Korea - Sweden Communications

[Connor]

"The decisions of the Nordic Council Chamber are made democratically, the point in the council is to find common ground and fight it out behind closed doors so we can present the world with a unified council in-which we are all proud to be apart of. The resolutions, treaties and agreements within the council are never forced and require an individual states ratification, the only difference with observer states and member states is that you would require the authorisation of the Secretary General to be apart of any passed resolution, treaty and agreement but I cannot foresee a circumstance where this would be refused, it's purely a contingency. Art.5 of the Stockholm Treaty only refers to domestic legal systems and should not affect your foreign policy whatsoever. You are not restricted in your governments actions in any way, shape or form however I would encourage you to echo the values of the council through your actions to allow for us to appear united in our ideology, of course any concerns you have with the decisions or actions in the council then you should approach the Presidium or Secretariat respectively. Immigration policy remains uncharged unless you become a signatory state of the Allemannsrett Area agreement which has some amendments for signatory states. Yes, Art.6 is not yet written, the agreement is signed as is until it is complete by the Secretariat and at such a time all signatory states will convene in the chambers to make any amendments as required to suit everyone.

The emergency session is in regards to the European Economic Crisis and related events - unfortunately I only know the provided subject and as you can probably understand the discussions within are rapidly changing... I am sure the Presidium can provide you with a transcript if necessary and should your representative be unable to get to Sweden in time then perhaps a video conference can be arranged to ensure you voice is heard."

Jay

 

[Jay]

Kim Taewoo [Vice Minister]: "Thank you for the information Madame Secretary, he would write it down and hand it to an aide to pass it onto the Minister while they continued the discussion. With regards to what we've discussed so far, I am confident enough to move forward at the bureau level to discuss the policy. I believe that would end it with regards to my questions, however, if you have any final remarks to make regarding joining the Nordic Council I am happy to listen. We hope that the current session will end quickly and be resolved on fruitful grounds on a wide-range of assistance measures, but also security measures to avoid subversion of the council members. As you've said...the situation is always changing, we may talk about one thing and by the time we move onto the next agenda item, we'll discover a new dramatic twist. Perhaps we can discuss the arms element of the agenda? Presidential Advisor Kim would take lead over this portion of the discussion, motioning to the lady dressed in a siege suit who smiled and lowered her head respectfully before introducing herself. "Hello, my name is Kim Minseo, I am currently the Special Presidential Advisor covering foreign policy, security, and defense. It is a pleasure to meet you all today."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"By all means, I will pass you over to Mr Mårtensson who is in the best position to discuss the arms element you mention - he is responsible for the Defence Materiel Administration, the departmental agency responsible for the production of domestically available equipment to expand the Armed Forces of Sweden. He is also at close ties, as you can expect, with the Defence Procurement Administration and Defence Business Administration who are responsible for procurement of externally available equipment from the international defence industry and the sale of domestically available equipment respectively." she would say before going quiet and allowing Göran Mårtensson to take over...

"Thank you, Ms Minseo, a pleasure to meet you - I am Mr Göran Mårtensson. So please, enlighten me, what is it you would like to discuss in relation to arms? I note in your correspondence you initially mention the sale of arms specifically?"

Jay

 

[Jay]

Kim Minseo [Presidential Advisor for Foreign Policy, Security, Defense]: "Hello Mr. Maa-rtee-ensson...she tried saying as he had annunciated. "It is a pleasure to meet you as well. Thank you for the time to discuss this. Yes, in our previous indicated, our government is interested to discuss purchasing a number of equipment from the Swedish defense industry corporations. Firstly, we are primarily interested in purchasing the counter-battery radar system Arthur. Additionally, we would like to purchase a number of Carl Gustaf M4-Variant anti-tank weapon, and we are exploring a number of options for transport vehicles. We would like to inquire some information over the RG-32M Galten. Additionally, we are curious if the Swedish Air Force employs any surveillance technology including manned and unmanned aircrafts, and intelligence gathering platforms. I am hoping that you could provide us with a ballpark estimate on each of the item's per-unit export pricing."

Connor

 

[Connor]

Mårtensson would chuckle, this not being the first time his typically Scandinavian name had baffled international clients and certainly not the last time "Please, the pleasure is all mine - I will absolutely have no problem making a number of sales to South Korea, to my knowledge none of these products are excluded from bilateral trade on the proviso you were to ratify an agreement regarding the sale of such. Now, for signatory states of the Nordic Council's Nordic Concordant, Art.6(4) restricts us in making any more than 15% profit on products for members... whilst I understand you have not yet determined as to whether you will be joining the Nordic Council or even ratify the Nordic Concordant if you were to join; as a gesture of good will we will honour this clause.

