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