Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06KABUL5675
2006-12-04 11:32:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Kabul
Cable title:
EXBS Afghanistan Advisor Monthly Reporting Cable - October
how-toVZCZCXRO5359 RR RUEHBC RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHDIR RUEHIK RUEHKUK RUEHYG DE RUEHBUL #5675/01 3381132 ZNR UUUUU ZZH R 041132Z DEC 06 FM AMEMBASSY KABUL TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4406 INFO RUCNEXC/ECRBS COLLECTIVE RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 3325 RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 6653 RUEHUNV/USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA 1991 RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC 0249 RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC RHMFIUU/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHINGTON DC RUEAORC/US CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION WASHINGTON DC RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 005675
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR ISN/ECC PVANSON, ACHURCH, JLCOLLINS; CBP/INA FOR CDONOFRIO;
DOE/NNSA FOR RSTUBBLEFIELD; DOC FOR ELOCKWOOD-SHABAT; DOT FOR
APARAMESWARAN; SECDEF FOR MHOFFMANN, FLIGHT, AND RVIERKANT
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ETTC PARM PREL KSTC KNNP AF
SUBJECT: EXBS Afghanistan Advisor Monthly Reporting Cable - October
2006
KABUL 00005675 001.2 OF 003
I. SUMMARY
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 005675
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR ISN/ECC PVANSON, ACHURCH, JLCOLLINS; CBP/INA FOR CDONOFRIO;
DOE/NNSA FOR RSTUBBLEFIELD; DOC FOR ELOCKWOOD-SHABAT; DOT FOR
APARAMESWARAN; SECDEF FOR MHOFFMANN, FLIGHT, AND RVIERKANT
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ETTC PARM PREL KSTC KNNP AF
SUBJECT: EXBS Afghanistan Advisor Monthly Reporting Cable - October
2006
KABUL 00005675 001.2 OF 003
I. SUMMARY
1. (SBU) During this reporting period the EXBS Advisor solicited
the assistance of the Afghan Engineering District (AED) to prepare a
Statement of Work (SOW) for upgrading the perimeter security at the
Kabul International Airport (KIA). The EXBS Advisor has also
coordinated the efforts of DynCorp and the German Police Project
Office (GPPO) to provide FAA the information needed to procure
required security scanners for KIA.
2. (SBU) A Working Group was established within the GPPO Pillar IV
training program to consolidate the efforts of those entities
involved in police training. The EXBS Advisor participated on
behalf of the Border Management Initiative (BMI) to ensure the
inclusion of Customs Police and Customs Officers in the future
development of course curricula affecting those responsible for
Border Crossing Point (BCP) operations. The Afghan Customs
Department (ACD) is progressing in its training programs by sending
personnel to be trained by foreign counterparts in Japan, Pakistan
and a planned training program in Tajikistan.
3. (SBU) The USG Border Management Initiative (BMI) staff is
continuing its efforts to formulate a 12-person Border Management
Task Force (BMTF). In addition, the BMI is working with DynCorp and
the International Narcotics Law Enforcement (INL) agency to provide
support for the proposed BMTF 6-person mentoring team to be deployed
to selective BCPs.
4. (SBU) The ACD identified the need to collect additional Customs
revenue from commercial couriers housed at the U.S. Bagram Air Force
Base north of Kabul. ACD has selected and issued the order of
appointment to five customs officials who are to serve at Bagram
Airbase for customs controls and clearances.
5. (SBU) After meeting with the DCM and a Political Officer from the
U.S. Embassy Tashkent at the Heratan BCP in Afghanistan on September
19 - 21, 2006, the ACD is accelerating the transfer of a newly
completed Customs house from UNOPS to the Ministry of Finance (MoF).
This will help pave the way for the transfer of duty collection
from the Mazar-e-Sharif Inland Container Depot (ICD) to the Heratan
BCP.
6. (SBU) The EXBS Advisor met with the counter-narcotics committee
that is providing infrastructure to house the central command for
the Counter-Narcotics Police of Afghanistan (CNPA) in Kabul. This
committee is also devising a plan to build several Regional Law
Enforcement Centers (RLCs) in various strategic locations around the
country.
