TANZANIA: GENERAL WARD AND PRESIDENT KIKWETE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 DAR ES SALAAM 000353

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/05/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS TZ
SUBJECT: TANZANIA: GENERAL WARD AND PRESIDENT KIKWETE
DISCUSS STRENGTHENING MILITARY COOPERATION

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires D. Purnell Delly for reasons 1.4 (b,d)
.

USG
General William E. Ward, Deputy Commander, EUCOM
Ambassador Michael Retzer
Ambassador Mary Yates, EUCOM Political Advisor

D. Purnell Delly, DCM, Embassy Dar es Salaam
Joel Wiegert (notetaker)

GOT
President Jakaya Kikwete
Hon. Juma Kapuya, Minister of Defense
General George Waitara, Chief of Defense Forces
Alex Massinda, Head of Europe and Americas Department,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Summary
--------------

1. (C) In a March 3, 2007 meeting with General William Ward,
the Deputy Commander of the European Military Command
(EUCOM),President Kikwete warmly welcomed mil-to-mil
cooperation with the United States in a number of areas,
including peacekeeping training under ACOTA and deployment of
a U.S. Civil Affairs team to the Swahili Coast. While a
peacekeeping force for Somalia was a "golden opportunity" to
stabilize that country, Kikwete said the African Union (AU)
was not up to the task and emphasized both the Darfur and
Somalia peacekeeping operations (PKO) should be UN-hatted.
Pointing to the serious financing issues facing AMIS, he
recalled that Tanzania had not been reimbursed for its
deployment to Liberia, and, as one of Africa's most
impoverished nations, it could not deploy under such
circumstances again. General Ward made clear that the USG
would continue to be a strong mil-to-mil partner for
Tanzania, and that he was "personally committed" to further
strengthening that relationship. Specifically, he emphasized
the importance of focused U.S. training and exchange programs
which, over time, would build valuable capacity in the
Tanzanian military. In separate meetings with the Defense
Minister Juma Kapuya and Chief of Defense General Waitara,
Kapuya stressed Kikwete was resolved that Tanzania would now
play its part in African peacekeeping, even among Tanzania's
neighbors: "There is now an expectation that we will do
more." General Ward stressed the importance of a SOFA as an
"enabler" to U.S. training efforts, and promised assistance
from EUCOM attorneys to address issues of concern to
Tanzania. End Summary.

Close Military Cooperation
--------------

2. (C) During the March 3 meeting of General Ward, Ambassador
Retzer and President Kikwete, Kikwete opened by acknowledging
the close relationship between Tanzania and the U.S.
Referencing his two trips to the U.S. in 2006, he noted the
importance of close military cooperation, especially given
the fight against terrorism. For Kikwete, it was critical
that we continue to work together in a structured fashion
that focused on building the capacity of the Tanzanian
military. General Ward assured Kikwete that the USG shared
this commitment to working together and that his trip was to
highlight his personal commitment to building a stronger
partnership with Tanzania. While Ward made it clear that our
assistance could never "be all that we want it to be," he
noted that current USG assistance, such as training for the
Tanzanian Coast Guard, peacekeeping training through ACOTA,
and the IMET program, are important signs of deliberate and
continued progress.

GOT Peacekeeping ) Bad Experience in Liberia
--------------

3. (C) Kikwete transitioned to peacekeeping, by discussing

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the GOT,s first and last peacekeeping operation in Liberia.
According to Kikwete, during the Liberian peacekeeping
operation in the early 90s the GOT did not receive the
promised funds to pay the salaries and expenses of its
already deployed battalion. Kikwete, at the time the
Minister of Finance, was then forced to pay the soldiers'
salaries out of state coffers. While Kikwete understood at
the time "that this was the GOT,s contribution to regional
peace and stability," the GOT canceled plans to rotate a
planned replacement battalion back into Liberia. For Kikwete
and the Tanzania Peoples Defense Forces (TPDF),the GOT,s
foray into Liberia was a bad experience. It created an
atmosphere of unwillingness to take on future missions unless
the conditions are absolutely right. Kikwete stated that
Tanzania has the political will and the soldiers ready to
undertake peacekeeping missions, but any future operation in
which Tanzanian soldiers were not paid would not be an option.

Peacekeeping in Sudan "Looks Like Liberia"
--------------

4. (C) Turning to payment problems for the AMIS mission in
Darfur, Kikwete stated that the AU Mission in Sudan "looks
like Liberia" to the GOT. During Kikwete,s recent visit to
various European capitals, the EC Commissioner Louis Michel
told Kikwete that the EC was not going to be able to fully
fund the needs of AMIS in Sudan. For Kikwete, without these
resources the mission would "grind to a halt." The lack of
sufficient EC funds strengthened his resolve that AMIS must
be a UN-led mission with clear rules of engagement before the
GOT could consider deployment. (Comment: In the past,
Kikwete has repeatedly emphasized Tanzania's willingness to
deploy to Darfur if it is a UN rather than AU operation.)


