STAFFDEL MEACHAM: U.S. ASSISTANCE AND DOMINICAN

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 003321 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS CARACAS/SANTIAGO/BUENOS AIRES PASS STAFFDEL; STATE FOR H, WHA, WHA/CAR, INR/IAA; USSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD; TREASURY FOR OASIA-JLEVINE; DEPT PASS USDA FOR FAS; USDOC FOR 4322/ITA/MAC/WH/CARIBBEAN BASIN DIVISION; USDOC FOR 3134/ITA/USFCS/RD/WH; DHS FOR CIS-CARLOS ITURREGUI E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: DR PGOV PREL OVIP SUBJECT: STAFFDEL MEACHAM: U.S. ASSISTANCE AND DOMINICAN COMMITMENT TO OPERATION ENDURING FRIENDSHIP ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY. Carl Meacham and Bernard Toon, Senior Professional Staff Members of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, traveled to the Dominican Republic October 13-14. The visit's primary focus was Operation Enduring Friendship, a U.S. assistance program funded by Section 1206 resources and other monies. Enduring Friendship is intended to build maritime security capabilities for partner nations that sit along high illicit trafficking lanes. Staffdel Meacham met with senior Dominican military officials, who voiced strong support for the program. The Chief of Naval Operations requested additional U.S. support for fuel expenses associated with Enduring Friendship, and also discussed the prevalence of clandestine air traffic originating in Venezuela. In a series of internal briefings for the Staffdel, Embassy officers emphasized how structural deficiencies currently plague Dominican land, sea, and air border control efforts and how these vulnerabilities are exploited by traffickers. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (SBU) The Staffdel's Embassy briefings included presentations from the Economic-Political Section, Military Affairs Advisory Group (MAAG),Office of the Defense Attache (DAO),Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA),and others. MAAG briefed on SOUTHCOM and Embassy plans for implementing Operation Enduring Friendship -- a Caribbean-wide assistance project for which the Dominican Republic and Panama are the first partners -- which is designed to: -- Neutralize terrorists and their support networks; -- Reduce the counter-narco-terrorism task to a law enforcement issue; -- Assist partner nations to control ungoverned areas; -- Achieve effective detection, interdiction, and consequence management for weapons of mass destruction; and -- Aid partner nations in conducting military operations independently and with coalition nations. The specific U.S. assistance to be provided to the Dominican Republic is four interceptor boats with trailers, a comprehensive training program, communications devices, and other support equipment. ¶3. (SBU) Briefing also cited the vulnerability of Dominican entry points and how illegal traffickers exploit them. Both the Dominican Army and Navy suffer from major structural deficiencies that impede their ability to guarding the land border with Haiti and patrol coastal waters. They spend an estimated 75-85 percent of their budget on salaries (fewer than half their employees perform traditional military functions),leaving little for operating expenses such as modern equipment and fuel. While corruption is a serious problem, the recent appointment of Vice Adminiral Ivan Pena Castillo as Chief of Naval Operations is encouraging. ¶4. (SBU) Finally, Embassy Officers commented that the vulnerability of Dominican entry points to clandestine traffic has been exploited by a variety of groups including undocumented Haitian immigrants, human smugglers, narcotics traffickers, and others. Of particular interest to Staffdel Meacham was the documented increase of clandestine flights originating in Venezuela, which are assumed to be carrying illegal drugs. Such flights normally drop their cargo to small boats at points between 15 and 50 miles off the Dominican southern coast. ¶5. (SBU) In the Staffdel's meeting with Vice Admiral Pena Castillo at the Navy chief's headquarters, the Dominican Government expressed strong support for Operation Enduring Friendship. Pena Castillo expressed his concern over the "intelligence gap" created by the Navy's current lack of command and control and by the "rustic" manner in which it operates. The problem of clandestine flights originating from Venezuela was a "very serious and very continuing" one; however, due to its structural limitations the Dominican Navy is currently unable to adequately respond. Although terrorism is not currently a significant issue facing the Dominican Republic, Pena Castillo said, he has no doubt that trafficking lanes and Dominican vulnerabilities currently exploited by the narcotics gangs and human smugglers could also be used by terrorists. He asserted that the country must take steps to ensure they are ready to combat this weakness. ¶6. (SBU) Pena Castillo said that while Enduring Friendship was an important first step in addressing these problems, purchasing the fuel the vessels would require could prove difficult for the Navy since the gasoline budget had just been cut by 40 percent. This being the case, he requested that the U.S. Government add ongoing assistance for fuel expenses to Enduring Friendship's operating budget. After some discussion of the fuel issue, the Staffdel asked whether the Dominicans would be able to use the Enduring Friendship vessels effectively without the additional fuel assistance being requested. Pena Castillo responded that, while the lack of fuel would present a challenge, the Navy would find a way to get the job done. ¶7. (SBU) At the following meeting, the Dominican J-3 (Director of Operations),Brigadier General Luis Ramon Payan Areche, demonstrated a strong understanding of Enduring Friendship. Payan Areche engaged with the Staffdel on the timeline for the program's realization, played down his country's relationship with Venezuela. The J-3 contrasted Dominican military cooperation with Venezuela, which he termed "traditional," with the military's engagement with the United States, which he described as his country's "closest relationship; one that is permanent." ¶8. (U) The Staffdel's final event was a dinner hosted by the Charge d'Affaires -- attended by a former Ambassador to the U.S., a Vice-Presidential candidate, and other opinion-makers -- in which key non-defense-related issues in the U.S.-Dominican bilateral relationship were discussed. ¶9. (U) COMMENT: The Dominican military clearly appreciated the visit of Staffdel Meacham and the opportunity it provided to engage with the United States Senate. The Embassy was pleased that the Navy chief avowed his commitment to Enduring Friendship and to overcoming obstacles such as the shortage of fuel. Embassy Santo Domingo would welcome a follow up visit from Mr. Meacham and Mr. Toon as the Enduring Friendship project reaches its middle and latter stages. ¶10. (U) Staffdel Meachem cleared this report. ¶11. (U) This report and extensive other material can be consulted on our SIPIRNET site, http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/santodomingo/ HERTELL