Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06KIGALI428
2006-05-08 11:42:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Kigali
Cable title:  

UN DRC Sanctions Committee Group of Experts

Tags:  PGOV PREL MARR KPKO ETTC RW 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0037
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHLGB #0428/01 1281142
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 081142Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY KIGALI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2715
INFO RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0046
UNCLAS KIGALI 000428 

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/C
DEPT ALSO FOR IO/PSC
USUN NY FOR SANCTIONS UNIT

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL MARR KPKO ETTC RW
SUBJECT: UN DRC Sanctions Committee Group of Experts
Discusses Current Mandate, Challenges

REF: KIGALI 34

This is sensitive but unclassified. Please protect
accordingly.

UNCLAS KIGALI 000428

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/C
DEPT ALSO FOR IO/PSC
USUN NY FOR SANCTIONS UNIT

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL MARR KPKO ETTC RW
SUBJECT: UN DRC Sanctions Committee Group of Experts
Discusses Current Mandate, Challenges

REF: KIGALI 34

This is sensitive but unclassified. Please protect
accordingly.


1. (SBU) Summary: During its visit to Kigali April 20-29,
the UN DRC Sanctions Committee Group of Experts briefed
Embassy on the focus of its current mandate and its
challenges in the region. The experts highlighted the need
for tighter immigration control at the DRC border, a GDRC
mechanism for tracing and registering arms to reduce arms
proliferation in the DRC, and enhanced traceability of
illicit exploitation of natural resources fueling armed
groups. They urged greater GOR cooperation, in particular
in providing access to requested information. End summary.


2. (SBU) The five-member UN DRC Sanctions Committee Group of
Experts briefed Ambassador and emboffs April 26 on its
previous work, current mandate, and purpose of its April 20-
29 visit to Kigali. Senegalese Chairman Ibra Deguene Ka
noted that during its previous mandates, the group met with
various individuals and compiled information in London,
Paris, Kinshasa, and Kampala. During its current (fifth)
mandate, the group will focus on southern DRC (Katanga),
eastern DRC (Ituri and the Kivus),and Kinshasa. Under
UNSCR 1596 and 1649, it will continue investigating
individuals and companies violating the DRC arms embargo.
The group has submitted an annex to the initial list of
proposed names for targeted sanctions for which it will seek
additional information.

Visit to Neighboring Countries
--------------


3. (U) In the DRC the group met with the Minister of Foreign
Affairs, Minister of Defense, and the diplomatic community,
including the U.S. Embassy. Ka described the pre-electoral
atmosphere in Kinshasa as tense. The group also visited
Uganda, Burundi, and Tanzania.


4. (SBU) Ka observed that cooperation from Uganda and Rwanda
were "not as expected" and that the group had encountered
several problems. In Uganda the group experienced
difficulty gaining access to an ammunition factory (which

was accessible to the diplomatic community) despite repeated
requests for access during its previous mandates.


5. (SBU) In Kampala, while investigating movements of rebel
leaders between Uganda and the DRC, the group observed
leaders freely moving about and receiving logistical support
from the government. Ka noted that any assistance provided
to rebel leaders is a clear violation of the arms embargo
imposed by the Security Council. The group also faced
problems in getting access to air traffic logs at Entebbe
civil airport. Ugandan civil aviation authorities refused
to provide the logs, directing them to MONUC instead for the
information.


6. (SBU) Ambassador told the group that UN presence in DRC
has helped improve cross-border relations and that Rwanda
sees peaceful co-existence as the preferred alternative to
the chaos of the past. Rwanda recognizes the need for
bilateral cooperation with DRC for its economic development,
in such areas as the Lake Kivu methane gas project, and
views the relationship between President Kagame and
President Kabila as improved.

Access to Arms in Rwanda
--------------


7. (SBU) Ka said that the group has encountered problems in
accessing the arms seized by the GOR in 2004 to trace their
source. The group has met with Congolese dissident Colonel
Jules Mutebutsi (reftel) and will meet with Amb. Sezibera,
Special Presidential Envoy for the Great Lakes Region, and
other GOR officials to discuss the problem. Ka noted that
the Chair of the DRC Sanctions Committee had sent a letter
to the GOR, as well as to GOU and GDRC, urging them to
cooperate with the investigations of the Group of Experts.
The group will make an evaluation at the conclusion of its
visit to Kigali, and the Security Council will consider
taking action if cooperation has not improved.

