ESTABLISHING A SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICER IN YEMEN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SANAA 003588 SIPDIS TO S/CT COORDINATOR HENRY A. CRUMPTON FROM THE AMBASSADOR E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/27/2015 TAGS: PTER MASS YM SUBJECT: ESTABLISHING A SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICER IN YEMEN Classified By: AMBASSADOR THOMAS C. KRAJESKI, FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) and ( D). ¶1. (C) Department of Defense (DOD) personnel posted in Yemen have been instrumental in supporting both the Department and post's goals of improving Yemen's capacity to combat terrorism. The combined use of diplomacy and military cooperation is a cornerstone of our engagement policy. Through the Office of Military Cooperation (OMC),Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa Country Coordinating Element-Yemen (CCE-Y),and the Defense Attach Office (DAO), military personnel have worked diligently with the Yemen armed forces, Coast Guard, and the Central Security Forces to successfully improve Yemen's ability to counter the terrorist threat. ¶2. (C) Since 9/11 and the creation of the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA),CENTCOM has steadily increased its presence in Yemen. State and DOD personnel have adapted to the increased staffing level through excellent personal relationships and informal arrangements. A lack of formalized institutional arrangements with various military elements, however, makes coordination of military activities dependant upon personalities as opposed to a chain-of-command, and hinders post's ability to provide an adequate level of administration support and diplomatic protection. ¶3. (C) In an effort to better support and integrate the efforts of military personnel in Yemen, post recommends the following: - Establish a Senior Defense Officer with authority over all military organizations at post - Formalize all military positions and organizations under NSDD 38 ¶4. (C) A unified command structure under the NSDD 38 system would establish a clear chain-of-command, allow the Chief of Mission to confer diplomatic protections to military personnel, and secure sufficient administrative resources to support DOD's important mission of strengthening Yemen's ability to combat terrorism. -------------- Current Situation -------------- ¶5. (C) Currently, five separate military organizations are represented at post: - Office of Military Cooperation (4 positions and 6 TDYers) - Defense Attach Office (5 positions) - Force Protection Detachment (3 positions) - NAVCENT Liaison Officer (1 position) - CJTF-HOA CCE (15 positions and 15-30 TDYers each month) ¶6. (C) Averaging 30 people in-country daily, DOD personnel account for 30 percent of total Embassy staff. Only OMC, DAO, and FPD are established under the NSDD 38 process. NAVCENT and CJTF-HOA personnel operate without diplomatic protections and are not considered permanent embassy staff, which prevents post from allocating the appropriate level of resources to meet their administrative needs. The US Defense Representative (USDR) is the Ambassador's senior military representative, but he has no established written authority over the other military organizations. -------------- -------------- Benefits of a Unified Command with NSDD 38 Positions -------------- -------------- ¶7. (C) Chain-of-Command: Although the current relationship between the military organizations is excellent, it is personality dependent. An established chain-of-command that covers all military organizations under Chief of Mission authority is necessary to ensure consistent and effective cooperation, both to support DOD's mission and post's Mission Performance Plan (MPP). ¶8. (C) Formalized Positions. CJTF-HOA elements are still deployed on TDY status to Yemen, even though the office has been operating for over two years. Creating permanent positions under the NSDD 38 system would grant military personnel proper diplomatic protection and allow post to accurately reflect the support demands placed on the embassy by the increased numbers. Diplomatic protection is especially important in Yemen since there is no Status of Forces Agreement and one is not anticipated in the foreseeable future. -------------- Way Ahead -------------- ¶9. (C) Non-NSDD 38 military organizations are working on MOAs with the Embassy. This, however, is only a temporary solution until all military positions are designated under the NSDD 38 process. Post recommends S/CT coordinate with CENTCOM, Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA),and DOD to ensure coordination and acceptance of post's proposal to designate all military positions under NSDD 38 and the authority of the USDR. ¶10. (C) Post understands that Yemen might be one of the test cases for the DOD Senior Defense Official (SDO) concept, where the OMC and DAO would be under the USDR. The SDO for Yemen should not be limited to just the OMC and DAO but address all military organizations at the Embassy. In addition, post would prefer seeing the NSDD 38 process started before implementation of the SDO concept to ensure that adequate diplomatic protections and administration support are given to all DOD personnel. Krajeski