END SUMMARY
II. ITEMS OF BROAD INTEREST.
7. (SBU) The EXBS Advisor coordinated a security survey at the
Kabul International Airport (KIA) by DynCorp, GPPO, and the Afghan
Engineering District (AED) for preparation of a Statement of Work
(SOW) to upgrade perimeter security at the KIA. This SOW is
required for the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation to secure
$2.5 million available for infrastructure projects at the airport.
The EXBS Advisor has also coordinated the efforts of DynCorp and the
GPPO to provide FAA the information needed to procure required
security scanners for KIA. During this reporting period, FAA
procured 4 magnetometers and 8 handheld metal detector wands that
were delivered to the airport and are now in use. Additional
scanners required for use in the new KIA terminal under construction
were identified and submitted to FAA Headquarters by the FAA
representative for consideration. Transportation Security
Administration (TSA) representatives will travel to Kabul to perform
an integrated security assessment of KIA and validate equipment
requirements.
KABUL 00005675 002.2 OF 003
8. (U) Issues relating to the training of Customs Police are being
pursued through the newly formed Training Working Group under
Pillar-IV of the GPPO Interagency Police Reform Action Group. The
EXBS Advisor and a representative from the ACD Training Coordination
Unit will participate in this group to ensure that Customs Police
and Customs Officers are considered when addressing newly developed
curriculums as they pertain to BCP operations, including specialized
training for the airport environment.
9. (U) The ACD has developed a Goods Inspection & Examination
Handbook for Customs Officers in Dari, Pashto and English. The
inspection and examination of 'goods under customs clearance' is a
major function of customs having a direct bearing not only on the
quantity of customs duties and taxes collected, but also on the
facilitation of safe and secure international trade and the
protection of the Afghan people. This major development has resulted
in developing an implementation guideline for the ACD training team
as they teach these basic fundamentals to ACD staff. This training
guide is being incorporated in the larger management guide that will
be of particular use in implementing and monitoring functions at the
Customs Training Institute now under construction.
10. (U) Twenty Five Afghan Customs Officers are undergoing a 6-month
training program in Islamabad, Pakistan. During the first stage of
training they are being given an immersion course in the English
language at the National Institute of Modern Languages (NIML).
Successive stages of training include Information Technology;
Management; Customs Processes based on the World Customs
Organization (WCO) standards; and On-the-Job Training in Peshawar,
Quetta, and Karachi, Pakistan.
11. (U) The ACD management program selected 5 officers to continue
their Certificate Courses in Economics, General Management,
Financial Management, English and Information Technology in Kabul.
Three ACD officers attended a two-week course in Japan which focused
on customs management, the World Customs Organization (WCO),the
Kyoto Convention, and the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements.
The course was funded and organized by the Japan International
Cooperation Agency (JICA).
12. (SBU) USG Border Management Initiative (BMI) staff is continuing
its efforts to form a 12-person Border Management Task Force (BMTF).
In addition, BMI staff is working with DynCorp and the International
Narcotics Law Enforcement (INL) agency to provide support for the
proposed BMTF 6-person mentoring team to be deployed to selective
BCPs. This team will consist of two former U.S. Border Patrol agents
and four former Customs Inspectors. This will allow complete
mentorship coverage within the BCP for immigration and customs
matters and augment the DynCorp mentoring program. The EXBS Advisor
and the BMI Director have submitted their choices to fill the two
Border Police mentor positions and the BMTF Border Police Systems &
Immigration Coordinator position to JIACG and the Office of the
Secretary of Defense (OSD). BMI staff is awaiting the submission of
SIPDIS
former Customs Inspector resumes for review to fill the remaining
BMTF positions.
13. (SBU) The Afghan Customs Department (ACD) identified the need to
collect additional Customs revenue from commercial couriers housed
at the U.S. Bagram Air Force Base (BAF) north of Kabul. ACD has
appointed five customs officials to serve at BAF for customs control
and clearances. The EXBS Advisor, working with Bagram military
officials, CFC-A and the ACD, is scheduling the officers for
appointments at the Force Protection Screening Cell after completion
of required forms and a letter of justification for unescorted
privileges at BAF.