5. (C) Kikwete openly discussed conversations between himself
and President Bashir regarding the re-hatting of AU forces in
Sudan. Kikwete stated he has been trying to allay Bashir,s
fears, but that Bashir told Kikwete that the U.S. has a
hidden agenda, even implying that the USG had plans for
regime change in Sudan. When Kikwete suggested a UN mission
with only African forces, Bashir stated that he has problems
with the UN itself, including fears that top Sudanese
officials may be arrested on charges of war crimes and turned
over to the International Criminal Court (ICC). While
Kikwete did note there has been some willingness to discuss a
hybrid force, at present he felt that the GOS is so
indecisive that he could not judge its true intentions.


Somalia ) A Golden Opportunity
--------------

6. (C) President Kikwete noted that during his recent meeting
with the UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, he had told Blair that
the UN should lead the mission in Somalia from the start.
Fearful that it may be "a repeat of the situation in Sudan,"
he noted that if the AU could not finance its current
operations, he was not sure it could afford Somalia. Kikwete
felt strongly that Somalia was strategic in the fight against
terror and that the international community may lose "a
golden opportunity" to put things right in Somalia.


7. (C) According to Kikwete, the GOT,s plan to help train
Somalian military officers and cadets continues to move
forward (Ref A). The GOT has already located a training
facility and has appointed the teaching staff. Kikwete
stated the training program would cost USD 3.5 million.
Although the GOT could not finance the total program, Kikwete
emphasized that he would not wait until the total financing,
including whatever assistance the USG could offer, was in
place before beginning the training. He said that the
Somalian delegation's plans to come to Tanzania in February
to discuss the training had been delayed; however, according
to Kikwete,s High Commissioner in London, who recently met

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with Somalian President Abdullahi Yusef, a delegation would
be arriving sometime during the week of March 5 to 9 to
discuss the details of the upcoming training.

GOT Clear on Next Steps
--------------

8. (C) In an earlier meeting on Saturday, March 3 with the
GOT Minister of Defense Juma Kapuya, General Ward, the
Ambassador and Kapuya discussed ongoing negotiations
regarding a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between the USG
and the GOT. Highlighting the document's importance for the
strengthening of military cooperation, Ward stated a SOFA
would open doors to future USG military assistance by
providing the necessary protections for USG military
officials in Tanzania. Kapuya noted the political will for
the SOFA was there, but that this was the most expansive
agreement of this nature that the GOT had reviewed. Because
of this, the GOT would need more time to work the agreement
through the GOT,s legal and political institutions. Kapuya
suggested that a joint USG/GOT team sit down to further
review the agreement and discuss possible amendments. Ward
stated that all necessary USG resources would be made
available, including EUCOM lawyers if necessary. Ward also
noted that the SOFA was only in force as long as the GOT was
interested in continuing direct military assistance.


9. (C) Both Kapuya and the Chief of Defense Forces, General
George Waitara, understood the importance of strong USG/GOT
military cooperation. While Waitara was more skeptical about
USG assistance, specifically mentioning frustrations
surrounding the USG's inability to provide the TPDF with
exactly what they request, he warmed to Ward's commitment to
building strong partnerships by "visiting the other guy's
foxhole." Waitara and Kapuya also pushed Ward to increase
USG assistance. Kapuya was encouraged by programs such as
IMET, but was concerned that when military officials returned
to Tanzania from training, they quickly grew frustrated
because they did not have the equipment or facilities to hone
their new skills.

Comment
--------------

10. (C) General Ward's visit was a success not because he
arrived with promises of expansive new aid to the Tanzanian
military: he had no such aid to offer. What he promised
were important but nevertheless only incremental increases to
TPDF capacity through ACOTA training, IMET, and coastal
security. What made his visit a success was his "personal
diplomacy" and the relationships he forged with Tanzania's
senior leadership. His warmth, sincerity, and commitment to
closer ties with Tanzania's military even managed to
momentarily disarm Tanzania's Chief of Defense, General
Waitara, who has remained a reluctant party to President
Kikwete's sustained relationship-building with the U.S.
Beyond this, what remained clear in the wake of the General's
visit was that Tanzania, as one of Africa's poorest nations,
not only wants to be properly trained and equipped, but wants
to be paid if it deploys as part of a peacekeeping force.


11. (U) General Ward's staff has cleared on this cable.
DELLY