SOUTHCOM COMMANDER ADMIRAL STAVRIDIS VISITS

C O N F I D E N T I A L BOGOTA 003089 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/28/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER MARR CO SUBJECT: SOUTHCOM COMMANDER ADMIRAL STAVRIDIS VISITS COLOMBIA Classified By: POLITICAL Counselor John S. Creamer Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d) -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) Commander of U.S. Southern Command Admiral James Stavridis visited Colombia on April 26-27. He was briefed first by JTF-O Commander GEN Navas, who thanked him for U.S. contributions of mobility assets and psyops support, as well as for U.S. help to COLMIL/GOC civil affairs efforts. BRACNA Commander GEN Ardila gave an overview of counter-narcotics activities, saying these coincided with operations against the FARC. In a press interview, Admiral Stavridis stressed the strength of bilateral cooperation and U.S. military humanitarian activities in Latin America. End Summary. -------------- -------------- JTF-O: Mobility, Civil Affairs in FARC's Heartland -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) The visit opened with a trip to Larandia military base, headquarters of the COLMIL's main counterguerrilla effort, Joint Task Force Omega (JTF-O),with Armed Forces Commander GEN Freddy Padilla and other senior COLMIL officers. JTF-O commander GEN Alejandro Navas voiced appreciation for U.S. support, which he said was vital to the sustainability of the war effort. He highlighted helicopter hours and fuel provided by the U.S. as fundamental -- not just to operations but also to troops' well-being. This support enabled the COLMIL to remove forces from combat areas for medical attention, training, and rest. The general also cited U.S. help on psychological operations including radio transmitters, broadcast programs encouraging FARC to demobilize, and a rewards programs for informants. ¶3. (C) Navas said winning the war against illegal armed groups hinged on establishing military control of territory and winning the support of civilians. The U.S. had made important contributions in these areas. The USG had funded construction projects in the Omega area, including a park and a library, and was considering several other projects. USAID's Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) had a budget of three million dollars, Navas said, to fund small-scale, immediate impact projects. Executed in the GOC's name, these would serve as a bridge between COLMIL's retaking control of territory and establishing full GOC governance. OTI's goal would be to lay the groundwork for follow-on projects by the GOC's 'Accion Social' program. Accion Social planned to invest $27 million in social services and economic development, plus another $8 million for population resettlement. The Embassy is working to help coordinate these programs. ¶4. (C) To defeat the FARC, Navas said, the COLMIL must do so in the JTF-O area, which was the group's economic and political heartland. The FARC's main center of coca production was around La Macarena, whose climate and terrain were so ideal for sowing coca that yields were four to five times those in other regions. "This is the bank of the FARC, its source of riches, the center of its finances," said Navas. As a hedge against losses in its coca income, the FARC was also trying to dominate the broader economy in the region, managing key sectors like livestock and dairy by controlling small cooperatives. Strategically, the JTF-O area also held hideouts of FARC leaders, and it would be the staging area for any eventual FARC offensive against Bogota. -------------- -------------- BRACNA: Attacking Narco-Traffic, Guarding Eradication -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) Counter-Narcotics Brigade (BRACNA) Commander GEN Jorge Octavio Ardila reviewed the BRACNA's mission -- conducting offensive operations against narco-traffickers and their drug trade infrastructure, as well as protecting spray planes and manual eradicators. The brigade consisted of three battalions, with a fourth proposed by the head of State's anti-narcotics arm (INL),A/S Anne Patterson. The general noted that with the U.S. the BRACNA had defined five strategic target areas -- a "coca geopolitical map" -- which largely overlapped with FARC concentrations. Admiral Stavridis said GEN Ardila and GEN Navas must work together to win this fight. -------------- Press Interview: Launching Ideas Not Missiles -------------- ¶6. (U) Admiral Stavridis gave a short interview to leading news weekly Semana. On the L.A. Times leak of allegations against the COLAR Commander, the Admiral said he knew of no supporting evidence. Unless corraborating evidence emerged, the U.S. would continue to work with Montoya. On Plan Colombia, Stavridis said he would attempt to deepen the already strong USMIL-COLMIL relationship. In its interdiction role, SouthCom was responsible for the drug transit zones of Central America and the Caribbean, where bilateral cooperation in law enforcement was excellent. Interdiction volumes had broken records for the last three years running, reaching 262 metric tons in 2006. ¶7. (U) On the U.S. military role in Colombia, Stavridis said this was tightly constrained by U.S. law. Personnel levels were capped by Congress, and activities were limited to training, equippment, organization, and intelligence. The U.S. could not participate in combat operations. He stressed that U.S. military presence in Latin America was weighted towards humanitarian objectives, as in the visit later this year of the hospital ship USNS Comfort to Colombia's needy Pacific Coast. "In this region we are not launching Tomahawks down range; we are launching ideas." -------------- Additional Meetings -------------- ¶8. (U) Admiral Stavridis and his delegation also met with Minister of Defense Juan Manuel Santos, Vice Minister of Defense Sergio Jaramillo, COLAR Commander GEN Mario Montoya, COLNAV Commander ADM Guillermo Barrera, and COLAF Commander GEN Jorge Ballesteros, and Colombian Armed Forces Commander GEN Freddy Padilla. Drucker