LOA AMENDMENT NO.2 AUTHORIZATION REQUEST

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 YEREVAN 000867

SIPDIS

STATE FOR INL/AAE, J. Campbell and INL/RM

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SNAR AFIN KJUS KCRM AM
SUBJECT: LOA AMENDMENT NO.2 AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
REF: Schack/McKay email March 9, 2004


1. This is an Action Request for INL/AAE.


2. Post presents the final version of Amendment No. 2 to
the Letter of Agreement on Narcotics Control and Law
Enforcement Assistance between the Government of the United
States and the Government of the Republic of Armenia in para
3 and requests the Bureau provide advice of allotment and
cable authorization to sign the Amendment with the GOAM.
The GOAM provided its consent in Diplomatic Note No.
16/03799 on 8 April 2004. Please note two changes to the
text highlighted in bold: 1) as requested by MFA, addition
to the text: "The Amendment will enter into force upon
signature." 2) per Schack/McKay ref email: "...establishment
of a forensic lab under the auspices of an Armenian
Government entity, as agreed by the U.S. Government and the
Armenian Government..."


3. BEGIN TEXT.

AMENDMENT TO THE LETTER OF AGREEMENT ON NARCOTICS CONTROL
AND LAW ENFORCEMENT OF JUNE 11, 2001 BETWEEN THE
GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE
GOVERNMENT OF ARMENIA


I. GENERAL

The Government of the United States of America and the
Government of Armenia jointly agree to modify and amend the
Letter of Agreement between the U.S. Government and the
Government of Armenia, signed June 11, 2001 in the following
respect:

The U.S. Government will provide additional assistance to
the Government of Armenia in the amount of $2,158,000,
including technical assistance and training contracted
through USG agencies and equipment procured by the
Department of State. Funds obligated by the U.S. Government
through this Amendment are specified in the cover sheet and
total $1,558,000. Future funding for these projects is
contingent upon the congressional authorization and
appropriation of funds and approval by the Assistant
Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law

SIPDIS
Enforcement Affairs.

The additional funding is provided for the following
projects: curriculum development at the Armenian law
enforcement training academies; forensic lab development;
trafficking in persons; and a regional computer network.

Full project descriptions and project goals are described in
Section III.

II. All other obligations, terms, and conditions contained
in the Letter of Agreement dated June 11, 2001 shall remain
applicable and in full force and effect. THE AMENDMENT WILL
ENTER INTO FORCE UPON SIGNATURE.


III. PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS, PROJECT GOAL AND ACHIEVEMENT
VERIFICATION

(1) Curriculum Development at Law Enforcement Training
Academies--$716,000

This project is designed to continue the modernization of
the training academies and the incorporation of new
curricula and training methodologies into law enforcement
training programs.

Actions to be taken by the U.S. Government include providing
training and technical advice on curricula development to
the law enforcement training academies.

Actions to be taken by the Government of Armenia include
providing access for the trainers and technical advisors to
the academies and faculties, incorporating new curricula and
courses into the academies and selecting appropriate
participants to attend the training on a full time basis.

The project is envisioned as a multi-year initiative,
contingent on satisfactory progress toward program goals and
availability of future funds.

Performance will be measured through:
--Incorporation of new and modified curricula into the
training academies;
--Training of faculty to teach the new curricula and
courses; and
--Utilization of the new skills and knowledge by law
enforcement personnel in the field.

2) Forensic Lab Development Project--$1,000,000

This project will continue the development of a modern
forensic lab system in Armenia.

Actions to be taken by the U.S. Government': include:
provision of technical assistance in areas of forensic
science and laboratory management (quality assurance, budget
and finance, human resources, etc.) to forensic lab
managers, supervisors and examiners; design of a modern,
independent forensic lab; and provision of forensic lab
equipment and training in its use.

Actions to be taken by the Government of Armenia include:
establishment of a forensic lab UNDER THE AUSPICES OF AN
ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT ENTITY, AS AGREED BY THE U.S. GOVERNMENT
AND THE ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT, with the status of a non-profit
organization with a separate line item in the 2004 national
budget in accordance with Armenian legislation; transparent,
competitive selection of appropriate lab cadre who will be
available to receive the assistance and training provided by
the program; create a charter for the lab with a description
of usage procedures and users; provision of a building to
house the lab; renovation of the lab building; expeditious
entry of the equipment into Armenia; delivery of the
equipment to the forensic lab; and ensuring that the
equipment continues to be utilized for the intended
purposes; ensuring continued access of U.S. Embassy
representatives to the equipment for end use monitoring

The project is envisioned as a multi-year initiative.
Provision of funding beyond the current fiscal year is
conditioned upon satisfactory progress toward project goals
and the availability of future funds.

