PARAGUAY ON OAS GENERAL ASSEMBLY CONTROL AND

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 ASUNCION 000935 SIPDIS NOFORN STATE FOR WHA, PM AND NP STATE PASS TO USAID FOR LAC/AA NSC FOR SUE CRONIN SOUTHCOM FOR POLAD DAN JOHNSON E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/25/2015 TAGS: PARM MASS EAIR ETTC PREL PTER PA OAS SUBJECT: PARAGUAY ON OAS GENERAL ASSEMBLY CONTROL AND SECURITY GUIDELINES ON MANPADS REF: A. STATE 113041 ¶B. ASUNCION 00767 ¶C. ASUNCION PA IIR 6 875 0030 05 AND PRECEDING ¶D. ASUNCION PA IIR 6 875 0006 05 AND PRECEDING ¶E. ASUNCION PA IIR 6 875 0033 04 ¶F. 04 ASUNCION 00099 AND PRECEDING Classified By: PolOff Mark A. Stamilio, reasons 1.4(b) and (d). ¶1. (S/NF) Summary: Embassy has no information to suggest that there are MANPADs in Paraguay, within or outside of government control. However, the lack of import/export controls on arms, corruption within the military, other government agencies and Paraguayan society in general, and known FARC activity in the region make it impossible to rule out the possibility that MANPADs exist in or transit through Paraguay. End Summary. ¶2. (S/NF) Paraguay has a long history as a major trafficking route for contraband of all sorts, including weapons, particularly through the tri-border area (TBA). The FARC, for one, smuggles weapons and ammunition through the Southern Cone of South America, particularly through Paraguay, on well established trafficking routes. Weapons are traded for Colombian cocaine in the TBA and Paraguay's northern Chaco region, and some weapons stolen from the Paraguayan military have been seized from FARC guerrillas in Colombia. (Comment: If the FARC were trying to acquire MANPADs, it is conceivable that they would transport them through Paraguay on these established trafficking routes. End Comment.) ¶3. (S/NF) There are over 100 registered weapons and ammunition dealers in Paraguay, and countless smaller, unregistered businesses that deal in weapons and ammunition. Most of these businesses purport to sell their wares for hunting purposes, but it is widely known that a large percentage of them buy and sell a wide range of illegal weapons and ammunition. Many of the businesses are owned by Chinese, Middle Easterners and Brazilians, as well as Paraguayans. ¶4. (S/NF) EmbOffs are aware of several shipments of supposed hunting weapons and ammunition that exceeded 40 tons each. (Comment: It is not credible that a country with a population of 6.3 million and an official per capita GDP of only USD 1,100 would import such quantities of legitimate hunting weapons and ammunition. End Comment.) Because there are no restrictions on the quantities of weapons and ammunition imported or exported from the country, such shipments are not inspected and clear customs with ease. The shipping documents are routinely falsified, and corrupt customs officials facilitate entry and exit of the contraband. ¶5. (S/NF) Once in the country, weapons and ammunition are typically stored at a Paraguayan Navy depot or the facilities of the Paraguayan military's Directorate of War Materiel (DIMABEL). Corrupt military officials collect bribes in exchange for the protection they provide for the contraband. Among others, the Commander of the Paraguayan Presidential Escort Regiment, Colonel Heriberto Galeano Rojas, has been rumored to be involved in the scheme (ref C). ¶6. (C) Other military officials have been caught trafficking high-caliber weapons stolen from the Paraguayan armed forces. In one such case, Air Force LtCol Enrique Sarubbi Flores was convicted of attempting to leave a military base with a 50-caliber machine gun in the trunk of his car while conducting his duties as Officer of the Day (refs D and F). ¶7. (C) Admiral Julio Cesar Baez Acosta, who until recently served as the Commander of the Paraguayan Navy, has a 1986 U.S. District Court conviction for attempting to illegally export ammunition from the United States on board the Paraguayan Navy vessel he skippered at the time (ref E). Baez was replaced as Commander of the Navy in June 2005 amid rumors that he was involved in corruption at the Navy's repair facility (ref B). ¶8. (S/NF) In this environment, it impossible to rule out the possibility that MANPADs exist in or transit through Paraguay. However, Embassy has no information to suggest that there are MANPADs in Paraguay, within or outside of GOP control. KEANE