RUSSIAN DUMA DEFENSE COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN TOUR

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MOSCOW 012942

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: MARR MCAP PREL SOCI PGOV RS
SUBJECT: RUSSIAN DUMA DEFENSE COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN TOUR
D'HORIZON



1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Viktor Zavarzin, Chairman of the State
Duma Defense Committee, gave his annual briefing to Moscow's
military attache corps December 12. During the 90-minute
presentation, Zavarzin summarized his committee's legislative
activities -- weapons modernization and improvements in
servicemen's salaries and working conditions -- and future
priorities -- more weapons modernization and transformation
to a professional, volunteer military. He touched upon
several international hotspots, hewing to the GOR's line on
Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, North Korea, and Kosovo. The Duma
had not yet received the NATO Status of Forces Agreement
(SOFA) for consideration, but Zavarzin, without mentioning
any specific timeframe, indicated it would "likely" be
ratified. END SUMMARY.
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MORE MONEY FOR WEAPONS AND TROOPS
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2. (SBU) Duma Defense Committee Chairman Zavarzin (a retired
Colonel-General) relied mainly on prepared remarks during his
annual summary of legislative activities for Moscow's
military attache corps. He emphasized at the outset that the
Duma had responded positively to President Vladimir Putin's
address to the Federal Assembly in May, which had focused on
the need to modernize weapons systems and improve living and
working conditions for military servicemen. However, he
declined to get into the details of individual weapons
programs, noting that General Yuriy Baluyevskiy, Chief of the
General Staff, would brief on these subjects the following
day. For the first time in recent memory, the Defense
Committee invited embassy political officers to the briefing.


3. (SBU) Among the issues that Zavarzin highlighted:

-- While individual political parties might disagree on the
tactics used to achieve national security goals, all agreed
that the defense establishment was an important component of
the nation's strength.

-- The defense component of the 2007 national budget would
see an increase of more than 20% (in nominal terms) over the
current budget.

-- Legislative priorities over the past year included
harmonization of disparate laws, especially those focused on
countering terrorism, and allocation of significant funds to
procure weapons.

-- Servicemen and retirees will see real increases in
salaries and pensions over the next several years, with
future raises indexed to the inflation rate; salaries for
instructors at military schools and some select categories of
research scientists would also increase.

-- Housing conditions for the military will improve through a
coordinated program of enhanced mortgage availability, an
increase in housing allowances, government purchase of
additional apartments and houses, and an allocation of three
billion rubles for housing construction. Five regions,
including Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Kaliningrad, will
receive extra money for housing construction in light of
higher costs in these areas.

-- The use of modern weapons demands a higher calibre of
soldier. In spite of continuing downward demographic trends,
the military will steadily move toward a higher mix of
volunteer contract soldiers versus conscripts, though the
number of the former will never reach 100 percent. Contract
soldiers are generally older than conscripts and have more
material needs, which in turn will require greater resources
to improve recruitment and retention of such personnel.

-- Future personnel-related plans call for greater attention
to pension security, including survivor benefits for families
and educational opportunities for children of deceased
servicemen.

-- The nation's continually improving financial health should
allow for increased allocation of resources for personnel and
weapons modernization, maintenance of adequate readiness
forces, recruitment and development of a professional
non-commissioned officer corps, and consideration of
multi-year procurement plans in sufficient quantities to
re-equip 200 military units by 2016.
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MOSCOW 00012942 002 OF 002


IRAQ, IRAN, AFGHANISTAN, NORTH KOREA, AND KOSOVO
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4. (SBU) Zavarzin also reviewed GOR policies regarding
several international hotspots:

-- An adequate resolution of the situation in Iraq can be
achieved only by working through the UN, including compliance
with UNSCR resolutions. All nations should promote dialogue
among Iraqis to prevent civil war. Consultations with Iran
will also be necessary.

-- Russia is encouraging Iran to take a constructive approach
to resolve its dispute over the use of nuclear power and is
urging Tehran to comply with IAEA safeguards. In the
meantime, Russia will continue to assist in the construction
of the Bushehr power plant.

-- The complicated situation in Afghanistan requires
continued Russian support for the international mission in
that country. However, NATO should do more to decrease
narcotics trafficking and terrorism. In this respect,
establishing a cordon sanitaire might be necessary.
Counter-narcotics training will continue in Moscow.

-- Russia condemns North Korean nuclear testing and will work
with the international community to find a solution.

-- An independent Kosovo could set a precedent with universal
applicability. Russia does not understand the West's general
insistence on respect for territorial integrity, while it
ignores the concept in the case of Kosovo. The current
timetable to determine Kosovo's final status is moving too
quickly and does not take into consideration the interests of
Serbia or ethnic Serbs in Kosovo.
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COOPERATION WITH SCO AND NATO
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5. (SBU) According to Zavarzin, Russia appreciates the
global role that the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)
could eventually play and welcomes deepening integration
among its members. The SCO is not an offensive organization
and should not be perceived as a threat. Its priorities are
preservation of regional security, counter-terrorism, and
counter-narcotics.


6. (SBU) Moscow is generally satisfied with its relationship
with NATO, but Zavarzin noted that disagreements continued on
such issues as missile defense, in which Russia would prefer
to share a "common umbrella" with the Alliance to protect
against missile threats. Russia welcomes further cooperation
with both NATO and the EU but only when such cooperation
advances Russia's security in concrete terms.


7. (SBU) On NATO SOFA ratification, Zavarzin explained that
the agreement was still with the government, which continued
to sort out various legal issues that did not conform with
Russian law. He anticipated that the Duma would receive the
SOFA next year, where it would "likely" be ratified; however,
he did not specify a more precise timeframe.
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COMMENT
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8. (SBU) While Zavarzin did not break new ground in his
briefing, his relatively positive outlook regarding the NATO
SOFA's ultimate ratification was noteworthy even in the
absence of a specific timeframe.
RUSSELL