COLOMBIANS CREATE NEW CARIBBEAN JOINT COMMAND FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L BOGOTA 012360 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/01/2014 TAGS: MARR PGOV CO SUBJECT: COLOMBIANS CREATE NEW CARIBBEAN JOINT COMMAND FOR INTER-SERVICE COOPERATION Classified By: Ambassador William B. Wood for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (U) On November 17, the Colombian military (COLMIL) announced the creation of a new joint command for the Caribbean coastal region, designed to maximize the military's assets in that area. The Caribbean Joint Command will cover the area from La Guajira Department in northeast Colombia to Choco Department bordering Panama in the northwest when it becomes operational later this month. Major General Mario Montoya Uribe, who gained fame as commander of the counter-narcotics Joint Task Force South in southeastern Colombia from 1999 to 2000, will direct the Caribbean Joint Command while also remaining in command of the Army's First Division. In his new role, Montoya will have operational command over 40,000 Army troops from the Second, Fourth, Tenth, Eleventh and Seventeenth Brigades; 10,000 sailors and marines from the Caribbean Naval Force; and elements of the Third and Fifth Air Combat Commands of the Colombian Air Force. He will also have a stand-alone staff for the Joint Command. ¶2. (C) The new Caribbean Joint Command builds off the successes of Joint Task Force Omega. JTF-Omega's "Plan Patriota" operations against the FARC in southeastern Colombia have been among the best examples of joint operations and cross-service cooperation in Colombia to date. Although the Caribbean operations will differ from JTF-Omega actions in that there will not be a single campaign with one constant target, COLMIL officials hope that a joint command will improve the coordination and effectiveness of the COLMIL's Caribbean operations. Montoya's long-standing military experience will probably aid him in establishing an inter-service force and in improving the synchronization of COLMIL resources in the north. Each service will still be responsible for providing the resources and command structure outside of joint command operations. ¶3. (C) COLMIL contacts said this experiment could lead to further joint commands in other areas. While independent commanders may chafe at the new command structure, it could help improve missions and reduce the possibility of inter-service rivalry. WOOD