AMBASSADOR AND UN RESIDENT COORDINATOR URGE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAKU 000235

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR OES, EUR/CACEN, MED AND EUR/PGI
DEPT PLEASE PASS USAID
ANKARA FOR AGRICULTURAL ATTACHE
USDA PASS CMP/ITP

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/16/2016
TAGS: KFLU SOCI TBIO KSCA EAGR EAID CASC ASEC AJ
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR AND UN RESIDENT COORDINATOR URGE
AZERBAIJAN'S PRIME MINISTER TO ENGAGE ON AVIAN INFLUENZA

REF: (A) BAKU 208 (B) BAKU 189 (C) BAKU 187 AND
PREVIOUS

Classified By: Ambassador Reno L. Harnish III, Reasons 1.4(b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: On February 14 Ambassador Harnish along with
representatives from UN agencies and the USAID country
director met with Prime Minister Artur Rasizadeh to urge a
more active response by the GOAJ to the avian influenza
outbreak in Azerbaijan. In a positive step forward,
Rasizadeh gave his personal guarantee that the USAID avian
influenza expert currently in Baku would have permission to
travel throughout the entire country, visit relevant
laboratory facilities and work directly with GOAJ experts.
This freedom of movement and access to GOAJ facilities had
been hampering the ability of international experts to
provide advice to GOAJ officials and international donors on
appropriate steps forward. It appears that the GOAJ is not
able to coordinate offers of funding, assistance and
equipment from the international community and the GOAJ is
having difficulty coping. Today's frank discussions,
followed up by continued U.S. and international community
pressure, are the best sign that the GOAJ may be ready to get
its act together and respond better to the avian influenza
threat. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) Ambassador Harnish, UNDP representative Marco
Borsotti, UNICEF country director Hanaa Singer, and the USAID
country coordinator called on Prime Minister Artur Rasizadeh
and Deputy Prime Minister Abbas Abbasov to urge them to take
immediate actions to establish an inter-ministerial group to
deal with the avian influenza outbreak and develop a public
outreach plan to provide accurate and reliable information on
avian influenza for the general population. Singer has been
coordinating the international donor community's efforts to
engage the GOAJ on its avian influenza response and strategy.
Deputy PM Abbasov has been leading the GOAJ's response and
has so far failed to actively organize the relevant
government ministries and overall GOAJ strategy (REFTELS).


3. (C) Ambassador Harnish told PM Rasizadeh that the
international donor community stood shoulder-to-shoulder with
Azerbaijan reay to assist with funding, equipment and
technical assistance. The UNDP head stressed the need for
Azerbaijan to react quickly in order to avoid the
transmission of avian influenza from wild fowl to domestic
birds, including chicken. The UNICEF and USAID country
directors briefed on the resources available to the GOAJ,
both stressing the need for government officials to
coordinate closely with the international donor community and
experts.


4. (C) Rasizadeh listened intently to the frank comments of
Ambassador Harnish and the group regarding the GOAJ,s lack
of action and need to improve coordination to respond to the
avian influenza outbreak. He also appeared frustrated at the
GOAJ's lack of coordination and strategy. As he warmed to
the discussion, Rasizadeh reiterated that the government was
concerned about the outbreak and was monitoring the situation
daily. He agreed on the need to avoid the transmission of
avian influenza from wild fowl to domestic poultry. He added
that the GOAJ had sent "mobile units" to various regions to
monitor the situation. He also showed the Ambassador and the
group a print-out list of all the regions in Azerbaijan where
dead birds had been found. Rasizadeh noted that the GOAJ was
working with the World Health Organization and the entire
donor community to combat the spread of the disease.


5. (C) On the positive side, Prime Minister Rasizadeh gave
his personal guarantee that the USAID avian influenza expert
currently in Baku would have permission to travel throughout
the entire country, visit relevant laboratory facilities and
work directly with GOAJ experts. Rasizadeh even offered to
provide a written guarantee if necessary. Prior to the
meeting, the USAID country coordinator had complained that
local GOAJ officials were refusing to allow the avian
influenza expert to travel to different parts of Azerbaijan
and refusing him access to local laboratories. (NOTE: As of
February 15, GOAJ access and support for this U.S. avian
influenza expert appeared to be still lacking.)

BAKU 00000235 002 OF 002




6. (C) In addition, Deputy Prime Minister Abbasov indicated
that after the meeting he planned to invite the USAID expert
to a meeting with GOAJ experts to review the government's
avian influenza action plan and solicit recommendations. As
part of the GOAJ's avian influenza task force, Deputy
Minister Abbasov helped develop the government's action plan
and told the group that the action plan would be distributed
later in the afternoon. The PM said that the GOAJ would
welcome action plan ideas from other countries, such as
Turkey, that Azerbaijan could draw upon for advice. The
UNICEF country director later noted, however, that the
Ministry of Health was not a part of the government's task
force and may have had only a limited role in drafting the
action plan.


7. (C) Rasizadeh also highlighted the need for the GOAJ to
closely monitor the outbreak, destroy infected birds, protect
the workers culling the infected birds, perform the necessary
laboratory work on samples, fully isolate wild fowl from
domestic birds and, with the Ministry of Health,s
assistance, increase wider personal hygiene practices in the
population. At the Ambassador's urging, Rasizadeh admitted
that the GOAJ needed to develop a public awareness campaign
to spread accurate information about avian influenza. At the
end of the meeting, Rasizadeh said that the international
donor community should take the lead on the public awareness
campaign, noting that Azerbaijani citizens do not trust or
believe the government. As Rasizadeh said this, the Deputy
Minister Abbasov appeared concerned and attempted to
interrupt the Prime Minister but was quickly quieted.


8. (C) COMMENT: Based on the Prime Minister's comments, it is
clear that two weeks into the avian influenza outbreak the
GOAJ has not yet developed a government-wide plan to respond
to it. The GOAJ appears to be trying to formulate and
implement a clear plan, but without much success. The PM
commented that the GOAJ had sent instructions to local
government authorities (ExComs) to take action regarding
avian influenza. The PM then complained about his lack of
control over local government authorities, noting that the
attitude and behavior of some ExComs indicated they were not
taking the avian influenza outbreak seriously. The PM
indicated that GOAJ still had no idea what equipment it had
and what equipment it needed. The GOAJ appears to be
overwhelmed by the international donor community's offers of
assistance and equipment and is therefore processing the
requests slowly and haphazardly. Today's frank discussions,
followed up by continued U.S. and international community
pressure, are the best sign that the GOAJ is ready to get its
act together and respond better to the avian influenza
threat. END COMMENT.
HARNISH