CONTINUED GOVERNMENT OBSTRUCTION OF VISAS FOR DOD

C O N F I D E N T I A L KHARTOUM 002689 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR AF/SPG AND AF/SE NSC FOR PITTMAN AND SHORTLEY E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/15/2016 TAGS: PREL PGOV ODIP CASC OTRA CVIS MARR SU US SUBJECT: CONTINUED GOVERNMENT OBSTRUCTION OF VISAS FOR DOD PERSONNEL REF: A. KHARTOUM 02408 ¶B. KHARTOUM 02380 ¶1. (C) In the last year, Department of Defense Military Attaches assigned to Sudan have been subjected to a concerted effort by the Sudanese government to refuse or delay issuance of visas for travel to Sudan. This effort prevents military personnel from filling critical advisory roles for the Chief of Mission and negatively impacts the ability of the Embassy to provide much needed military insight on the situation in both Darfur and Southern Sudan. ¶2. (SBU) The designated Chief Defense Liaison Officer (DLO) submitted his application for a visa in April 2006 and has still not received it. The acting Chief Defense Liaison Officer (DLO) had submitted his visa application on April 12, 2006, and did not receive a visa until August 3, 2006. Two diplomatic notes have been delivered to the Sudanese Ministries of Foreign Affairs and of Defense requesting that a diplomatic visa be issued to the incoming Chief DLO to no avail. The situation is critical, given upcoming personnel rotations. If the Chief DLO's visa application is not processed in the near future, the Department of Defense may choose to revoke his assignment orders, which could terminate the DLO presence in Sudan. ¶3. (SBU) The two other military organizations in the Mission, the Joint Liaison Element (JLE) and the Country Coordination Element (CCE),have suffered similar treatment when requesting visas to Sudan. CCE currently has three visa applications pending for officers designated to fill advisor positions requested by the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS). An endorsement is being sought from the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa to assist in convincing the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs to issue the necessary visas. If these visas are not issued, CJTF-HOA will not be able to provide advisors to the AMIS mission in El Fasher after the November 28 departure of the officer currently assigned to the post. This can be expected to result in decreased efficiency at the AMIS Operations Center and a reduced ability by post to furnish a U.S. observer to meetings of the Cease-fire Commission in El Fasher. JLE currently has two visa applications pending, which also impacts rotation schedules. ¶4. (C) Comment: Though it appears that the Sudanese government has discontinued placing the 25-mile travel restrictions in the passports of permanently-assigned Mission personnel (Reftel A) and has issued all pending Darfur travel permits, delays in visa issuance continue to impact the Mission's ability to conduct operations and collect information on Darfur and Southern Sudan. Post reiterates its support for the MFA's request to designate a Sudanese military attach in Washington on the basis of reciprocity (Reftel B). Post believes this could be helpful in resolving this impasse. End comment. HUME