Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06KABUL1769
2006-04-19 14:58:00
SECRET
Embassy Kabul
Cable title:  

PRT/TARIN KOWT - DUTCH PREPARING FOR ISAF

Tags:  MARR PTER PREL ASEC SNAR AF NL AS 
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VZCZCXYZ0019
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBUL #1769/01 1091458
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
O 191458Z APR 06
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHQECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9695
INFO RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE IMMEDIATE 0616
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA IMMEDIATE 0228
RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE
RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUMICEA/JICCENT MACDILL AFB FL
RHMFISS/COMSOCCENT MACDILL AFB FL
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2446
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 2638
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 5857
RUEHUNV/USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA 1285
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 04 KABUL 001769 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SCA/FO, SCA/A, S/CRS, SCA/PAB, S/CT, EUR/RPM,
EUR/UBI
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG
NSC FOR MO'SULLIVAN, AHARRIMAN, KAMEND
CENTCOM FOR CG CFC-A, CG CJTF-76 POLAD
TREASURY FOR D/S KIMMITT, APARAMESWARAN, AJEWELL
REL NATO/ISAF/AS/NZ

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/18/2016
TAGS: MARR PTER PREL ASEC SNAR AF NL AS
SUBJECT: PRT/TARIN KOWT - DUTCH PREPARING FOR ISAF
DEPLOYMENT TO URUZGAN PROVINCE

KABUL 00001769 001.2 OF 004


Classified By: POLITICAL COUNSELOR ANGUS SIMMONS FOR REASONS
1.4 (B) AND (D)

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 04 KABUL 001769

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SCA/FO, SCA/A, S/CRS, SCA/PAB, S/CT, EUR/RPM,
EUR/UBI
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG
NSC FOR MO'SULLIVAN, AHARRIMAN, KAMEND
CENTCOM FOR CG CFC-A, CG CJTF-76 POLAD
TREASURY FOR D/S KIMMITT, APARAMESWARAN, AJEWELL
REL NATO/ISAF/AS/NZ

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/18/2016
TAGS: MARR PTER PREL ASEC SNAR AF NL AS
SUBJECT: PRT/TARIN KOWT - DUTCH PREPARING FOR ISAF
DEPLOYMENT TO URUZGAN PROVINCE

KABUL 00001769 001.2 OF 004


Classified By: POLITICAL COUNSELOR ANGUS SIMMONS FOR REASONS
1.4 (B) AND (D)


1. (S) SUMMARY: The Dutch deployment to Uruzgan
province is getting underway. Under NATO'S ISAF
Stage III expansion into southern Afghanistan, the
Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Uruzgan will
transfer from U.S. to Dutch-NATO command on or about
July 31, 2006. In recent months, several Dutch
advance and recon teams have visited Uruzgan, and
now their Deployment Task Force is setting in motion
the complicated logistics and construction that must
occur in the coming months. The Dutch footprint in
Uruzgan will be much larger than that of the U.S.,
with roughly five times the number of personnel and
vehicles. Even after July 31, U.S. Special Forces
will remain in the province under CJSOTF command as
part of OEF, partnered with Afghan National Army
units. By mid-May, an advance contingent of over
200 Dutch troops will be in Tarin Kowt building
their base and planning their future activities
outside the wire. We have already established a
good working relationship with the Dutch that should
ensure a smooth handover on or about July 31.
END SUMMARY.

CURRENT DEPLOYMENT OF COALITION FORCES IN URUZGAN
-------------- --------------


2. (S) Uruzgan province in southern Afghanistan is
currently under US command as part of Operation
Enduring Freedom (OEF). The coalition now has a
presence at four bases in the province:

a) Forward Operating Base (FOB) Ripley in the
provincial capital of Tarin Kowt. FOB Ripley is a
large facility enclosing several internal compounds:
-- the current US PRT base with about 130 personnel

(command, civil affairs, force protection, State
Dept and USAID, medical, police mentors, MPAT police
trainers, Tigershark UAV, aircraft refuelers, etc.).
-- US Special Forces base.
-- Australian Special Forces base.
-- Afghan National Army (ANA) base with one
battalion (total ANA presence in Uruzgan is two
battalions with about 450 men).
-- a base for the Afghan contract security guards
who man FOB Ripley's outer perimeter.
-- FOB Ripley also encloses the only fixed-wing
airfield in Uruzgan, capable of landing C-17s.
-- a forward aerial refueling and rearming point for
rotary wing aircraft.
-- firing ranges, detention facility, etc.

b) Firebase (FB) Tycz, in Uruzgan's western
district of Deh-Rawod, which currently houses a US
Special Forces unit and a US Army Civil Affairs
team, plus two companies of Afghan National Army.

c) FB Cobra, in Uruzgan's northwestern district of
Cahar Cineh (sometimes called Shahidi-Hass),housing
a US Special Forces unit and a US Army Civil Affairs
team, plus two companies of Afghan National Army.

KABUL 00001769 002 OF 004


d) FB Anaconda, in the eastern district of Khas-
Uruzgan, housing a US Special Forces unit and a US
Army Civil Affairs team, plus two companies of
Afghan National Army.

FOB Ripley, which is on the semi-improved Tarin
Kowt-Kandahar road, and FB Tycz can be supplied by
truck and air. Because of security threats and poor
infrastructure, FBs Cobra and Anaconda can only be
safely reached by helicopter.

TASK FORCE URUZGAN - UNDER ISAF
--------------


3. (S) On or about July 31, 2006, NATO will expand
into southern Afghanistan as part of ISAF Stage III.
At that point, there will be a Transfer of Authority
(TOA) as the Netherlands takes over command of FOB
Ripley and the Uruzgan AOR. There will also be an
Australian element within the PRT. The Dutch "Task
Force Uruzgan" will comprise more than 1,200
personnel. The Dutch are now beginning construction
on a new, larger PRT base within FOB Ripley. TF
Uruzgan will continue the current PRT's mission to
extend the legitimacy and influence of the GOA,
assist the development of Afghan security forces,
promote good governance in Uruzgan, and foster an
environment for development.