14. (SBU) Efforts are underway by ACD to accelerate the transfer of
a newly completed Customs house at the Heratan BCP from UNOPS to the
Ministry of Finance (MoF). The Director General of the ACD traveled
KABUL 00005675 003.2 OF 003
to Heratan in October after a visit by the EXBS Advisor in September
who received complaints from the Afghan Border Police (ABP) and
Customs Officers who were not allowed to occupy the newly
constructed customs house. As a result, The World Bank's CURE team
met with the UNOPS infrastructure team to assess the current status
of this project. New customs satellite offices at different BCPs
owned by the Ministry of Commerce (MoC),funded by the World Bank
and built by UNOPS, are now in various stages of completion and are
to be transferred to the MoF. The original plan devised by the
World Bank CURE unit was to push forward the collection of customs
duties at the BCPs instead of the Inland Container Depots (ICDs).
This procedure should help eliminate leakage of goods entering
Afghanistan that are not being reported to the ICDs for clearance
and payment of duties. CURE and UNOPS are working together to
ensure a smooth relocation of the customs staff and processes from
Mazar-e-Sharif to Heratan for this purpose.
15. (U) TRAINING CONDUCTED DURING REPORTING PERIOD.
Nothing to report.
16. (U) EQUIPMENT DELIVERED DURING REPORTING PERIOD.
Under Procurement.
17. (U) IMMINENT TRAINING OR EQUIPMENT STATUS UPDATE.
The BMTF 6-person mentoring team consisting of two former Border
Patrol agents and four former Customs Inspectors are expected to be
deployed to the Islam Qalah BCP in 2007. These mentors will be
responsible for conducting On-The-Job-Training (OJT) to ABP and
Customs Officers.
EXBS is awaiting the delivery of x-ray screening machines for
baggage and cargo, fiberoptic scopes, density meters, radioisotope
identifiers, explosive detectors, handheld metal detectors, cranes,
forklifts, vehicle inspection kits, and tool kits destined for the
Islam Qalah and Towraghundi BCPs. The delivery of the Rapidscan
x-ray screening machines is scheduled to arrive in Kabul in December
2006. No delivery dates are available for the remaining items, but
the EXBS Advisor is coordinating logistical arrangements such as
temporary storage for the equipment as it arrives.
18. (U) SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS IN EXPORT CONTROLS,
NONPROLIFERATION, OR RELATED BORDER SECURITY.
Nothing to report.
19. (U) OTHER SIGNIFICANT ISSUES/EVENTS.
None to report.
20. (U) RED FLAG U ISSUES.
None to report.
21. (U) Please direct any questions or comments to Barry F. Lory,
EXBS Advisor to Afghanistan; +93-070-073-652, extension 4836;
lorybf@state.gov or to Jimmie L. Collins, South Asia Regional
Program Manager, Office of Export Control Cooperation, 202-647-1778,
collinsjl2@state.gov.
NEUMANN
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR ISN/ECC PVANSON, ACHURCH, JLCOLLINS; CBP/INA FOR CDONOFRIO;
DOE/NNSA FOR RSTUBBLEFIELD; DOC FOR ELOCKWOOD-SHABAT; DOT FOR
APARAMESWARAN; SECDEF FOR MHOFFMANN, FLIGHT, AND RVIERKANT
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ETTC PARM PREL KSTC KNNP AF
SUBJECT: EXBS Afghanistan Advisor Monthly Reporting Cable - October
2006
KABUL 00005675 001.2 OF 003
I. SUMMARY
1. (SBU) During this reporting period the EXBS Advisor solicited
the assistance of the Afghan Engineering District (AED) to prepare a
Statement of Work (SOW) for upgrading the perimeter security at the
Kabul International Airport (KIA). The EXBS Advisor has also
coordinated the efforts of DynCorp and the German Police Project
Office (GPPO) to provide FAA the information needed to procure
required security scanners for KIA.
2. (SBU) A Working Group was established within the GPPO Pillar IV
training program to consolidate the efforts of those entities
involved in police training. The EXBS Advisor participated on
behalf of the Border Management Initiative (BMI) to ensure the
inclusion of Customs Police and Customs Officers in the future
development of course curricula affecting those responsible for
Border Crossing Point (BCP) operations. The Afghan Customs
Department (ACD) is progressing in its training programs by sending
personnel to be trained by foreign counterparts in Japan, Pakistan
and a planned training program in Tajikistan.