Traffic at DRC Border
--------------


8. (SBU) French immigration expert Jean Luc Gallet noted

many problems at the porous DRC-Rwanda border and pointed
out the need to secure the border, particularly prior to the
DRC elections, to stabilize the region. In response to
Ambassador's query as to whether the UN panel sees Rwanda as
a source or transit country for arms flows to rebel groups
in the DRC, the panel said that there is no evidence of any
such current activity. Ambassador noted that the GOR does
not have any incentive to permit the transit of arms from
Rwanda to the DRC.

Exploitation of Natural Resources
--------------


9. (SBU) Swiss finance expert Michael Buisson observed that
much of the regional cassiterite trade is illegal. In its
previous report, the group made a recommendation for
enhanced traceability. He noted that the Governor of North
Kivu is extracting a lot of money from mining operations,
enriching himself and his partners and friends, and that his
NGO has been sanctioned. (Note: The NGO, "Tous Pour la
Paix et Le Developpment," All for Peace and Development, is
subject to travel restrictions and an assets freeze per
UNSCR 1596. End note.) Buisson noted that there are
reports that the proceeds from the cassiterite trade are
benefiting armed groups.


10. (SBU) In response to the question as to whether Rwanda
imports cassiterite from the DRC, Ambassador expressed his
view that Rwanda sees trade with the DRC as perfectly
normal, but that Rwandans are sympathetic to the need to
refrain from doing anything that could exacerbate DRC-Rwanda
relations.

Arms Trafficking within DRC
--------------


11. (SBU) Canadian arms expert Enrico Carisch, who has been
conducting samplings of guns and ammunition throughout the
DRC, reported that internal DRC arms trafficking of legal
military stock to influential GDRC officials is of serious
concern. He noted that arms trafficking from the military
to the rebels is relatively easy given that the GDRC has no
centralized recordkeeping. The few records kept by the GDRC
are inaccurate. He said that the GDRC needs to develop a
recordkeeping mechanism to mark, trace, and register weapons
to reduce arms proliferation.


12. (SBU) During its previous mandate, the group examined
4,000 AK-47s in Goma. All were non-NATO compliant, with
about 65 percent manufactured in China and about 20 percent
in Russia and former Soviet block countries. Following its
visit to Kigali, the group will travel to China and Russia
to review their surplus and export regulations.


13. (SBU) Carisch noted that in December 2004 the GOR
purchased 5,000 AK-47s from the Bulgarian government and
that both governments have refused to provide details on the
purchase. The other difficulty, he said, is separating "the
wheat from the chaff." He explained that the Group spends
considerable time investigating allegations made by Amnesty
International, for example, only to find that many of the
suspect transactions were legal.

Civil Aviation
--------------


14. (SBU) Malian civil aviation expert Adboulaye Cissoko
reported that he has been monitoring cross-border civil
aviation flights to ensure they do not violate the arms
embargo. In addition, he has been checking the cargo and
passenger manifests of domestic DRC flights, with assistance
from international civil aviation organizations. He
reported lack of cooperation from the DRC's neighboring
countries.

Tripartite Plus Fusion Cell
--------------


15. (SBU) The Canadian arms expert remarked that while the
fusion cell is "a worthwhile political initiative" with the
potential for reducing arms embargo violations, its
practical benefit is limited due to the inherent nature of
intelligence operations.

Call for Greater GOR Cooperation
--------------


16. (SBU) The chairman asked the Ambassador to urge the GOR
to cooperate with the Group, noting that the P-5 are
concerned about improving coordination. Ambassador assured
the group of Embassy's support and acknowledged that the
group has a difficult job and that getting credible
information and full cooperation is difficult. He said that
he would encourage the GOR to cooperate fully but reminded
the group that Rwandans have a very difficult history with
the UN. There is some bitterness at the top levels, which
may partially explain the difficulty the group has
experienced. He pointed out that it's a complicated process
because anything included in their report, even if reported
with caveats, is regarded by the international community as
the truth.


17. (SBU) He encouraged the Group to mention to the GOR the
improved cooperation from the GDRC and requested that it
inform Embassy of any noticeable change in GOR dynamics
following its meeting with GOR officials. At the conclusion
of its trip to Kigali, the Group will return to the DRC, and
then travel to China and Russia for further investigations.
It will prepare a midterm report due May 22 and a final
report due July 10.


18. (SBU) Ambassador subsequently encouraged GOR Special
Envoy for the Great Lakes Region, Sezibera, to cooperate
with the UN panel. Sezibera said the GOR wished to do so,
but some requests, such as providing serial numbers of all
5,000 weapons imported from Bulgaria, would be very
burdensome.

Arietti