AFRICAN UNION CHAIRPERSON FORMALLY REQUESTS NATO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ADDIS ABABA 001581 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR AF/SPG, EUR/RPM, IO/PSC, D:T.SMITH E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KPKO MOPS NATO PREL SU AU UN SUBJECT: AFRICAN UNION CHAIRPERSON FORMALLY REQUESTS NATO ASSISTANCE FOR MISSION IN SUDAN ADDIS ABAB 00001581 001.2 OF 003 ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY. AU Commission Chairperson Konare has formally requested NATO assistance for AMIS in a June 2 letter to NATO Secretary-General Scheffer, but confines the scope of such assistance to manning a handful of advisory positions in AMIS's Forward Joint Mission Headquarters and providing training in specific areas. The letter calls for "in-depth study" of NATO's offer to provide "on-the-job" capacity building, and invites NATO to consult with the AU on "other areas of possible assistance." END SUMMARY. ¶2. (SBU) In a June 7 note verbale to the Norwegian Embassy in Addis Ababa (forwarded by Post to AF/SPG and AF/SE), subsequently distributed by the AU to all partners (i.e., non-member donor states, as well as the EU and NATO),the African Union formally transmitted a June 2 letter from AU Commission Chairperson Alpha Oumar Konare to NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. Konare's letter requests NATO assistance to the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) in three specific areas: -- providing personnel to man the Joint Operations Center (JOC) of the AMIS Forward Joint Mission Headquarters, to be established in El Fasher, Sudan; -- training and assistance to establish standardized assessment procedures for pre-deployment certification of troops and individuals to be deployed to Darfur; -- training and assistance to help the AU establish a mechanism to compile "lessons learned" from AMIS, for future AU peace support operations that may be conducted by the nascent African Standby Force (ASF). ¶3. (U) In the letter to NATO, Konare also refers to NATO's offer to provide "on-the-job capacity building," but observes that "there is a need for a more in-depth study as to how NATO, with other Partners, could provide technical assistance at appropriate levels." Konare's letter concludes with a recommendation that a NATO technical team visit the AU Commission for consultations with the Commission's Darfur Integrated Task Force (DITF) and "explore other areas of possible assistance based on NATO's offer." -------------- PARTNER RESPONSE TO AU REQUESTS -------------- ¶4. (U) JOC/FJMHQ: The AU Commission formally requested six advisors to staff specific positions in the Joint Operations Center of AMIS in a May 18 note verbale to partners (forwarded by Post to AF/SPG and AF/SE) outlining the proposed structure of a Forward Joint Mission Headquarters, that would be headed by a newly created AMIS Deputy Head of Mission. In its note verbale, the AU explained that the JOC, an intelligence element, Force Generation and Campaign Plan Unit, and Civil-Military Cooperation Unit (CIMIC),were to be subordinate to a Joint Operations Staff and a Joint Logistics Staff to the headed by a Joint Chief of Staff. The Joint Chief of Staff, in turn, would report to the AMIS Deputy Head of Mission (who has yet to be identified, but is widely expected to be a retired African brigadier). (NOTE: Such a joint structure is intended to harmonize military and civilian police (CIVPOL) operations of AMIS, but has been viewed with skepticism by the AMIS Force Commander, who would lose much of his current authority and be subordinate to the as yet unnamed Deputy Head of Mission. END NOTE.) ¶5. (U) In response to this request, Addis-based partner representatives have agreed that the UN will provide the requested advisor to the officer in charge of plans (J5),as that will facilitate planning for the transition of AMIS to a UN peacekeeping operation; the USG will provide advisors for the officers in charge of information analysis (J2) and civil-military cooperation (J9); and the EU (likely the UK) will provide an advisor for the officer in charge of operations (J3),as well as a military advisor and a police advisor for the Joint Chief of Staff. In addition to the six advisors requested by the AU, Canada has announced its intention to provide an expert to work on air operations, particularly as Canada is the chief donor for helicopter block hours and is concerned about rationalizing the use of helicopters for operational purposes (i.e., conducting ADDIS ABAB 00001581 002 OF 003 patrols, vs. transporting food stocks or VIP visitors). ¶6. (SBU) The NATO Senior Military Liaison Officer (SMLO) in Addis Ababa does not expect NATO to provide any advisors in response to this request, citing a political decision of the North Atlantic Council not to do so, due to French opposition. Ad hoc trainers, however, are a possibility. ¶7. (SBU) While NATO is thus not responding directly to the first request listed in Konare's letter, an Amcit NATO officer from Joint Command-Lisbon has already arrived in Addis Ababa to compile "lessons learned" for AMIS. AU DITF officials originally challenged his presence at the AU Commission, as he arrived without terms of reference, prior to Konare's formal request. NATO SMLO explained to DITF officials that the "lessons learned" expert from NATO had been requested verbally by DITF Head Ambassador Ki Doulaye Corentin