DEMINING: GOP REQUESTS ASSISTANCE FROM DIPLOMATIC

C O N F I D E N T I A L LIMA 003428 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR PM/WRS, PM/RSAT, WHA/AND E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/16/2017 TAGS: EC MARR MAS MCAP PE PGOV PHUM PREL SUBJECT: DEMINING: GOP REQUESTS ASSISTANCE FROM DIPLOMATIC COMMUNITY REF: LIMA 2044 Classified By: CHARGE JAMES NEALON, FOR REASONS 1.4(B) AND (D) ¶1. (C) Summary: The Peruvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs convoked more than 15 diplomatic missions on October 12 to request international financial assistance to remove 29,000 anti-personal mines from Peru's border with Ecuador. GOP officials outlined the history of demining operations in Peru, underscored the close cooperation taking place with Ecuador, and detailed the obstacles facing military engineers working in the demining zone. The Peruvian Ministry of Defense provided a detailed request for international assistance for 2008, totaling USD 1.1 million. The meeting left most observers convinced of the GOP's commitment to clearing mines and its willingness to work with the government of Ecuador to ensure the success of the program, but some diplomats privately questioned the GOP's ability to complete a long-term project that has run into difficulties in the past. End Summary -------------- Demining Background -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Gonzalo Gutierrez and Vice Minister of Defense Fabian Novak chaired a meeting of more than 15 diplomatic missions, including the OAS, European Commission, and Embassy of Ecuador, on October 12 to request financial assistance for Peruvian demining operations. The GOP plans by 2019 to remove 29,000 anti-personal mines located in the province of Condorcanqui (Amazonas department) in an area of approximately 22,000 square meters. The army of Peru placed the mines after its brief 1995 conflict with Ecuador. Seventeen indigenous communities in both Ecuador and Peru, with a total population of 2,000 persons, live close to the hazardous zone. Although statistics are incomplete, the GOP estimates that since 1999, 300 Peruvian soldiers and civilians have suffered injuries from mines, with at least one fatality. Sixty Peruvian soldiers, in the 116th and 111th Engineer Companies of the Peruvian Army, currently perform the mine clearing. -------------- Cooperation with Ecuador -------------- ¶3. (SBU) In 1998, Peru and Ecuador signed a peace treaty ending the 1995 conflict, and in 2001 both governments signed separate agreements with the OAS for coordinating ;international support for demining; in 2006, the OAS combined both programs under a single coordinator. Peru and Ecuador began simultaneous demining in October 2006, and in July 2007, signed a protocol that created a bilateral medical evacuation plan, established periodic exchanges of information, allowed transfers of equipment between demining teams, and authorized joint training. ¶4. (SBU) At the October 12 demining meeting, the OAS permanent representative to Peru, Bertha Sajntoscoy, called cooperation between the two governments "unprecedented." Ecuadorian Ambassador Diego Ribadeneira said this cooperation goes beyond efforts to remove mines and includes plans to bring economic development, environmental protections, and physical security to rural peoples often ignored by central governments in the past. Vice Minister Gutierrez called the demining program a litmus test for both governments to show that democracies are capable of protecting and caring for citizens on the social margins. -------------- Obstacles to Demining -------------- ¶5. (SBU) MOD officials detailed the challenges facing military engineers working in Condorcanqui, including isolation -- the closest military base is a day's journey away -- discarded ordinance left from the 1995 conflict, faulty mine detectors, irregular terrain covered by thick vegetation, and bad weather. The bad weather often restricts demining operations to less than four hours of work per day, because international norms require that helicopter Medevac routes remain open while soldiers are in the field. The July 2007 agreement with Ecuador gave Peruvian troops access to Ecuadorian trauma centers, reducing helicopter flight times from 4 hours 30 minutes to 2 hours 30 minutes, but heavy rains and dense cloud cover frequently ground flights. ¶6. (SBU) The most pressing problem is funding. The EC provided the GOP 500,000 euros to fund mine clearing from March 2006 to June 2007. That money has been spent, and no additional EC monies are available. The GOP needs 20 million soles (approximately USD 7 million) to support mine clearing through 2019, with 1.1 million required in 2008. The bulk of that money will go for personnel costs (USD 440,000), administration and supervision (USD 420,000),and logistical support (USD 210,000). The remaining line items cover victim assistance for residents of the area (USD 40,000) and equipment costs (USD 20,000). -------------- Comment: -------------- ¶7. (C) The GOP pulled out all the stops in underscoring its commitment to demining, with Vice Minister Gutierrez, Permanent Resident Sajntoscoy, and Ambassador Ribadeneira reading from the same script in extolling Peruvian and Ecuadorian cooperation. Still, questions remain. Only the Embassy of Italy offered to help close the budget gap -- without offering specifics -- and some US observers noted that previous Peruvian demining efforts had gone nowhere. Nevertheless, Peru has succeeded in drawing closer to Ecuador on a number of issues (see reftel),and senior GOP officials have given demining top priority. We believe the issue warrants renewed USG attention and are working with the Political-Military Bureau to arrange a Humanitarian Demining Assistance Team visit to Peru early December to assess the GOP's commitment and requirements for its demining program. End Comment. NEALON