The ARTHUR artillery hunting radar, ordinarily this would retail for $32,400,000.00 is we were to agree on a sale which... ordinarily we would not for this highly sophisticated piece of equipment however as I stated earlier this price would be $29,700,000.00 per unit for you. The RG-32M is a variant of the RG-32 Scout designed to be suitable for the harsh winter climates of Sweden - I would probably suggest the RG-32 Scout which we are able to sell to you for $458,000.00 per unit, again, much cheaper than the usual $500,000.00 price tag. Unfortunately I have been unable to find any record of the Carl Gustaf M4 anti-tank weapon, other than research and development documentation submitted by Saab.

The Swedish Armed Forces have a number of surveillance technology and the full extent of their capabilities is, as you can probably expect, highly classified. I can make arrangements for the sale of the Elbit Skylark which is a miniature AUV capable of being deployed by hand or even in HMMWV variant; I have to say that these are a recent addition to the Swedish Army and something we've been extremely grateful to receive given their easy deployment and relatively cheap cost. These, for you, would retail at approximately $3,840,000.00 per unit.

For any sale we would require the ratification of a defence sale agreement."

Jay

 

[Jay]

Kim Minseo [Presidential Advisor for Foreign Policy, Security, Defense]: "Thank you for the information. Our government would be willing to sign an agreement pertaining to the sale of weapons. I hope that we can agree on a mutually favorable agreement. I have reviewed the Nordic framework prior, and we are thankful for the gesture of goodwill. Of course, this we hope is understood as not influencing our decision making process in the Nordic Council observer status internal discussion.

Firstly, allow me to thank you for the gesture of good will in treating the Republic of Korea as an equal partner on par with Sweden's close allies within the Nordic Council. These actions reassure our government over your countries commitment to an equal-level relationship between our countries, and an open invitation towards mutually benefiting prospective relations. Secondly, I thank you for the amicable pricing solution offered, they are greatly appreciated. I hope that we can sign a fair agreement for the purchasing of equipment from the Swedish defense industry. With regards to the Carl Gustaf, thank you for the clarification. If any variants of the Carl Gustaf anti-tank weapon exist, our government would be interested in purchasing a number of them. Additionally, I appreciate your governments offer of the Elbit AUV. Our government would be interested in purchasing it. If you could update us on the Carl Gustaf variants and their export pricing, as well as sending a template for the defense sale agreement, we can work to address them now if that is okay with your government."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"We would need to understand the extent of your order as it would drastically effect the content of the defence sale agreement which is written on a case-by-case basis to establish legal consideration to the sale of specific products. For example, the sale of a radar would not include the same clauses as the sale of a rifle. But I can absolutely have a team begin to draft this once we have numbers and product names... on the subject of anti-tank products which I am presuming you are wanting in man-portable configurations? We currently operate the AT4 anti-tank weapon produced domestically and the BGM-71 TOW manufactured in the United States but something we'd be willing to make sale of. The AT4 is at a general cost of approximately $2,000.00 per unit however is negotiable, as is the $15,000.00 pricetag of the BGM-71 TOW"

Jay

 

[Jay]

Kim Minseo [Presidential Advisor for Foreign Policy, Security, Defense]: "Thank you Connor for the clarifications. For the purpose of helping clarify the legal parameters of the discussion, based on our current expectations, I have after an aide confirmed the document had been sent. Using the secure and encrypted Embassy Cables. I have shared with you, a rough estimate of what we are looking to buy. 25 Arthur Radar systems, 30 RG-32 Scout Vehicles, and 30 Elbeit AUV surveillance drones. We would ask if you could send a list of recoilless rifles produced by the Swedish defense industry with their capabilities so we can evaluate a possible contender. Based on our current fiscal constraints, we will have to postpone purchasing some aspects of the original idea we had. We hope this can help specify the products we're currently willing to buy, and be able to assist your legal team in drafting the document. Additionally, we hope the agreement can include clauses that allow continued number of purchases as to not repeat agreement signings for each purchase of the listed items."

| Secured FWD: ROK-SWEDEN PURCHASE ITEMS |

Arthur Radar	25
RG-32 Scout	30
Elbeit AUV	30

 

[Connor]

"That's no problem at all, I have forwarded you a Defence Sales Agreement for your consideration and ratification. Any further sales between us will have exactly the same clauses, unless otherwise agreed, and will simply require a signature and a change in the finance article, this should hopefully make future acquisitions a much faster process."

Document

Jay

 

[Jay]

Advisor Kim would review the treaty and discuss it with a uniformed officer behind her as they read over and did another read over. Advisor Kim would look up and ask some questions. "Thank you for the well written document General Director Connor. I had some questions. Firstly over Chapter I, Article 3 sub-section 3. I am seeking to clarify for the legal understanding of the intent of the word 'divert' to civilian life. I would like to know if this implies the systems can not be used for civilian purposes or reasons, or if this would limit the Korean military's ability to use the platforms for non-military related actions. Secondly, I was wondering as to why you would prefer we handle the case under Swedish legal jurisdiction and not through an international legal body instead. With regards to the second question, the Republic of Korea does not have any formal objections, however, I am merely just curious. Aside from this, we find the terms fair and amicable and based on the response for the questions shall have them handed over to Minister Park who is our National Defense Minister to sign. On a technical note, how would your government like to classify this agreement? In terms of public release, as our Government would prefer the contents of the agreement, specifically that over quantity be kept private."

