BOSNIA: OSD DAS FATA'S VISIT HIGHLIGHTS SECURITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SARAJEVO 000467

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

SECDEF FOR FATA AND BEIN, DEPT FOR EUR (DICARLO),D
(SMITH),P (BAME),EUR/SCE (HOH, SAINZ, FOOKS),S/WCI,
PM/WRA, AND EUR/RPM (BROTZEN),NSC FOR BRAUN, USNIC FOR
WIGHTMAN AND MCLANE, USNATO FOR REID, UNDERWOOD, SHAFFER,
NAPLES FOR ULRICH

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/27/2017
TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR BK
SUBJECT: BOSNIA: OSD DAS FATA'S VISIT HIGHLIGHTS SECURITY
PARTNERSHIP, NATO INTEGRATION

REF: SARAJEVO 373

Classified By: CDA Judith Cefkin for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

SUMMARY
--------------


1. (C) Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for European and
NATO Policy Daniel Fata visited Sarajevo February 21 for
discussions with senior Bosnian leaders on Bosnia's NATO
integration process and continued U.S. support for defense
reform and Bosnia's Euro-Atlantic integration. DASD Fata
made the following points: congratulations on invitation to
join NATO's Partnership for Peace (PfP); participation in PfP
requires a national-level, and not just defense ministry,
commitment; the U.S. will continue to provide assistance and
support for Bosnia's defense, but Bosnia must sustain its own
defense budget to complete existing and future reform
efforts; appreciate all Bosnia is doing in GWOT;
International Criminal Tribunal cooperation and action
remains critically important; U.S. supports the Ahtisaari
process for Kosovo and hopes all parties in the region will
act responsibly in ensuring that peace and stability is
maintained.


2. (C) Summary Continued. All Bosnian officials pledged a
strong state-level commitment to becoming an active NATO PfP
partner, and undertake the reforms and devote the necessary
resources to prepare Bosnia for full alliance membership.
Taking advantage of a domestic area of expertise, the
Ministry of Defense shared broad plans to make demining
Bosnia's niche NATO capacity. The senior political and
defense leaders all noted the crucial role the U.S. must
continue to play in driving the reform agenda forward, but
requested USG understanding of the need to take a "balanced"
approach, particularly in terms of additional coalition
deployments, on some areas of joint interest. On Kosovo, the
Bosnian leadership across the ethnic spectrum recognized the
need for a quick resolution of the final status process, and
accepted DASD Fata's request to manage any fall-out in Bosnia
from the decision in a responsible manner. End summary.

DASD FATA HOLDS HIGH-LEVEL DISCUSSIONS
--------------


3. (SBU) On February 21, DASD Fata held separate meetings
with Bosnian Presidents Nebojsha Radmanovic and Haris
Silajdzic, Prime Minister Nikola Spiric, Acting Minister of
Defense Marina Pendes, Minister of Defense-designate Selmo
Cikotic, Chairman of the Joint Staff Lt. Gen. Sifet Podzic,
and the Co-Chairman of the Inter-Ministerial PfP Working
Group, Assistant Defense Minister Zoran Sajinovic. In all
meetings, DASD Fata explained the broad parameters of the PfP
program, highlighted the importance of properly resourcing
Bosnia's chosen partnership priorities and of the entire
state meeting all PfP responsibilities (including full ICTY
compliance),and pledged continued U.S. support and
engagement as Bosnia moves through the NATO integration
process. DASD Fata also sought out the leadership's views on
potential fall-out in Bosnia from the Kosovo status decision.


NATO ENGAGEMENT: COMMITMENT AND RESPONSIBILITY
-------------- -


4. (C) All of the Bosnian leaders unequivocally stated their
full support to see Bosnia as a full member of NATO in the
near term. They thanked the United States for its support of
the PfP invitation and backing of the defense reform process.
All parties agreed that the PfP invitation and the initial
success of defense reform were truly remarkable milestones in
an otherwise contentious and unpromising political climate.
President Silajdzic noted that PfP was a "real opportunity"

for the entire state to move forward and drive the broader
political reform movements. In this light, DASD Fata
stressed that it was important that Bosnia clearly identify
its priorities within PfP and develop a clear plan for
becoming an active and complete partner of the alliance. The
Presidency members and Prime Minister Spiric recognized the
responsibilities NATO placed on the entire state and
committed the government to fully engage with NATO to meet
alliance membership standards. They also acknowledged the
importance of continuing cooperation with ICTY, as required
in the Riga Summit declaration.


5. (C) DASD Fata noted that in establishing priorities,
Bosnia should also look to fully resource its commitments.
Echoing concerns raised by Defense Minister- designate
Cikotic, Acting Defense Minister Pendes, and CHOD Podzic,
Fata told the Presidency and Prime Minister Spiric that the
state budget needed to adequately provide for Bosnia's
defense needs and full PfP participation. Cikotic in
particular was concerned about declining resources, noting as
it currently stood, Bosnia's defense allocations were 1.7% of
GDP, below the 2% required by NATO. While pointing to the
state's limited financial resources, Prime Minister Spiric
pledged not to follow the example of other NATO partners
which decreased the defense budget after joining PfP, and
stated his intention to work with the Ministry of Defense and
Finance to fully fund reform and partnership activities.


