CANADIAN MILITARY PREPARING FOR KEY ROLE IN ISAF,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 OTTAWA 001654

SIPDIS

NATO FOR DEFENSE SECRETARY RUMSFELD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/10/2013
TAGS: PREL MOPS KPKO AF IZ CG
SUBJECT: CANADIAN MILITARY PREPARING FOR KEY ROLE IN ISAF,
MAKING MODEST CONTRIBUTIONS IN IRAQ AND CONGO

REF: (A) OTTAWA 985 AND PREVIOUS (B) OTTAWA 1190

Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Brian Flora,
Reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).

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SUMMARY
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1. (C) While NATO is assuming the lead for ISAF, Canada will
join Germany as one of the two largest troop contributors
beginning in August. Canada will be providing two rotations
of 1,800 personnel each for ISAF IV and V. While Canada will
not back away from this commitment, it is expressing concern
about the security situation in Afghanistan and the lack of
political progress made by the Karzai Government. Before its
main ISAF deployment gets underway, Canada is also making
small military contributions in Iraq and Congo, using CC130
aircraft to transport U.S. military personnel into Iraq and
French military personnel into Congo. END SUMMARY.

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AFGHANISTAN
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2. (C) Canada is proceeding with preparations for the
infantry battle group and brigade staff headquarters it will
be contributing to ISAF IV and V (ref. A). There are
currently 150 Canadian Forces (CF) personnel in Kabul laying
the groundwork, and the bulk of the CF deployment will take
place starting in late July. CF MGEN Andrew Leslie will be
the Deputy Commander in ISAF headquarters, and will be joined
there by 15-20 other CF personnel. CF BGEN Peter Devlin will
be Commander of the Kabul Multinational Brigade.


3. (C) Foreign Affairs (DFAIT) and National Defense (DND)
contacts tell us that beyond the announced ISAF mission in
Kabul, Canada is looking at potential CF participation in
Provincial Reconstruction Teams. One of the factors they are
assessing is security, particularly after the recent killing
of 4 German soldiers. Canada prefers that the three missions
going on concurrently in Afghanistan - Operation Enduring
Freedom, NATO/ISAF, and UN - be brought together. Canadian
Defense Minister McCallum will be visiting Kabul June 23-24,
and Afghan Foreign Minister Abdullah will be visiting Ottawa
in August. Canada has also announced that it is opening an
Embassy in Afghanistan, which should be "fully operational"
by summer 2004. Canada's diplomatic efforts in Kabul are
currently being handled by TDY personnel from Islamabad.


4. (C) While Canada will follow through on its ISAF
commitments, Foreign Minister Graham told reporters on June
10 that "the anarchy in Afghanistan is clearly a serious
concern for us." Our DFAIT contacts noted UN SRSG Brahimi's
recent message in Paris, where he said that the Karzai
Government is repeating the mistakes of the early 1990s,
potentially enabling the Taliban to re-establish itself.
DFAIT expressed concern about the Government's inability to
be more inclusive, about following through on the elections
timetable, and about what would happen if Karzai was killed.

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IRAQ, CONGO
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5. (C) Prior to its main ISAF deployment, Canada is also
making small military contributions in Iraq (ref. A) and the
Congo. Canada is using four CC-130 Hercules transport
aircraft based in the UAE, which previously had been
dedicated to Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF). On June 2 and
8, the CC130s were used to transport U.S. military personnel
and equipment from Kuwait into Iraq. On June 9, two of the
CC130s were deployed to Entebbe, Uganda, where they are being
used to transport French troops into Bunia, Congo. Canada
will devote the two CC-130s to the Congo mission until July
7, when they will return to the UAE to support the ISAF
deployment. Canada will send a fifth CC-130 into theater in
July to help with the ISAF deployment surge.
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COMMENT
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6. (C) The Canadian Government continues to step up to the
plate in Afghanistan, where it has made significant military
contributions under OEF and has disbursed US$86 million in
humanitarian assistance (another US$185 million has been
committed over the next 2 years). In Iraq, Canada refused to
join our military coalition but is providing humanitarian
assistance, using both military and civilian assets. Canada
participated with us in a recent police/judiciary assessment
team visit to Iraq, and we expect RCMP officers to be
deployed as part of this effort. In Congo, Canada's military
contribution is in keeping with Prime Minister Chretien's
push in the G-8 for greater responsiveness to African crises.
All of these efforts continue to strain the underfunded
Canadian military, which will have 9% of all available combat
troops deployed overseas by August.
CELLUCCI