SOUTH AFRICAN ARMORED VEHICLES FOR IRAQI SECURITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 001146 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/06/2016 TAGS: MASS MARR MOPS PREL PGOV IZ SF SUBJECT: SOUTH AFRICAN ARMORED VEHICLES FOR IRAQI SECURITY FORCES Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission David M. Satterfield for reasons 1.4 (a),(b),and (d). ¶1. (U) THIS IS AN ACTION REQUEST; PLEASE SEE PARA 6. -------------- BACKGROUND -------------- ¶2. (C) A South African company -- Integrated Convoy Protection, Ltd. (ICP) -- entered into a contract on September 16, 2005, with Joint Contracting Command - Iraq (JCC-I) to supply 85 REVA armored personnel vehicles. (Contract number W914NS-05-D-9037.) ICP subsequently subcontracted the assembly of the REVA vehicles to DCD-Dorbyl Heavy Engineering, Ltd. (VENCO works) of South Africa. To date, DCD-Dorbyl Heavy Engineering has assembled 23 vehicles, 12 of which are in storage and awaiting shipment at the Johannesburg Airport; 11 are still awaiting shipment to the airport. Production of the remaining 62 is ongoing, with 15 of these vehicles in the advanced stages of assembly. However, so far none of the vehicles have been released for export to Iraq. ¶3. (C) The final permit that is yet to be issued by the Government of South Africa is the export license delivery notice, which is issued by the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC). This license authorizes specific vehicles by chassis number to be exported. ICP has been unable to obtain this license from the NCACC. ¶4. (C) In December 2005, Charge d'Affaires Teitelbaum in Pretoria sent a letter to the NCACC asking that the vehicles be released for delivery to Baghdad. In early March 2006, an Iraqi delegation (including National Security Advisor Dr. Mowwafak al-Rubaie, Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz, and Iraqi Ambassador to South Africa Qasim al-Rammah) requested that the vehicles be released for export. Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz went so far as to raise the issue with South African President Mbeki. ¶5. (C) We understand the shipping documents may contain administrative errors that can be corrected by pen and ink. However, it appears that the larger issue is that the South African Government, through the NCACC, must be reassured that these vehicles will be used for their intended purpose. South Africa is concerned about its image given the recent history of South African former army officers and past shipments of military equipment that may have gone astray. -------------- ACTION REQUEST -------------- ¶6. (C) ACTION REQUEST: Embassy requests Department to direct Embassy Pretoria to call upon the Government of South Africa, at the highest levels, to renew our request that it approve the required export licenses and release the vehicles for immediate shipment to Iraq. In addition, Embassy requests Department to call upon South African Embassy at the Undersecretary for Political Affairs level to request assistance in seeing that the vehicles are shipped promptly. END ACTION REQUEST. ¶7. (C) Embassy Pretoria and Department are invited to draw from the below talking points: BEGIN TALKING POINTS: -- The Government of Iraq has entered into a contract with Integrated Convoy Protection, Ltd. to purchase 85 REVA armored personnel vehicles for use by the Iraqi National Police forces. (Contract number W914NS-05-D-9037.) -- These vehicles are being assembled by DCD-Dorbyl Heavy Engineering, Ltd., and 23 are ready for shipment. Assembly of the remaining 62 is ongoing, and 15 others will be ready for shipment soon. -- The vehicles in question are awaiting shipment both at the airport and at the factory but cannot be shipped because the NCACC has yet to issue the required export license delivery notice. -- The vehicles will be used by the Iraqi Police forces and are vital to Iraqi efforts to prevent sectarian strife, to protect Iraqi civilians and security forces, and to fight international terrorists. -- These vehicles will not be transferred to a third country. -- The Iraqi Government expected delivery of these vehicles to begin in early December 2005, and combat operations that have taken place since that date would have been greatly enhanced had these vehicles been shipped on time and not been held up by the NCACC. -- REVA vehicles similar to the ones purchased by the Iraqis have already been shipped to Iraq and are currently being used by other entities in Iraq - including the United Nations Assistance Mission to Iraq (UNAMI). -- Iraqi Security Forces urgently require these vehicles to protect their lives and the lives of the civilians they protect. It would be unfortunate if the Government of South Africa were to be perceived as an impediment to enhancing security in Iraq by withholding the shipment of these badly needed vehicles. -- We strongly urge your government to take immediate action to facilitate the issuance of the required licenses and to permit the shipment of these vehicles to Iraq. END TALKING POINTS. KHALILZAD