132. Memorandum From the Chief of the Geography Division, Office of Global Issues, Directorate of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency [name not declassified] to Director of Central Intelligence Casey and the Deputy Director of Central Intelligence (Inman)1

SUBJECT

  • Senior Interdepartmental Group (SIG) Meeting on the Law of the Sea (LOS) [portion marking not declassified]

1. Action Requested: None. This memorandum summarizes for your information the results of the SIG meeting chaired by James L. Buckley, Under Secretary of State for Security Assistance, Science and Technology, on 24 November at the Department of State. [portion marking not declassified]

2. Background: The meeting was convened to review proposed changes to the LOS Memorandum for the President, which was pre[Page 396]pared by an Interdepartmental Group on Law of the Sea. The Memorandum presents the conclusions of an Interagency LOS Policy Review and policy options for future US negotiations at the Third United Nations Conference on LOS, which reconvenes in March 1982. [portion marking not declassified]

3. Results of the SIG Meeting: In regards to the Interior Department’s proposed wording changes to the Memorandum,2 Mr. Perry Pendley stated that his Department thinks that the Memorandum too optimistically presents the US’s ability to improve the deepsea mining provisions of the LOS draft convention. He suggested more realistic wording and specific negotiating objectives in order to bring to an end “continual talking, but no results.” Ambassador James L. Malone, Special Representative of the President to the LOS Conference, defended the Memorandum, citing the delicate negotiating situation and the need for cautious diplomacy if we are to achieve our objectives. He emphasized that an initial policy decision as to what should be the general US direction in these negotiations is essential at this time. If Option 2 (to continue the negotiations) is chosen, operational language with new provisions and tactics will then be formulated. There was little support for Interior’s overall position and only some limited wording changes were agreed to. [portion marking not declassified]

Treasury Department’s proposal to expand the interdepartmental process for reviewing future US LOS positions and treaty amendments was rejected.3 Accepted instead was a proposal to handle these matters in the NSCSIG structure only, and to set a 1 February 1982 deadline for sending proposed negotiating instructions to the President. This would permit adequate time for intersessional meetings and the development of a new negotiating strategy for the March session of the LOS Conference. [portion marking not declassified]

[name not declassified]
  1. Source: Central Intelligence Agency, National Intelligence Council, Job 83B00140R: Policy Files (1979–1982), Box 1, Folder 8: SIG meetings—II. Secret. [text not declassified].
  2. Not found.
  3. Not found.