 

[Connor]

"Yes, ordinarily, at least in Swedish law, we do not permit the transfer of equipment from military to civilian life in most circumstances - in this instance the primary concern is that the equipment may be transferred to a third party whereby our agreement would not longer be relevant or may invalidate our rights in respect to the integrity of the equipment and thus our national security. I will have the Defence Business Administration make alterations to this specific subsection to give you more freedom, please bare with me.

That article is merely an administrative clause, as you can expect civil litigation laws vary from country to country and that clause simply defines that this contract is made in line with Swedish courts and thus should be heard, initially, by a Swedish court. As you can see in the agreement there is clause for any matters to be heard by international courts. By Swedish law cases, even domestic matters, are heard by the lowest court snd continually referred upwards until it reaches the most appropriate court with the necessary expertise and sentencing powers to deal with it. In almost all circumstances, and definitely every circumstance this far, matters of bilateral dispute are heard by the International Court of Justice. I do not forsee any issues between us, especially given your pending status as an observer state within the Nordic Council which I understand the government are greatly looking forward to and have big plans to encompass.

In line with the Swedish Documentation and Security Act 1995 this document has been appended a 'SECURE' classification meaning it is not a public record - any productions will exclude the Republic of Korea and certainly won't reference the delivery in any way shape or form. Your security is safe, unless you have any specific concerns we should be aware of? Any foreign interest youve noticed and are overtly aware of?"

Jay

 

[Jay]

Kim Minseo: "Thank you for the clarifications once the changes have been made, we have no other issues with the treaty and we will consider it signed. The legal clarification, with respect to Swedish law, the ROK Armed Forces often take the role of conducting operations in support or in conjunction with civil authorities and as such we are concerned with the legal interpretation of divert. Thank you for the amendments to be made to the document. As a gesture of good faith on the changes to be made, our government is willing to make the payment in advance of the signing if your government is okay with this arrangement.

Thank you for the second clarification as well. That was just a matter of personal intrigue, thank you for indulging me in this regard. We likewise will classify the document as secure, and its contents secured under the National Security Law of 1948 and Diplomatic Communications Act of 1997. We do not have any specific concerns at this stage. We just prefer is the actual contents of the sales between foreign supplies are not disclosed to the public to avoid North Korean spies form accessing and calculating the strength of the ROK Armed Forces. As you are aware, there is still an active state of war between the North and Republic of Korea. Just the standard precautions."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"Not a problem, the Defence Business Administration seeks to continue an open and transparent purchasing history, especially given the sale of Swedish domestically produced products is extremely rare. I have no problem explaining any part of the agreement you have concerns about - we appear to have a reputation for being manipulative but this is not the case at all... Nonetheless, the relevant alterations have been made and I have forwarded an amended copy to your office for proof-reading. Will the payment be made in a single payment or do you seek a payment plan?"

Document

Jay

 

[Jay]

"Well, that reputation is not felt here in Seoul." The Advisor said as she compiled the documents and gave it to an aide hand over to the Minister of National Defense and Minister of Finance. "The agreement works perfectly for us. Thank you for the kind considerations in amending portions of the agreement. Our Minister will sign it soon, and I will contact him after this call to sign and transmit this to your Embassy who can send you a digital copy. We will make the payment in full, our Finance Ministry can release the funds within the next couple of hours. The Document would be sent to the Director of DAPA and Minister of National Defense whom would review it and confirm its contents with the DAPA director."

Connor

 

[Jay]

As the Koreans prepared to end the call, the Vice Minister would speak in closing. "I would like to thank our Swedish counterparts for taking the time to have these discussions. We have taken long strides in the development of strong bond between Korea and Sweden, but also between Asia and the Nordic Council. While we may live on opposite sides of the globe, and our destines different, our path is the same, the air we breathe, soil we transverse, and the waters we explore. I look forward to seeing the day where humanity holds its hands together together and work towards a better future. On the terms of this discussion, we would like to send over the $871,440,000.00 if that is acceptable to the Swedish Government so we can begin the production process as soon as possible. We look forward to the implementation of future trade agreements, cultural exchanges, and arms agreements in line with the spirits of this discussion. We are glad to have had this conversation, and look forward to an in-person summit between our countries to build up on this success."

Connor

 

[Connor]

"Minister the pleasure is all ours, we are growing phenomenally close and it truly excites me. Upon the receipt of the aforementioned monies I will instruct the manufacturers to begin the construction of your equipment in line with our agreement. Before we end this meeting Minister, I would like to express how Korea is leading the way in modern politics - your nation has risen from the shadows and blown the international stage into order which is an inspiring process to behold, I for one look forward to seeing what the future holds."

Jay