LIBERIA: SECURITY COUNCIL FOCUSES ON UNMIL DRAWDOWN

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000731

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: LI PGOV PREL
SUBJECT: LIBERIA: SECURITY COUNCIL FOCUSES ON UNMIL DRAWDOWN



1. (SBU) SUMMARY. UNMIL SRSG Doss briefed the UN Security
Council on progress on political and security fronts in
Liberia, focusing most of his presentation on explaining the
recommendations of the Secretary-General's August 8 report
(S/2007/479) for a drawdown in UNMIL operations and
personnel. In endorsing the drawdown plan, Doss said he was
satisfied the planned force levels would ensure that UNMIL
could react to developing threats while keeping Liberians
motivated to increasingly assume security responsibilities.
He allowed that he would like to add a regional stability
benchmark to the criteria the plan envisions for continuation
of the drawdown once initiated. Several members endorsed the
drawdown plan in principle with Russia hoping for an
accelerated drawdown and South Africa concerned that the
drawdown not signal unintended international community
encouragement of those who would resist progress. The UK
welcomed the initial drawdown target of 2,450 troops and
called for further force reductions to be carefully keyed to
benchmarks of progress. USUN also endorsed drawdown in
principle, adding that the USG is analyzing the SYG's
specific recommendations and that USUN would be circulating a
draft UNMIK resolution in the near future. END SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) In September 6 Security Council consultations, Alan
Doss, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for
UNMIL, described the security situation in Liberia as
generally calm and indicated continued progress on several
fronts -- including recruitment and training of armed forces
and police personnel, border security, combating of
trafficking in persons and narcotics -- could be reasonably
expected assuming the arrival of urgently-needed donor funds.



3. (SBU) The comments of SRSG Doss and Security Council
members focused primarily on the three-phase drawdown plan
detailed in the SYG's August 8 report -- repatriation of
2,450 troops between October 2007 and September 2008 followed
by three months of assessment, repatriation of 500
administrative personnel between January 2009 and August 2009
in conjunction with a restructuring from four security
sectors to two, and repatriation of 2,191 troops between
September 2009 and December 2010.


4. (SBU) Doss said the drawdown plan was based primarily on
the findings of the UN technical assessment mission, led by
the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, that visited
Liberia June 11-22. He said the plan attempted to balance a
need to allow reaction to serious threats as they emerged
with a need to keep Liberians motivated to assume security
responsibilities. The international community had brought
stability to Liberia, he said, that would play a crucial part
in creating hope in "a new dawn" for all West Africa.


5. (SBU) Doss expressed some uneasiness over the benchmarks
built into the drawdown plan, endorsing those enumerated but
allowing that others should be added that would evaluate
regional security, the rule of law, and gender issues.


6. (SBU) South African PermRep Kumalo endorsed the drawdown
but cautioned that it be done carefully to avoid sending
unintended messages to Liberians that the international
community was pulling out and to Liberian "pockets of
resistance" that security was being compromised. UK
Political Counselor Johnston urged the implementation of the
first drawdown phase (repatriation of 2,450 troops) but
called thereafter for a cautious stocktaking, keyed to
benchmarks. He suggested that the Council might then
conclude that later phases "may be able to go further" by way
of redeployments. Belgium Deputy PermRep Belle also
expressly endorsed the first drawdown phase as dovetailing
with the UNMIL renewal draft he expected the U.S. to
circulate. Russia cited the demands likely to be made on UN
peacekeeping capacity by Chad, CAR, Darfur, and Somalia as
demanding "greater creativity" in other peacekeeping
operations, including a possible "acceleration" of the UNMIL
drawdown.


7. (SBU) Speaking for USUN, Ambassador Sanders commended
UNMIL's performance, especially regarding border security
coordination with area UN missions and governments, and
endorsed an UNMIL drawdown in principle, adding that
Washington analysts are carefully evaluating the SYG's
specific recommendations. She said the U.S. would circulate
a draft resolution in the near future.

KHALILZAD