL CATASTROPHE WROUGHT BY SADDAM HUSSEIN, AND CONSULTED WITH THE GOK REGARDING NEXT STEPS IN MOBILIZING INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR THE CLEAN-UP IN THE GULF. END SUMMARY. 3. THE UN SECRETARY GENERAL'S PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE ON THE ENVIRONMENT, MARGARET ANSTEE, VISITED KUWAIT FROM OCTOBER 7 TO OCTOBER 10, OPENING WITH A MEETING WITH THE AMBASSADOR THE MORNING OF OCTOBER 8 AND CLOSING WITH A PRESS CONFERENCE ON THE EVENING OF OCTOBER 9. IN BETWEEN, SHE MET WITH KUWAIT'S AMIR, PRIME MINISTER, FOREIGN MINISTER AND THE COUNTRY'S RECENTLY CREATED ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION COUNCIL. ---------------------------------- FUNDING FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS ---------------------------------- 4. IN HER MEETING WITH THE AMBASSADOR, MRS. ANSTEE STATED THAT SHE HAD COME AT THE REQUEST OF THE GOVERNMENT OF KUWAIT AS SPECIAL ENVOY FROM THE SECRETARY GENERAL. HOWEVER, THE EXACT PURPOSE OF HER VISIT -- BEYOND PUBLICIZING THE ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE DONE IN THE GULF -- HAD NEVER BEEN MADE CLEAR. SHE SUSPECTED THAT THE GOK MIGHT WANT TO DRAW ON HER EXPERIENCE IN MANAGING THE UN'S CHERNOBYL RESPONSE PROGRAM, PARTICULARLY AS REGARDS THE BEST MEANS TO APPROACH THE UN AND THE REST OF THE WORLD COMMUNITY FOR FUNDING FOR THE CLEAN-UP IN THE GULF. 5. IN THAT REGARD, SHE SAID, THERE WERE TWO POSSIBILITIES. FIRST, KUWAIT AND THE OTHER REGIONAL COUNTRIES COULD SEEK DAMAGES FROM IRAQ UNDER UN SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION 687. HOWEVER, THAT WOULD PUT THESE COUNTRIES IN COMPETITION WITH MANY OTHER CLAIMANTS FOR A RELATIVELY SMALL POT OF FUNDS. IT WOULD ALSO INVOLVE THE SECURITY COUNCIL IN AN ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE, ESTABLISHING A PRECEDENT THAT MANY OTHER STATES (SUCH AS BRAZIL) WOULD WANT TO AVOID. 6. THE SECOND POSSIBILITY WAS TO PURSUE A CHERNOBYL TYPE SOLUTION, THROUGH A UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION AND, EVENTUALLY, A GENERAL DONORS' PLEDGING CONFERENCE. THE DISADVANTAGE OF THIS APPROACH, HOWEVER, WAS THAT DONORS WERE NOT LIKELY TO PLEDGE VERY MUCH. THE RESPONSE TO THE CHERNOBYL DISASTER HAD BEEN DISAPPOINTING AND, IN THE CASE OF THE GULF, THE RESPONSE WAS LIKELY TO BE EVEN WORSE. 7. IN RESPONSE, THE AMBASSADOR NOTED THAT DONOR NATIONS' WOULD ALMOST CERTAINLY LOOK TO THE RICHER REGIONAL STATES (SUCH AS SAUDI ARABIA AND KUWAIT) TO CARRY THE BULK OF THE FUNDING FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS HERE. AS FOR POSSIBLE USE OF REPARATIONS FROM IRAQ, THE AMBASSADOR POINTED OUT THAT KUWAIT HAD ADVANCED A SMALL AMOUNT OF MONEY (USD 1 MILLION) TO THE UN'S SPECIAL COMMISSION TO SUPPORT ITS WORK AND MIGHT CONSIDER ADVANCING ADDITIONAL