3. (SBU) The USG Border Management Initiative (BMI) staff is
continuing its efforts to formulate a 12-person Border Management
Task Force (BMTF). In addition, the BMI is working with DynCorp and
the International Narcotics Law Enforcement (INL) agency to provide
support for the proposed BMTF 6-person mentoring team to be deployed
to selective BCPs.
4. (SBU) The ACD identified the need to collect additional Customs
revenue from commercial couriers housed at the U.S. Bagram Air Force
Base north of Kabul. ACD has selected and issued the order of
appointment to five customs officials who are to serve at Bagram
Airbase for customs controls and clearances.
5. (SBU) After meeting with the DCM and a Political Officer from the
U.S. Embassy Tashkent at the Heratan BCP in Afghanistan on September
19 - 21, 2006, the ACD is accelerating the transfer of a newly
completed Customs house from UNOPS to the Ministry of Finance (MoF).
This will help pave the way for the transfer of duty collection
from the Mazar-e-Sharif Inland Container Depot (ICD) to the Heratan
BCP.
6. (SBU) The EXBS Advisor met with the counter-narcotics committee
that is providing infrastructure to house the central command for
the Counter-Narcotics Police of Afghanistan (CNPA) in Kabul. This
committee is also devising a plan to build several Regional Law
Enforcement Centers (RLCs) in various strategic locations around the
country.
END SUMMARY
II. ITEMS OF BROAD INTEREST.
7. (SBU) The EXBS Advisor coordinated a security survey at the
Kabul International Airport (KIA) by DynCorp, GPPO, and the Afghan
Engineering District (AED) for preparation of a Statement of Work
(SOW) to upgrade perimeter security at the KIA. This SOW is
required for the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation to secure
$2.5 million available for infrastructure projects at the airport.
The EXBS Advisor has also coordinated the efforts of DynCorp and the
GPPO to provide FAA the information needed to procure required
security scanners for KIA. During this reporting period, FAA
procured 4 magnetometers and 8 handheld metal detector wands that
were delivered to the airport and are now in use. Additional
scanners required for use in the new KIA terminal under construction
were identified and submitted to FAA Headquarters by the FAA
representative for consideration. Transportation Security
Administration (TSA) representatives will travel to Kabul to perform
an integrated security assessment of KIA and validate equipment
requirements.
KABUL 00005675 002.2 OF 003
8. (U) Issues relating to the training of Customs Police are being
pursued through the newly formed Training Working Group under
Pillar-IV of the GPPO Interagency Police Reform Action Group. The
EXBS Advisor and a representative from the ACD Training Coordination
Unit will participate in this group to ensure that Customs Police
and Customs Officers are considered when addressing newly developed
curriculums as they pertain to BCP operations, including specialized
training for the airport environment.
9. (U) The ACD has developed a Goods Inspection & Examination
Handbook for Customs Officers in Dari, Pashto and English. The
inspection and examination of 'goods under customs clearance' is a
major function of customs having a direct bearing not only on the
quantity of customs duties and taxes collected, but also on the
facilitation of safe and secure international trade and the
protection of the Afghan people. This major development has resulted
in developing an implementation guideline for the ACD training team
as they teach these basic fundamentals to ACD staff. This training
guide is being incorporated in the larger management guide that will
be of particular use in implementing and monitoring functions at the
Customs Training Institute now under construction.
10. (U) Twenty Five Afghan Customs Officers are undergoing a 6-month
training program in Islamabad, Pakistan. During the first stage of
training they are being given an immersion course in the English
language at the National Institute of Modern Languages (NIML).
Successive stages of training include Information Technology;
Management; Customs Processes based on the World Customs
Organization (WCO) standards; and On-the-Job Training in Peshawar,
Quetta, and Karachi, Pakistan.
11. (U) The ACD management program selected 5 officers to continue
their Certificate Courses in Economics, General Management,
Financial Management, English and Information Technology in Kabul.
Three ACD officers attended a two-week course in Japan which focused
on customs management, the World Customs Organization (WCO),the
Kyoto Convention, and the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements.
The course was funded and organized by the Japan International
Cooperation Agency (JICA).