6. (C) DASD Fata also stressed the imperative to see defense
reform through to its full implementation. Acting Minister
Pendes and CHOD Podzic said that the reforms had inarguably
slowed in recent months as they confronted larger political
realities, but both voiced their commitment to finish the
job. Podzic said that he hoped to have the Armed Forces units
established by the new force structure to be fully staffed
and operational by the end of the year. Pendes recognized
the delays in staffing the civilian jobs in the Ministry of
Defense, but indicated by the time Cikotic assumes office in
late April, a full staff could be in place. As for the still
unresolved property issues between the state-level ministry
and the two entities, Pendes indicated that the issue was
still far from resolution, but said the ministry had
submitted a plan to break the impasse to the Council of
Ministers. Pendes added that in the short-term, a separate
agreement could be reached to transfer a limited amount of
property necessary for coalition support activities to the
Ministry of Defense.

BOSNIA A SMALL STEP AHEAD OF THE PACK
--------------


7. (C) Assistant Defense Minister and Co-Chairman of the
Inter-Ministerial PfP Working Group Zoran Sajinovic briefed
DASD Fata on where Bosnia stood in the PfP and NATO
integration process. Sajinovic agreed with the assessment
that Bosnia was slightly ahead of the other recent PfP
invitees, as it had already undertaken the basic technical
and legal steps required by the alliance for PfP partners.
Bosnia's Presentation Document has been submitted to
Brussels, and the working group is currently in the process
of completing the PARP survey, which should be finished in
April. Sajinovic said that NATO Secretary General Jaap de
Hoop Scheffer would visit Sarajevo next month to sign the
Security Agreement, and that the National Security Authority,
which would coordinate securing of classified material and
issuing security clearances, would soon be established under
the Ministry of Security. Despite this substantial progress,
Sajinovic noted that some ministries were still not staffed
or equipped to deal with the requirements of PfP, and further
progress could be delayed. Sajinovic said he shared the
leaderships' goal of moving quickly from PfP into NATO, but
that their stated goal of 2009 was not realistic. In
Sajinovic's assessment, Bosnia would have a viable candidacy

"sometime after 2010."

U.S. ASSISTANCE, SUPPORT STILL REQUIRED
--------------


8. (C) It was clear in all discussions that the U.S. is both
expected to remain Bosnia's strongest international partner
and provide continued assistance in moving the reform agenda
forward. Acting Minister Pendes told DASD Fata that Bosnia's
soon to be published defense review will definitively state
that the United States is Bosnia's most important strategic
partner. DASD Fata informed the Bosnian leadership that the
United States could be counted on to assist Bosnia in its
partnership priorities, but that any support would be to
"complement not supplement" the resources that Bosnia itself
would have to contribute to its activities. DASD Fata also
urged that while our bilateral security relationship
continues to strengthen, Bosnia should not neglect its
European partners. In response, Cikotic, echoing comments
made by others, noted that Bosnians could "not ignore the
fact that we are geographically and physically in Europe, but
the war drew all of us close to the United States. A
European partnership would be more practical, but we know
that without the United States, there will be no positive
changes."

DEMINING AS NICHE CAPABILITY
--------------


9. (C) Acting Minister Pendes informed DASD Fata that the
Ministry of Defense was developing a comprehensive plan to
establish demining as the activity offered to the alliance as
a niche capability. Pendes noted Bosnia's extensive
experience with demining, along with existing domestic
infrastructure to support demining as a niche capability.
She said that Bosnia could augment its military demining
force, and offer training to other NATO partners. Ideally,
according to Podzic and Pendes, the military demining units
could also deploy on coalition peace support missions.
Commenting on the proposal, Prime Minister Spiric said that
it had his full support and developing demining as a niche
capability would be a priority for his government. Spiric
also voiced his support for establishing further niche
capabilities that could be offered to the alliance. DASD
Fata welcomed the initiative and encouraged BiH to undertake
such training. (Comment. We have thought the demining
proposal to be a good idea since the ministry first brought
it to our attention in January. Bosnia certainly possesses
the demining infrastructure and expertise to offer a valuable
skill to NATO. Furthermore, engaging the Armed Forces in mine
clearance in Bosnia could serve to provide the newly
established force with a positive public role. End comment.)