FUNDS TO SUPPORT UN ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS, IF IT COULD BE ASSURED THAT IT WOULD EVENTUALLY RECOVER THOSE FUNDS FROM IRAQI REPARATIONS. THIS WAS ONLY A POSSIBILITY, BUT NEVERTHELESS WAS AN OPTION THAT SHOULD BE EXPLORED. /****** BEGINNING OF SECTION 002 ******/ -------------- HEALTH EFFECTS -------------- 8. TURNING TO PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUES, ANSTEE ASKED FOR THE U.S. VIEW OF THE THREAT TO HUMAN HEALTH POSED BY THE OIL FIRES. IN RESPONSE, THE EMBASSY'S ENVIRONMENTAL COORDINATOR, ALLYN DAVIS, STATED THAT THERE DID NOT APPEAR TO BE AN ACUTE, SHORT-TERM THREAT. POLLUTION READINGS WITHIN KUWAIT CITY HAD BEEN CONSISTENTLY LOW, ALMOST INVARIABLY FAR BELOW U.S. HEALTH ALERT STANDARDS OVER THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS. MOREOVER, MORE AND MORE OF THE OIL FIRES WERE BEING PUT OUT EVERY DAY. 9. AS REGARDS POSSIBLE LONG TERM HEALTH EFFECTS, LITTLE WAS YET KNOWN. HOWEVER, THREE STUDIES ARE PLANNED, WHICH SHOULD SHED LIGHT ON THE PROBLEM. THE FIRST INVOLVES THE MONITORING OF ASTHMATIC'S RESPIRATORY PROBLEMS, WITH A VIEW TO CORRELATING THOSE PROBLEMS WITH AIR POLLUTION DATA. THE SECOND IS A LONG TERM HEALTH STUDY, WHICH WILL TRACK THE HEALTH OF 400 KUWAITIS THROUGH REGULAR PULMONARY LUNG FUNCTION TESTS. THE THIRD IS THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION'S HEAL STUDY, WHICH IS INTENDED TO MEASURE THE EXPOSURE OF INDIVIDUALS TO AIR POLLUTION BY EQUIPPING THOSE INDIVIDUALS WITH PERSONAL EXPOSURE MONITORS. 10. IN ADDITION, DAVIS NOTED THAT KUWAIT HAD DEVELOPED AN AIR POLLUTION ALERT PLAN. NOW BASED ON THE MONITORING OF SULFUR DIOXIDE AND NITROGEN OXIDE, THAT PROGRAM WOULD SHORTLY BE EXPANDED TO INCLUDE REAL TIME MONITORING OF PARTICULATE (PM-10) LEVELS. ---------------- PRESS CONFERENCE ---------------- 11. THE FOLLOWING DAY, ANSTEE CONCLUDED HER VISIT WITH AN HOUR-LONG PRESS CONFERENCE IN WHICH REITERATED SEVERAL OF THE THEMES SHE HAD ORIGINALLY RAISED WITH THE AMBASSADOR. SHE EMPHASIZED, IN PARTICULAR, THAT KUWAIT'S ENVIRONMENTAL SITUATION IS, IN MANY WAYS, SIMILAR TO THAT WHICH RESULTED FROM THE CHERNOBYL NUCLEAR DISASTER; BOTH ARE VAST, LONG LASTING CATASTROPHES, WITH UNKNOWN LONG-TERM CONSEQUENCES. SHE ALSO POINTED OUT THAT A GREAT DEAL HAD ALREADY BEEN DONE BY KUWAIT AND OTHER COUNTRIES TO DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM; HOWEVER, MUCH MORE NEEDED TO BE DONE TO ASSESS THE SITUATION, DEVELOP PROGRAMS AND MOBILIZE FINANCIAL SUPPORT. 