4. (S) With its much larger staffing, TF Uruzgan
will engage in activities that the U.S. PRT is not
able to undertake, such as: manning FOB Ripley's
5km-long outer wall with Dutch troops rather than
Afghan contract guards; positioning four Apache
helicopters at the PRT's airstrip (additionally, two
more Apaches, six Cougar transport helicopters and
eight F-16 aircraft will be stationed in Kandahar);
including Nesh district within its AOR (Nesh is
nominally a part of neighboring Kandahar province,
but is geographically and politically more linked to
Uruzgan). The Dutch will bring hundreds of ground
vehicles, including at least 53 APCs (YPRs and
Patrias),artillery, engineers, Special Forces, a
reconstruction team, and humanitarian/medical
personnel to work with the local population.


5. (S) The Dutch will also take over FB Tycz and
greatly expand it to over 300 personnel, to include
Special Forces and reconstruction/humanitarian
assistance teams. At the same time, one US Special
Forces ODB with five ODA teams will remain in the
province under CJSOTF command as part of OEF, with
all the units colocated with their partnered ANA
units. In addition, Australian Special Forces will
remain in Uruzgan, operating under CJSOTF command,
until at least October 1, 2006.


6. (S) The Australian contingent in the PRT will
number about 200 personnel; about half of them force
protection and the other half military engineers who
will carry out provincial reconstruction projects.
They will be housed on FOB Ripley, but in a separate
internal compound from the Dutch.


KABUL 00001769 003 OF 004


US PRESENCE IN ISAF PRT
--------------


7. (S) The Dutch have stated they are willing to
host the U.S. civilian personnel (one State
Department rep and one USAID rep),though the
modalities of the day-to-day relationship must still
be worked out. The Dutch will have their own MFA
Polad in the PRT and another, regional Polad in
Kandahar. The Australians will also have a Polad in
the PRT, likely an MoD civilian. We have also begun
discussions with the Dutch about hosting the INL-
contracted Police Mentors (currently four in Tarin
Kowt, but slated to expand in the coming months) on
the PRT.


8. (S) The US PRT is currently engaged in a range of
reconstruction and assistance projects basically
funded from two pots of money: USAID and military
CERP funds. USAID projects will continue under the
Dutch PRT, supervised by the USAID rep and
presumably dovetailed in some fashion with Aussie
and Dutch projects as they come on line. The CERP
funds will dry up when ISAF takes over the PRT, but
projects will be phased out through January 2007,
allowing time for the Dutch/Aussies to pick projects
that fit their own priorities. Separately, the INL-
funded projects (Police Mentors and Poppy
Elimination Program) will also continue under the
Dutch PRT.

GETTING TO AUGUST - DEPLOYMENT TASK FORCE
--------------


9. (S) Starting on or about July 31, the Dutch
deployment will be "Task Force Uruzgan." In the
meantime, construction of the Dutch base and other
advance work will be carried out by their Deployment
Task Force (DTF). In recent months, several Dutch
and Australian advance and recon teams have visited
Tarin Kowt. Currently there are approximately 50
Dutch Special Forces flying the flag at their site
on FOB Ripley, but otherwise the engineering work is
just getting underway. On April 12, a group led by
Dutch Lieutenant Colonel Joe Dubbeldam -- Deputy
Commander of the DTF -- conducted a series of in-
depth briefings with U.S. and Australian officials
here, and we began to sort through logistical
details in earnest. Lt. Col. Dubbeldam provided the
following timeline:

-- 24 April. 50-person DTF advance group of
engineers, logisticians, and force protection
arrives in Tarin Kowt. They will begin receiving
contracted cargo trucks ("jingle trucks") loaded
with construction materials from Kandahar and will
prepare for the arrival of the main DTF.

-- 28 April. Main body of DTF (about 200 more
personnel) arrive in Kandahar, where they will have
orientation and planning for about two weeks.

-- Mid-May. DTF deploys to Tarin Kowt, construction
of Dutch PRT base. TF Uruzgan will take over the

KABUL 00001769 004 OF 004


Uruzgan AOR on or about July 31, but some components
of the PRT base will remain under construction
through October, at which time the final DTF
elements will pull out.

COMMENT
--------------


10. (S) We realize that the Dutch may have different
priorities and ideas in Uruzgan than the U.S. PRT,
and with five times the assets on the ground they
should be able to take on broader and deeper
engagement and reconstruction. We welcome their
enthusiasm and are interested to see the
effectiveness of their approach. At the same time,
the past two years have taught us some hard lessons
about what works and does not work here, and we have
modified our projects and methods accordingly. We
are happy to share our experiences with the incoming
Dutch and Australians and are pleased to see that
their advance teams are soaking up information and
engaging with us --not only about security, local
politics, and reconstruction activities-- but also
on the nuts and bolts logistics of running a PRT in
such a challenging environment. The good working
relationships we are developing now should ensure a
smooth handover on July 31. This is a time of
transition both inside and outside the wire. The
U.S. PRT units are rotating out in May, as is,
separately, the PRT Commander. This turnover will
cost us institutional memory and create some
logistical challenges in the countdown to July 31.
There is also a new governor in Uruzgan, opening
possibilities for more progress outside the wire.
So despite all the transitions of personnel, we need
to carry out an active agenda with the provincial
authorities and hand over a full plate of projects
to the Dutch and Australians. The next few months
promise to be a busy and exciting time in Uruzgan.
Norland