ALGERIAN SKEPTICISM AHEAD OF AFRICOM DVC

C O N F I D E N T I A L ALGIERS 000034

SIPDIS


DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/PPD DCURRY, PAGNEW
PARIS FOR AMBASSADOR MARY YATES

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/13/2018
TAGS: PREL KPAO MARR AG
SUBJECT: ALGERIAN SKEPTICISM AHEAD OF AFRICOM DVC

Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission Thomas F. Daughton;
reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (U) SUMMARY: Despite our repeated attempts to explain and
clarify U.S. plans for AFRICOM, Algerians remain critical and
suspicious. Both journalists and government officials engage
in heavy speculation, often making false claims and spouting
baseless misinformation about the new U.S. African Command.
Many Algerians still believe that the U.S. aims to place a
large military base or AFRICOM headquarters in the Maghreb.
Speculation surrounding the purpose of AFRICOM continues to
circulate and evolve into vast conspiracy theories. There is
also a growing fear here that AFRICOM will turn Africa into a
battleground between the U.S. and terrorist organizations.
We will participate in a DVC with Ambassador Yates on January
15 in which she will discuss and explain AFRICOM to a group
of Algerian journalists, officials, and intellectuals. Our
hope is that the DVC will provide authoritative and concrete
answers to help quell the unabated tide of suspicion and
criticism. END SUMMARY.


2. (U) We have made many attempts to set the record straight
on AFRICOM in the Algerian press. In our continuing efforts
to disseminate factual information and clear up
misperceptions, we are taking part in a DVC on AFRICOM with
Ambassador Yates on January 15. Members of the press, MFA
officials, Algerian military officials and Algerian academics
will be participating in the event. Interest in the DVC has
been strong -- the guest list includes 60 people and is still
growing. Indeed, the simple announcement of the DVC set off
another wave of suspicious speculating in the Algerian media
about the USG's "true" intentions.

NOT IN MY BACKYARD... OR MOROCCO'S EITHER
--------------


3. (C) Many Algerians still believe that the U.S. wants to
put an AFRICOM base in Algeria, despite repeated assurances
to the contrary from both U.S. and Algerian officials. The
Algerian government has made it abundantly clear that it will
never allow the U.S. military to install a base on its soil,
and we have reiterated that the U.S. has never requested to
do so. Press reports of U.S. plans to sell F-16s to Morocco
have prompted energetic speculation that AFRICOM will be
based there, a suggestion viewed by many Algerians as even
worse than having it in Algeria.


4. (U) Popular Algerian opinion of AFRICOM is sharply
negative. Articles and editorials appear in the Algerian
press on an almost daily basis criticizing it. Algerians
attribute various motives to the creation of AFRICOM,
including U.S. desires to control African oil supplies,
counter China's influence in Africa, and combat Al-Qaeda
directly in the Sahel region. Regardless of the motive,
AFRICOM is portrayed as interference in African affairs and
an infringement on the sovereignty of African countries. The
Algerian media has even gone so far as to suggest that recent
attacks by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) are the
work of the U.S., and are part of an attempt to build a case
for the installation of AFRICOM in the region. A key factor
in these claims is the popular belief that any AFRICOM HQ
would take the form of a large military base with over a
thousand American soldiers.


5. (C) COMMENT: We hope to use the DVC as an opportunity to
quash many of the unfounded rumors about AFRICOM. Getting
the facts from a high-level AFRICOM official like Ambassador
Yates should help to convince more Algerians of the peaceful
and cooperative nature of the command. Key to doing so,
however, is speaking in no uncertain terms as to what is and
is not true. The DVC audience will be interested in knowing
where AFRICOM will be based and how large a presence it will
have. Special emphasis should be placed on the fact that the
U.S. has never asked Algeria to host an AFRICOM HQ and that
it will not be located in Morocco, either. Clarifying the
intended nature and size of the physical presence of the
Command should also help allay Algerian fears. The DVC will
provide an excellent opportunity to describe plans for small
AFRICOM liaison offices with a limited number of personnel,
and to highlight the positive work that AFRICOM hopes to
accomplish in partnership with the AU and its member
countries.

FORD