Mongolia to Send 7th Rotation to Iraq

UNCLAS ULAANBAATAR 000550 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: MARR MASS MOPS PREL MG IQ SUBJECT: Mongolia to Send 7th Rotation to Iraq Consisting of "A Few Officers" SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED - NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION. ¶1. (U) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent the following diplomatic note to the Embassy on July 19: Begin text (informal embassy translation) (Complimentary opening) and takes the opportunity to state that, in relation to the completion of the period of duty for the sixth rotation of Mongolian soldiers participating in international humanitarian operations in Iraq for post-war disaster alleviation, reconstruction, and peacekeeping, the Government of Mongolia has decided it is appropriate to send in the seventh rotation of our military forces a small number of command staff officers. (Complimentary closing) End text ¶2. (SBU) The MFA statement was delivered to us at the end of the day, and followed persistent efforts by the Embassy over the last few days to ascertain the Government's decision on the 7th rotation. On July 18, MFA Director General for the Americas, Middle East and Africa Jambaldorj told us the substance of the Mongolian decision (as described in the statement above),but referred us to the Ministry of Defense (MOD). The MOD, in turn, referred us to the MFA. The news broke on July 19 when one Mongolian daily reported (erroneously) that a source had told it that Mongolia's National Security Council (the President, Speaker and Prime Minister) had decided in principle before Naadam to completely withdraw Mongolian forces from Iraq. In discussions with MFA and MOD on July 19, the Embassy noted that it would be important to the GOM's reputation and credibility for it to provide an accurate statement of Mongolia's intentions not only to its fellow Coalition partners but also to the Mongolian public. The MFA finally produced the statement above in a fax to the Embassy. To date, no senior official has contacted the Ambassador to convey the message. Ambassador intends to request an appointment with the Foreign Minister on July 20 to seek clarification of Mongolia's intentions. It is not clear when or if the GOM will announce its decision to the public. ¶3. (SBU) Comment: While the GOM has, in our view, badly mishandled delivery of the message, the message itself is positive: Mongolia will maintain a presence in Iraq, albeit at a reduced level. In addition, Mongolia intends to increase its contingent of artillery trainers in Afghanistan during the upcoming rotation. As well as whatever political factors may have played into the Mongolian decision (about which we will ask in coming days),there is a real shortage of qualified, English speaking soldiers available for peacekeeping duties. Mongolia today dispatched its second rotation of 250 soldiers to guard the UN war crimes tribunal in Sierra Leone. The soldiers now there will not immediately be available for redeployment, meaning that Mongolia's fledgling peacekeeping battalion is tightly stretched. SLUTZ