12. IN ADDITION, MRS. ANSTEE NOTED THAT, IN SOME WAYS, KUWAIT AND THE OTHER REGIONAL STATES WERE NOW IN A VERY GOOD POSITION TO PUSH FOR INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT. THEY SHOULD SOON HAVE A PRIORITIZED ACTION PROGRAM AS A RESULT OF THE ROPME BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING, WHICH WAS SCHEDULED FOR OCTOBER 16 AND 17. MOREOVER, THE UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY IS NOW IN SESSION, PROVIDING THE OPPORTUNITY TO DEVELOP A CONSENSUS RESOLUTION TO CONTINUE UN ASSISTANCE AND PROGRAMS IN THE GULF. THAT COULD THEN BE FOLLOWED BY A DISCUSSION IN THE UN'S SECOND COMMITTEE AND A CALL FOR A GENERAL DONORS CONFERENCE. 13. HOWEVER, MRS ANSTEE WARNED THAT INTERNATIONAL FUNDING WOULD BE A DIFFICULT ISSUE. SHE HAD NOT FOUND IT EASY TO RAISE FUNDS FOR THE CHERNOBYL DISASTER AND BELIEVED IT WAS LIKELY TO BE EVEN MORE DIFFICULT TO RAISE FUNDS FOR A REGION THAT WAS PERCEIVED TO BE FAR RICHER AND EVEN MORE REMOTE. /****** BEGINNING OF SECTION 003 ******/ ------- COMMENT ------- 14. MRS. ANSTEE'S VISIT SHOULD PROBABLY BE VIEWED AS THE SECOND STEP IN A COORDINATED CAMPAIGN TO RAISE INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR A CONTINUING ENVIRONMENTAL CLEAN-UP PROGRAM IN THE GULF. THE FIRST WAS THE ROPME/UNEP CONFERENCE AT THE CLOSE OF SEPTEMBER, AT WHICH PARTICPANTS REVIEWED PROGRESS TO DATE AND SUBMITTED PROPOSALS -- WORTH APPROXIMATELY USD 1.2 BILLION -- FOR A SERIES OF NEW PROGRAMS. THE SECOND WAS MRS. ANSTEE'S VISIT, PRESUMABLY TO SENSITIZE HER, AND THE UN SECRETARY GENERAL TO THE PROBLEMS REMAINING HERE. THIRD WILL BE THE ROPME COUNCIL MEETING OCTOBER 15 - 17, AT WHICH TIME THE MASS OF PROPOSALS SUBMITTED AT THE UNEP/ROPME CONFERENCE SHOULD BE BOILED DOWN INTO A WORKABLE, PRIORITIZED ACTION PROGRAM. FOURTH SHOULD BE A CAMPAIGN FOR A CONSENSUS UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION CONDEMNING ENVIRONMENTAL TERRORISM IN THE GULF AND ENCOURAGING THE SECRETARY GENERAL TO CONTINUE UN PROGRAMS IN THE AREA. FIFTH WILL BE THE SECOND COMMITTEE DISCUSSION ON A UN PROGRAM OF ACTION, FOLLOWED, FINALLY, BY A CALL FOR A DONORS' CONFERENCE. THAT, IN ANY CASE, APPEARS TO BE THE ROAD WE ARE HEADED DOWN, AS NATIONS HERE COME TO GRIPS WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS STILL REMAINING IN THIS REGION. ---------------- ACTION REQUESTED ---------------- 15. DURING HER MEETING WITH THE AMBASSADOR, MRS. ANSTEE INDICATED THAT SHE WOULD CALL ON AMBASSADOR PICKERING AT THE UN FOR HIS VIEWS ON THE BEST MEANS OF ARRANGING FUNDING FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL CLEAN-UP IN THE GULF. OUR GUESS IS THAT SHE WILL RAISE THE SAME TWO ALTERNATIVES AS SHE DID HERE: (A) RELIANCE ON IRAQI REPARATIONS UNDER UNSC RESOLUTION 687; OR (B) A NEW GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION FOLLOWED BY A CALL FOR INTERNATIONAL DONORS CONFERENCE. WE WOULD APPRECIATE A READ-OUT ON THAT MEETING, AS WELL AS THE DEPARTMENT'S VIEWS REGARDING THESE ALTERNATIVES. GNEHM ADMIN BT #5039 INFODATE: 0
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