12. (SBU) USG Border Management Initiative (BMI) staff is continuing
its efforts to form a 12-person Border Management Task Force (BMTF).
In addition, BMI staff is working with DynCorp and the International
Narcotics Law Enforcement (INL) agency to provide support for the
proposed BMTF 6-person mentoring team to be deployed to selective
BCPs. This team will consist of two former U.S. Border Patrol agents
and four former Customs Inspectors. This will allow complete
mentorship coverage within the BCP for immigration and customs
matters and augment the DynCorp mentoring program. The EXBS Advisor
and the BMI Director have submitted their choices to fill the two
Border Police mentor positions and the BMTF Border Police Systems &
Immigration Coordinator position to JIACG and the Office of the
Secretary of Defense (OSD). BMI staff is awaiting the submission of
SIPDIS
former Customs Inspector resumes for review to fill the remaining
BMTF positions.
13. (SBU) The Afghan Customs Department (ACD) identified the need to
collect additional Customs revenue from commercial couriers housed
at the U.S. Bagram Air Force Base (BAF) north of Kabul. ACD has
appointed five customs officials to serve at BAF for customs control
and clearances. The EXBS Advisor, working with Bagram military
officials, CFC-A and the ACD, is scheduling the officers for
appointments at the Force Protection Screening Cell after completion
of required forms and a letter of justification for unescorted
privileges at BAF.
14. (SBU) Efforts are underway by ACD to accelerate the transfer of
a newly completed Customs house at the Heratan BCP from UNOPS to the
Ministry of Finance (MoF). The Director General of the ACD traveled
KABUL 00005675 003.2 OF 003
to Heratan in October after a visit by the EXBS Advisor in September
who received complaints from the Afghan Border Police (ABP) and
Customs Officers who were not allowed to occupy the newly
constructed customs house. As a result, The World Bank's CURE team
met with the UNOPS infrastructure team to assess the current status
of this project. New customs satellite offices at different BCPs
owned by the Ministry of Commerce (MoC),funded by the World Bank
and built by UNOPS, are now in various stages of completion and are
to be transferred to the MoF. The original plan devised by the
World Bank CURE unit was to push forward the collection of customs
duties at the BCPs instead of the Inland Container Depots (ICDs).
This procedure should help eliminate leakage of goods entering
Afghanistan that are not being reported to the ICDs for clearance
and payment of duties. CURE and UNOPS are working together to
ensure a smooth relocation of the customs staff and processes from
Mazar-e-Sharif to Heratan for this purpose.
15. (U) TRAINING CONDUCTED DURING REPORTING PERIOD.
Nothing to report.
16. (U) EQUIPMENT DELIVERED DURING REPORTING PERIOD.
Under Procurement.
17. (U) IMMINENT TRAINING OR EQUIPMENT STATUS UPDATE.
The BMTF 6-person mentoring team consisting of two former Border
Patrol agents and four former Customs Inspectors are expected to be
deployed to the Islam Qalah BCP in 2007. These mentors will be
responsible for conducting On-The-Job-Training (OJT) to ABP and
Customs Officers.
EXBS is awaiting the delivery of x-ray screening machines for
baggage and cargo, fiberoptic scopes, density meters, radioisotope
identifiers, explosive detectors, handheld metal detectors, cranes,
forklifts, vehicle inspection kits, and tool kits destined for the
Islam Qalah and Towraghundi BCPs. The delivery of the Rapidscan
x-ray screening machines is scheduled to arrive in Kabul in December
2006. No delivery dates are available for the remaining items, but
the EXBS Advisor is coordinating logistical arrangements such as
temporary storage for the equipment as it arrives.
18. (U) SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENTS IN EXPORT CONTROLS,
NONPROLIFERATION, OR RELATED BORDER SECURITY.
Nothing to report.
19. (U) OTHER SIGNIFICANT ISSUES/EVENTS.
None to report.
20. (U) RED FLAG U ISSUES.
None to report.
21. (U) Please direct any questions or comments to Barry F. Lory,
EXBS Advisor to Afghanistan; +93-070-073-652, extension 4836;
lorybf@state.gov or to Jimmie L. Collins, South Asia Regional
Program Manager, Office of Export Control Cooperation, 202-647-1778,
collinsjl2@state.gov.
NEUMANN