Performance will be measured through:
--Establishment of a professionally managed and staffed
independent forensic lab;
--Design and renovation of the lab building;
--Installation and proper use of the equipment;
--Use of the forensic equipment to analyze evidence
associated with criminal activity; and,
--Presentation in courts of evidence analyzed by this lab.

(3) Trafficking in Persons Project--$92,000

The goal of this project is to prevent and suppress
trafficking in persons through activities focused on
prevention of incidents and prosecution of perpetrators and
the protection of victims.

Actions to be taken by the USG include expansion of program
activities agreed through LOA Amendment 1 signed 14 April
2003 to include project activities directed at vulnerable
children. The original program activities include:

--A public awareness campaign and sensitization of public
officials, employees of foreign embassies, media and NGOs to
trafficking related issues through seminars and workshops; -

-Assisting the Government of Armenia in updating legislation
in line with current international policies and legislation
related to counter-trafficking through 1) Legislation
drafted in line with the UN Convention, 2) Facilitating the
exchange of ideas between the media, women's organizations,
NGOs, international organizations, and the Government, 3)
International exchanges, and, 4) Training of law enforcement
and judiciary in the issues related to trafficking;

--Protection and assistance to victims through 1) Combining
preventive and prosecution-related measures with protection
and assistance to victims, 2) Undertaking measures to
protect the privacy of the victims of trafficking including
legislative changes and 3) Return and integration support;

--Conducting research aimed at better defining the scope of
the trafficking problem in Armenia.

Actions to be taken by the Government of Armenia include
making resources available to the Interagency Commission on
Human Trafficking Issues and further definition of their
mandate to include Implementation of the National Plan of
Action currently in draft form.

The planned life of this project is one year.

Performance will be measured through:
--Changes to legislation including criminal procedure
amendments to improve Armenian law enforcement's ability to
investigate and prosecute trafficking-related cases; --
Increased investigation and prosecution of trafficking
cases; and

--Maintenance of Tier 2 status or higher on the U.S.
Department of State's Global Trafficking in Persons Report.

(4) Regional Computer Network Project--$350,000

This project will increase the ability of Armenian law
enforcement to conduct timely investigations, assist in the
development of a law enforcement database to increase
information sharing between law enforcement agencies,
improve Armenia's ability to access international criminal
databases and shorten the time it takes the U.S. and
Armenian governments to ascertain the whereabouts of
suspected criminals.

Actions to be taken by the USG include: providing computer
hardware and software and related equipment, including
initial assistance to rent phone lines for Internet access
and related phone tariffs not to exceed $70,000 for a period
of no more than 1 year for offices throughout Armenia,
including 52 regional police precincts; providing technical
advisors to assist in establishing the network and training
trainers on computer and Internet literacy in the INL
established computer classrooms at the law enforcement
training academies; and English language training to improve
the ability of U.S. and Armenian law enforcement to
communicate directly.

Actions to be taken by the Government of Armenia include:
providing appropriate technical and law enforcement
personnel to receive the training and technical assistance;
providing venues for local training and technical
assistance; making proper use of the provided equipment; and
facilitating access to the equipment by U.S. Government
personnel for end use monitoring.

The planned life of this project is multi-year, with this
phase expected to last one year. Provision of funding beyond
the current fiscal year is conditioned upon satisfactory
progress toward project goals and the availability of funds.

Performance will be measured through:

--Establishment of the regional computer network; --
Improvement in information sharing between Armenia law
enforcement offices and with international law enforcement
entities; and,
--Increased apprehension of criminals.

IV. EVALUATION PLAN

Representatives of the U.S. Government and the Government of
Armenia will meet at least once every three months to review
progress towards achievement of the projects' goals.
Progress will be evaluated in accordance with the
measurements of success described above. Information to be
considered in conducting these evaluations will include
qualitative and quantitative data, including official
records of arrests and convictions and seizures of
contraband. A report will be prepared summarizing the
results of these evaluations. These evaluations are in
addition to ongoing monitoring of these programs and
activities conducted by relevant Personnel of both
governments.

Done at Yerevan, Armenia this day of (month) of (year). For
the Government of Armenia

Title/name

For the Government of
United States of America

Ambassador
END TEXT.

ORDWAY