in a May 17 meeting with visiting NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary-General for Operations Maurits Jochems. ¶8. (SBU) COMMENT: Konare's formal request to NATO is a welcome development, but limits the scope of NATO assistance to specific areas. While acknowledging "other areas of possible assistance," it does not address information or intelligence-sharing, nor does it provide carte blanche for the large-scale presence of NATO troops in Sudan. The UN-AU joint technical assessment mission, led by UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean Marie Guehenno and AU Peace and Security Commissioner Ambassador Said Djinnit, which is to depart for Sudan today for a three-week mission, is likely to identify additional needs that partners, including NATO, may be able to fill. END COMMENT. ¶9. (U) Text of Konare's request to NATO follows. BEGIN TEXT. BC/FK/NATO/606.06 Addis Ababa, 2 June 2006 Your Excellency, I with to refer to our recent discussions regarding the assistance offered by NATO to the African Union Mission in the Sudan (AMIS) and also to the discussions between NATO representatives and AU officials on this issue. I wish to express to you our appreciation that had been provided to AMIS by NATO: coordination on strategic air transport in support of troop induction and rotation, training of AMIS HQ and DITF staff, and support given to the UN for the MAPEX. I am pleased to inform you that, in view of our fruitful cooperation, the AU is seeking further NATO assistance to AMIS in the following areas of activity: a) Joint Operations Centre -------------- The organizational structure, the Terms of Reference and resource requirements for the Forward Joint Mission Headquarters, of which the JOC is a part, has been prepared with the participation of AU Partners, in particular the UN and the EU, and the establishment of the Centre has already begun. A copy of the study has been given to NATO. The AU has requested experts from Partners for certain positions in the Centre in an advisory role. NATO could certainly provide assistance within this framework. Furthermore, the Commission is considering forwarding a request for additional assistance from Partners to strengthen the Forward Joint Mission Headquarters and we envisage NATO participation in this endeavor, especially as it related to the management and operation of the Forward Joint Mission Headquarters. I suggest that NATO staff discuss the modalities of implementation with the Darfur Integrated Task Force (DITF) and Senior AMIS staff. ADDIS ABAB 00001581 003 OF 003 b) Unit Pre-Deployment Certification -------------- The issue of training, whether inside the Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs) or in-theatre, is critical to the operational effectiveness and efficiency of the Mission. In this respect, the AU Commission issues guidelines to TCCs to ensure that personnel are trained to accomplish individual and collective tasks. What remains is the task of verification inside the TCCs, by the DITF and the Mission Headquarters based on established criteria, to ensure that the standards of training have been met. Furthermore, training is a continuous process, so the pre-deployment training has to be augmented by in-theatre training. A training cell has been established in the Forward Joint Mission Headquarters for the purpose of identifying the requirements and coordinating implementation. This will, among other things, help to standardize the training of Mission personnel. NATO in collaboration with other Partners can make significant contribution in this area through a program of training the trainers both at the DITF and the training cell of the Forward Joint Mission Headquarters, among others. Furthermore, NATO can help to establish standardized assessment procedures for certification of all proposed individual personnel and troop unit contribution. c) Lessons Learned -------------- AMIS represents a significant achievement in the African Union's peace support operations efforts. It is very important to systematically review and document all areas of activities of AMIS, which will enable the Mission to improve its operational capacity, as well as provide valuable records of lessons learned for future AU peace support operations, within the context of the African Standby Force (ASF). In this respect, therefore, we would like NATO to join the other partners to utilize the Train-the-Trainer concept and to assist the AU in establishing mechanisms for collecting analyzing lessons from AMIS. d) On-the-Job Capacity Building -------------- With regard to the offer of On-the-Job capacity Building Team, there is need for a more in-depth study as to how NATO, with other Partners, could provide technical assistance at appropriate levels. I would like to recommend that a NATO technical team visit the AU Commissions for discussions with the Darfur Integrated Task Force (DITF) regarding assistance in the areas mentioned above and explore other areas of possible assistance based on NATO's offer. Once again I wish to express on behalf of the African Union appreciation and gratitude for the assistance that NATO has provided in furtherance of the peace process in Darfur. At this time of the transition, the continued support and assistance of our Partners would be most appreciated. Accept, Excellency, the assurances of my highest consideration. (signed) Alpha Oumar Konare END TEXT. HUDDLESTON