Cablegate: Still No Clear Un Plan for Chad/Car Peacekeeping

VZCZCXRO8787
PP RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHJO RUEHMA RUEHMR RUEHPA RUEHRN RUEHROV
RUEHTRO
DE RUCNDT #0596/01 2012321
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 202321Z JUL 07
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2299
INFO RUEHZO/AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHDS/AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA PRIORITY 1400
RUEHAE/AMEMBASSY ASMARA PRIORITY 1167
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 0861
RUEHKH/AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM PRIORITY 0816
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI PRIORITY 0633
RUEHNJ/AMEMBASSY NDJAMENA PRIORITY 0312
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI PRIORITY
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 USUN NEW YORK 000596

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CD PGOV PHUM PREF PREL SU UNSC KPKO
SUBJECT: STILL NO CLEAR UN PLAN FOR CHAD/CAR PEACEKEEPING

USUN NEW Y 00000596 001.2 OF 002

1. (SBU) SUMMARY. At July 13 United Nations Security Council
(UNSC) consultations, Department of Peacekeeping Operations
(DPKO) Under-Secretary-General Guehenno revealed a revised
proposal for deployment of UN civilian police and Chadian
gendarmes in eastern Chad/northeastern CAR, based around a
French/European Union military deployment. Details remained
sketchy, particularly with regard to force numbers, and UN
DPKO Military Chief COL Ian Sinclair told USUN privately that
details of the operation were preliminary only and that the
French/EU were awaiting authorization from the GAERC on July
23 simply to proceed with planning. French Permanent
Representative (PR) de La Sabliere expressed hope that the
Council would authorize the police component but noted that
the plan still necessitated EU and Chadian buy-in,
particularly on an exit strategy or transition to a more
conventional security presence. END SUMMARY.

DPKO: CHAD/CAR DEPLOYMENT IS A "MOVING TARGET WITH CHANGING
CIRCUMSTANCES"

2. (SBU) At July 13 UNSC consultations, DPKO
Under-Secretary-General (U/SYG) Guehenno revealed a revised
proposal for deployment of UN civilian police in eastern
Chad/northeastern CAR, based around a French/European Union
military deployment, motivated by what Guehenno called six
weeks of targeted violence resulting in a serious
deterioration in humanitarian efforts. Guehenno reported a
June 10 agreement between French FM Kouchner and Chadian
President Deby that resulted in Deby's acceptance of the need
for a military force to provide wide-area security through
French/EU military deployment and in the recognition at the
June 25 Darfur Ministerial in Paris of this acceptance.

3. (SBU) U/SYG Guehenno described the UN's revised proposal
in line with the French/Chadian agreement, which was based on
a 12-month EU military deployment of battalion size, after
which a possible UN successor operation would be put in
place. An assessment would be conducted after six months,
and Guehenno considered it important to evaluate "benchmarks
and milestones," especially given events in Darfur, which he
considered would have a material impact on regional security.

4. (SBU) Acknowledging that the revised UN deployment plan
was a "moving target with changing circumstances," U/SYG
Guehenno described its principal objectives as deployment of:
1) a multidimensional presence that would include UN police
and liaison officers; 2) Chadian gendarmes and police
screened, selected and trained by the UN to maintain law and
order around refugee camps, IDP locations and sites of
humanitarian activities; and 3) an EU force, with
"significant" French participation, to protect civilians at
risk and to facilitate provision of humanitarian assistance.
Guehenno elaborated that the military component would seek to
reduce tensions, defuse conflict and provide security
coverage for the UN personnel deployed. Cross-border
activities, Guehenno stressed, would not be a focus of the
force's activities. U/SYG Guehenno explained that EU
infantry battalions would conduct land and air patrols to
expand the zone for humanitarian operations and recommended
that they be mandated to use all necessary means to
accomplish this goal. Guehenno said that advance medical,
engineering and logistics units would be necessary for
deployment of the military force.

5. (SBU) On the police side, the goal would be for a
contingent of 300 UN police officers to enhance capabilities
of approximately 850 Chadian police and gendarmes, to provide
effective police services and to assist the GOC in
establishing law enforcement activities. Guehenno said an
MOU would be signed between the UN and Chadian forces to
delineate responsibilities, which on the UN side would
include upgrading facilities, providing basic accommodations
and equipment and paying a stipend based on local scales.
Guehenno emphasized the importance of pre-deployment training
for the UN police officers selected. Guehenno said he would
brief the EU in Brussels on July 17 and would present
"concrete proposals" to the Council in the following weeks.

FRANCE ADMITS NOT DONE DEAL

6. (SBU) French PR de La Sabliere said President Deby

USUN NEW Y 00000596 002.2 OF 002

understood the need for a military presence around the
refugee camps but was still reluctant to cede this
responsibility to the UN. He stated that Chadian and EU
agreement on the plan was still outstanding and looked to
U/SYG Guehenno's visit to Brussels as a good lobbying
opportunity. De La Sabliere expressed hope that the Council
would authorize the police mission and recommended that the
future resolution address the issue of a successor presence
"since Deby is changing his mind so much." De La Sabliere
acknowledged that Libya was an obstacle to an international
force on the eastern Chad border and urged the Council to be
"innovative" in its thinking if the EU and/or the GOC failed
to agree the proposed plan.

7. (SBU) USUN Acting PolCouns pressed U/SYG Guehenno for
military analysis of the plan, and Guehenno responded that
French, EU and DPKO military planners were discussing the
proposals, with differences emerging in force numbers due to
details of respective troop-to-task breakdowns (NOTE: DPKO
COL Ian Sinclair told USUN privately after consultations that
planning and discussions were only preliminary and that the
UN and France were awaiting a signal from the July 23 GAERC
to authorize them to continue planning. END NOTE).

8. (SBU) Acting PolCouns inquired about funding for the
proposed plan, especially given that the UN refused overall
command and control of the operation (a detail Guehenno
omitted from his council presentation but shared privately in
advance of the meeting with Poloff). Guehenno considered
that using Chadian gendarmes was a way to alleviate the
financial burden the expansion of UN peacekeeping operations
was placing on Members. He said that gendarmes were cheaper
to deploy than international police ($1000s of monthly
Mission Subsistence Allowance (MSA) for UN personnel versus
$100s of monthly MSA for non-UN personnel) and reported that
this funding was envisioned through assessed contributions.
On the issue of command and control, Guehenno advised a
unified military approach, especially given the planned
deployment around Birao in northeastern CAR.
KHALILZAD

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