CHAD: FURTHER ON KOUCHNER PLAN

UNCLAS NDJAMENA 000530

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL KPKO CD PHUM PREF
SUBJECT: CHAD: FURTHER ON KOUCHNER PLAN

REF: NDJAMENA 504


1. (SBU) Francois Dureau, representing the UN Department of
Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) in talks in Chad, briefed
ambassadors June 25, before departing the country, on the
status of the two-track humanitarian protection plan for
eastern Chad (reftel). He said that most of the discussions
had moved to Paris, Brussels, and New York over the past ten
days, particularly in relation to the second (military)
track. Dureau had wanted to meet President Deby to go over
the points agreed so far, but the foreign minister preferred
to wait until all the main pieces were agreed before making a
final presentation to Deby. Dureau said that DPKO had made
it clear that Chadian police/gendarmes participating in the
first (police) track could not carry UN uniforms, helmets, or
insignia. The Chadians were asking for a Chadian component
in the military track, which DPKO was resisting. There was
no agreed name yet for the force.


2. (SBU) The French Ambassador Bruno Foucher said that he
anticipated being ready to see Deby after a further meeting
June 27 in Paris, where a Chadian military delegation had
been present. The French visualized the military track as
having three functions: protection of the camps, protection
of the IDPs, and securing the IDPs' home villages. Deby had
originally wanted only a French force, a plan which was
unacceptable to French. Now the Chadians had asked for
inclusion of African Union and CENSAD (Community of
Sahel-Saharan States) troops in the military force. Another
unresolved issue was the timing of transition of the military
force from French/EU to UN. The Chadians wanted the
transition to be stretched out to one year.
WALL