PACOM COMMANDER ADMIRAL FALLON'S VISIT TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L DHAKA 001828

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/20/2015
TAGS: MASS MARR OVIP PGOV BG
SUBJECT: PACOM COMMANDER ADMIRAL FALLON'S VISIT TO
BANGLADESH

Classified By: DATT LTC BRIAN HEDRICK, REASONS PARA 1.4 B, D.


1. (U) Admiral William J. Fallon, Commander, U.S. Pacific
Command, visited Bangladesh 16-17 April 2005. During the
visit he had the opportunity to meet with Foreign Minister
Morshed Khan; Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, Dr.
Kamal Uddin Siddique; Chief of Army Staff, LTG Hasan Mashhud
Chowdhury; and Principal Staff Officer, Armed Forces
Division, MG A I M Reza Noor.


2. (C) Foreign Minister Morshed Khan welcomed close
cooperation with U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM) since 9/11 and
expressed his commitment to working with the U.S. to
institutionalize Democracy in Bangladesh and combat
terrorism. He emphasized that PACOM engagement has supported
Bangladesh capacity building and has enabled it to become one
the largest UN troop contributors. During the meeting, the
Foreign Minister observed that trafficking in weapons, drugs
and people from Burma had increased as Thailand has
effectively increased enforcement along its border.


3. (C) The Foreign Minister described Bangladesh,s role in
the region as a &voice of moderation8 that is committed to
de-nuclearization of South Asia. He then complained about
India,s heavy role in the region, especially the unfair
negative picture India paints about extremism in Bangladesh
and for their blocking progress on free trade in the South
Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). He stated
that Bangladesh welcomed further support and discussion on
civic action capacity building and support for counter
terrorism, stating that the Bangladesh Government took the
extremist threat very seriously and was taking concrete steps
to curb it.


4. (C) Dr. Kamal Siddique, Principal Secretary to the Prime
Minister, discounted the influence of extremist Islam in
Bangladesh and claimed that Bangladeshis were &religious,
but hate extremists.8 He stated that government efforts to
control the madrassas were being supported by international
donors and that further efforts to change the economic and
social conditions that support terrorists had to be
implemented. Dr. Siddique also stated that even though the
Intelligence Services were sharing information with the U.S.,
they still lacked adequate training and equipment, and were
weak and ineffective. He expressed a desire for deeper
cooperation and sharing between Bangladesh and the U.S. He
then stated that the Prime Minister wants to take tougher
measures to curb extremism and improve the economy, but is
going to wait until after the election in 2007 to implement
the more &unpleasant actions.8 As an example, he stated
that the government planned on divesting 51% of the national
airline, Biman, if the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) won
the next election.


5. (SBU) Meetings with the Chief of Army Staff and Principal
Staff officer focused on specific military requirements
including: simulator training equipment for the Army, the
importance of UN participation and the shortage of armored
personnel carriers (APC) that has hampered Bangladesh,s
ability to participate in UN missions. The Army Chief
highlighted the importance of Army Troops at polling places
during elections to ensure free and fair elections and
underscored their role in nation-building and civic action.


6. (U) Admiral Fallon cleared this message.
THOMAS