PEACEKEEPING AND THE NIGERIAN ARMY'S OPERATIONAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABUJA 001813

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/21/2014
TAGS: PREL MARR MOPS NI
SUBJECT: PEACEKEEPING AND THE NIGERIAN ARMY'S OPERATIONAL
TEMPO

Classified By: Ambassador John Campbell for Reasons 1.5 (B & D).


1. (C) Summary: Meetings with senior Nigerian defense staff
involved in peacekeeping revealed Nigeria has recently
changed its PKO rotation schedule from one year to six
months. Given current and future commitments, this will
require the deployment of 24 units per year, and a reduction
in the capability of non-deployed units to perform
operations. PKO training is conducted at all levels in the
Army, with an emphasis on train-the-trainer methods, in
response to lessons learned in missions in Sierra Leone and
Liberia. The Nigerian Army sees a resumption of security
assistance programs with the U.S. as vital to increasing
their PKO capacity. End Summary.


2. (C) The Director of Peacekeeping Operations at Army
Headquarters, Brigadier General Hassan, and the Chief of
Training and Operations at Defense Headquarters, General I.A.
Dikko, laid out the commitments of Nigeria's Army for
peacekeeping operations during meetings with PolMilOff, DAO,
and IO/PHO Director on October 19, 2004.


3. (C) The Nigerian Army currently has two battalions
dedicated to each UNAMSIL and UNMIL (Note: Nigeria will
withdraw one battalion from UNAMSIL in November 04. End
Note.); a company in Darfur; military observers (MILOBs) in
Southwest Sahara, Cote D'Ivoire, and DROC; plus units
deployed internally in the Bakassi, Plateau State, and the
Niger Delta. There are two battalions designated to replace
units in UNAMSIL and UNMIL. Future commitments include at
least two additional companies for Darfur, two units
designated to the ECOWAS Standby Brigade, a company of
military police to Burundi, a company of mechanized infantry
plus a troop of engineers to a French-sponsored RECAMP
exercise in Benin, and a signal company to Monrovia in
November. Nigeria may also designate up to an additional
brigade as part of the AU's proposed standby force. The UN
standard battalion for peace-support operations is 776
soldiers, larger than a Nigerian battalion. This means that
non-organic elements must be stripped from other units to
augment each deploying battalion.


4. (SBU) The Army has recently moved from a one-year to a
six-month deployment schedule. This means that twice as many
units will be tasked for deployment in a given year.
Training for units designated for peacekeeping operations
lasts six to eight weeks prior to deployment. The Director
for Peacekeeping Operations at Army Headquarters said that
the shorter rotation, coupled with Nigeria's commitments,
means that 24 units will need to deploy on an annual basis.
He stated that the Army was stretching to meet all of its
commitments.


5. (SBU) All units in the Army are involved in PKO training.
The Infantry Center recently opened a peacekeeping
operations branch with assistance from UK short-term training
teams. The intention of this division is to run training
courses for junior officers who will then become unit
trainers. There is a PKO segment in all-officer professional
military courses, and a strategic-level PKO training center,
funded by the international donor community, is opening at
the National War College in Abuja. Units designated for PKOs
also receive the pre-deployment training described above,
which focuses on professional skills and includes two days on
human rights and the Law of Land Warfare by ICRC. All
training programs are based on the UN standard training
model, adjusted to fit operational requirements.


6. (SBU) To build peacekeeping capacity in the Army, General
Hassan stressed the need to resume bilateral training and
IMET. He said that an increased focus on logistical support
and the creation of PKO doctrine would lead to a significant
increase in capacity. Other improvements suggested include
streamlining the donor aid process, targeting of aid to
countries contributing the most troops, and reducing
stringent conditionalities on assistance.


7. (C) Comment: The Nigerians painted a picture of a very
robust PKO training that may be an overstatement of reality.
Obviously, the Nigerian military wanted to send the message
that they are ready, willing and able to participate in PKOs.
CAMPBELL