SOUTHERN THAILAND AND THE PISCES PROGRAM

C O N F I D E N T I A L BANGKOK 002827 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/02/2016 TAGS: PTER PREL TH SUBJECT: SOUTHERN THAILAND AND THE PISCES PROGRAM REF: A. BANGKOK 002337 ¶B. BANGKOK 002338 Classified By: Ambassador Ralph L. Boyce. Reason 1.4 (B, D) ¶1. (C) Embassy Bangkok requests inter-agency commitment to fully fund Phase II of the PISCES program as originally planned. ¶2. (C) As follow up to refs, and in light of forthcoming interagency meetings in Washington to discuss USG policy in the context of the violence in southern Thailand, Post wishes to highlight the imperative to continue to fully fund the PISCES program. As part of the Terrorism Interdiction Program, the USG is providing Thailand with a customized border control computer network system known as PISCES (Personal Identification Secure Comparison and Evaluation System.) This program is a key element in our efforts to thwart terrorist transit through Thailand. Phase I of the program received US$5.7 million in funding and became operational at Thailand's three main international airports in Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket in 2005. Phase II involves installation of the system at sixteen additional mid-sized land border crossings, nine of which are in southern Thailand. ¶3. (SBU) Funding issues have put the future of the PISCES program, and its contribution toward bolstering border security in the South, in doubt. Post received a message from the PISCES Program Office Thailand coordinator on April 25, informing us that the overall funding for the PISCES program was less than originally expected and that the Program Office had only been able to identify US$2 million for the PISCES program in Thailand for the remainder of FY06. Embassy and the RTG have been operating under a bilateral MOI that states that Phase II would be complete by the end of FY06. (Note. The MOI actually sets a deadline for Phase II completion by April 2006, but this deadline has slipped due to other USG-related contracting reasons. End Note.) The estimated budget for implementation of Phase II is approximately US$6 million, leaving a US$4 million shortfall for Phase II completion. ¶4. (SBU) The Program Office also sent a revised list of Phase II priority sites, including several different options, that could be completed under the new, smaller budget. These options include only four of the original sixteen Phase II sites. Although the Program Office recommends that three of the four funded sites be in the South, it is not at all clear if the RTG will accept this alternative. The twelve remaining sites that would be cut from Phase II include important southern land border crossing points, as well as the newly expanded international airport on the island of Koh Samui, one of the most popular tourist destinations in Thailand. It is unlikely that the RTG would support directing limited PISCES funding to southern sites in lieu of these other, economically important sites, such as the expanded Koh Samui airport. Moreover, at least one of the Phase II sites must be placed in northern Thailand as a server-hub for the country. ¶5. (C) Given our concerns about Thailand as a terrorist transit point and the situation in southern Thailand, we need to avoid undercutting a program that is off to a promising start and which is designed to address both concerns. Embassy therefore requests that Washington agencies reevaluate the importance of the PISCES program and ensure that it is fully funded. BOYCE