COALITION DEPLOYMENTS: EOD IS ENOUGH FOR NOW
--------------


10. (C) In another broad area of consensus, the Bosnian
leadership requested that the U.S. respect political and
resource limitations in not pushing for additional Bosnian
coalition deployments in the near-term. Agreeing with DASD
Fata's description of the mutual benefits of the successful
deployments of the Bosnian Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD)
unit to Iraq, and the recent Presidency decision to extend
its mandate until the end of 2007, Radmanovic, Silajdzic,
Pendes, Podzic and Cikotic all stated their belief that
Bosnia would be incapable of providing additional support to
Iraq or Afghanistan this year. Silajdzic, while expressing
his support for the EOD mission, stated that the public was
not ready to accept further deployments as "people are afraid
to get involved in any other adventures." Radmanovic
stressed the importance of the EOD deployment, and the need
for Bosnia to continue to be a contributor to global
security. But he also said that there must be "a very

cautious approach" in handling requests for additional
deployments, and the Bosnian leadership had to better explain
to the public that this was an important responsibility in
regards to NATO. Cikotic also voiced his plans to continue
with the EOD mission, but also confirmed that this was the
extent of what would be publicly palatable at this time.


11. (C) From the Ministry of Defense angle, concerns over the
support missions primarily focused on the financial and
logistical strains of additional deployments. Referencing an
earlier request from General Casey to provide a 12-15 man
security detachment to support the EOD unit, Acting Minister
Pendes told DASD Fata that the ministry and military did not
have the resources to support an augmented force. Pendes
requested that the EOD deployment remain unaltered. Podzic,
a strong and vocal supporter of the EOD and future Bosnian
deployments, also cited limited resources as the reason Armed
Forces could not realize additional deployments in 2007.
Podzic said that the military needed a "break" to create the
new units and fill out the new force structure. Saying that
"reality is not always what we wish it to be," Podzic pledged
to continue training and have a demining and possibly
infantry unit ready for deployment next year. DASD Fata
acknowledged Pendes' and Podzic's concerns, and promised to
raise them at the Department of Defense.

KOSOVO
--------------


12. (C) In line with their previous statements, the Bosnian
leadership across the ethnic spectrum pledged to not use the
Kosovo status decision for political purposes in Bosnia.
President Radmanovic stated that their was no disagreement
within the Presidency as to the necessity to resolve the
situation in the near term, and that the status process was
"an internal issue" that should be resolved between Serbia,
Kosovo and the international community. President Silajdzic
echoed Radmanovic's view that the matter should be resolved
quickly, saying that Bosnians were "tired of their region
being on the front page of the newspaper." Silajdzic noted
that Kosovo was an issue "that belonged to another state" but
cautioned that any settlement could not leave a "clear victor
and a clear loser." Prime Minister Spiric said that Bosnian
leaders "must be dedicated to this country," and any attempts
at linking Kosovo independence to Bosnia would be
inappropriate.

EXTENSIVE AND POSITIVE MEDIA COVERAGE
--------------


13. (U) Bosnian print and electronic media extensively
covered DASD Fata,s visit, focusing primarily on the meeting
with the Bosnian Presidency and the statements that followed.
Bosnia,s highest circulation daily carried a report under
the headline "BiH a Strong Partner of the US." The paper
noted that DASD Fata had reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to
providing continued assistance to Bosnia in defense reform
and the modernization of the Armed Forces. Overall, media
coverage of DASD Fata,s visit touched on many of the points
we have been stressing over the previous months. The visit
was a strong reminder that the U.S. remains, and will remain,
engaged in Bosnia in the future and stressed that PfP brings
many benefits and renewed regional responsibility to Bosnia.
The coverage helped to balance previous reports that the
international community was pulling its stakes and heading
out of Bosnia.

COMMENT
--------------


14. (C) From our perspective, DASD Fata's visit to Sarajevo
was an unequivocal success. The visit served to demonstrate
to both the leadership and general public alike the enduring

U.S. support and commitment to Bosnia's continued integration
into Euro-Atlantic structures. Furthermore, a friendly, but
strong message, was also delivered to the leadership that
their chosen path entails serious commitments and
responsibilities that will require a serious dedication of
effort and resources in the coming years. The visit laid
bare that while substantial and real progress has been
realized in defense reform and Euro-Atlantic integration,
much more ground needs to be covered before Bosnia is
prepared to be a full and active participant in Euro-Atlantic
institutions.


15. (C) For the Bosnia leadership, DASD Fata's visit also
provided a rare opportunity to engage on these issues with a
high-level USG delegation. Without exception, the officials
were prepared to discuss NATO and our bilateral security
relationship and demonstrated a stronger grasp of the issues
involved than we have witnessed previously. It is important
to note that there was a uniformity of position and
perspective among the Presidency, Prime Minister Spiric,
Pendes, Podzic, and Cikotic that Bosnia's future clearly lay
in NATO, and that the costs of entering the alliance were
inconsequential compared to the expected benefits of security
and Western integration. The leadership was also clear that,
for both political and resource reasons, Bosnia will likely
be unable to deploy additional forces or units other than the
EOD unit to coalition support operations in the near term.

DASD Fata has cleared this cable.
CEFKIN