AFRICA UNION CENTER WANTS OUR HELP FOR ITS

C O N F I D E N T I A L ALGIERS 000464

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/23/2018
TAGS: PTER PREL ASEC AG
SUBJECT: AFRICA UNION CENTER WANTS OUR HELP FOR ITS
COUNTER-TERROR EFFORTS

Classified By: Ambassador Robert Ford, reason 1.4 (d)


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Since early 2008 a number of U.S.
official delegations have visited the African Center for the
Research and Study of Terrorism (CAERT) in Algiers, all of
which have departed leaving the impression that U.S.
assistance in the form of training or seminars would be
forthcoming. Visitors have included State Department S/CT,
National Defense University's Africa Center for Strategic
Studies (ACSS),and AFRICOM's J-5. The visits have provided
insight into the workings and needs of CAERT, which the
African Union and Algerian government are seeking to develop
into a forum for counter-terror cooperation on the African
continent. The visits thus are useful, but we are now
hearing unhappy bleats that U.S. visits have not been matched
by action. On April 8, the CAERT director claimed that the
only planned U.S. support for CAERT in 2008 was an ACSS
seminar on terrorist finance. In 2008, CAERT hopes to offer
seven training seminars and is in need of sponsorship and
funds to make them happen. CAERT also passed us a list of
its technical assistance needs. We recommend that in order
to preserve our credibility with the center's leadership,
future U.S. Government visitors be prepared to talk about
tangible assistance if they want to visit the CAERT. End
Summary.


2. (C) CAERT Director Amb. Boubakeur Diarra joined an April
8 meeting with DATT and ODC Chief at CAERT to express his
frustration with what he viewed as a lack of substantive U.S.
support for the center. He claimed that the only planned
U.S. support for CAERT in 2008 was a CESA seminar on
financing terrorism. CAERT needed, he said, additional
funds/resources to manage the center and to offer seven
seminars this year. The seminars would occur on average
every two months and last approximately three days each.
Diarra emphasized that there had been many U.S. official
visits to and inquiries about the center in the past two
years, but other than in the case of ACSS, U.S. intentions
had not translated into action for CAERT. He also asserted
that he told an OSD official during a visit to the U.S. that
American aid for CAERT was not sufficient.

WHAT THEY WANT
--------------


3. (SBU) According to CAERT official Idriss Lallali, the
primary areas in which the CAERT would like to receive
assistance are:

-- Technical Assistance: CAERT requires resources to
develop courses and training programs, such as
train-the-trainer courses. CAERT would like AU member states
to be able to send participants to be trained in CT subjects
in which they could subsequently train people in their home
countries.

-- Building infrastructure and increased capacity, such as a
larger conference center and accommodations: CAERT
ultimately envisions renovating an adjacent housing structure
that would allow them to provide lodging for conference and
training attendees from across the continent so as to cut
down the cost of putting up visitors at local hotels. By
reducing the overhead costs of seminars and training events,
CAERT will be able to offer additional programs on a more
frequent basis.


4. (SBU) The four specific areas that CAERT has identified
as training needs are:

-- Counter IED training to build member states' capacity to
detect and neutralize explosive devices. CAERT hosted a
training course on this subject in 2006 which they often
highlight as one of their most successful and well received
courses to date. CAERT made a formal request to Embassy for
trainers to provide a two-week "train-the-trainers" course
for interested member states.

-- Analytical Capabilities: To build the intelligence
capabilities of member states geared towards counter
terrorist operations. Training courses on such subjects as
Operational Analysis and Exploitation of Information (Post
Raid Document Exploitation),Forensics, and Terrorist Finance
are sought.

-- Technological or Technical Capabilities: CAERT requested
funding to upgrade its operational databases, build an

on-site print and digital library, and facilitate the sharing
of information on-line between member states.

-- Operational concepts, assets, security capacity,
intervention response and hostage negotiation. Courses on
such subjects as VIP protection and investigative training
were requested.


5. (U) CAERT representatives also believe that there is
good potential for cooperation with U.S. think tanks, and
they plan to examine opportunities to link center activities
with an external masters degree in security studies. CAERT
has been building its capacity steadily if slowly in the
nearly three years since its inception and is long on vision.
It is short on funding, however, and this appears to be the
recurring message that visitors have taken away from meetings
with the center.


6. (C) COMMENT: Other countries, such as Britain, have
provided help with technical training for security officials
through CAERT. The center has become a regular stop for
official U.S. visitors who come to Algiers to talk about
counterterrorism. Diarra has come away from these American
meetings with the impression that the U.S. visitors were
indeed going to provide assistance to his fledgling center.
Thus, we are starting to see questions about our credibility.
Future U.S. officials requesting a call on CAERT should
expect to be hit up aggressively if they express a
willingness to provide assistance. Diarra, meanwhile, will
wonder why the American visitors are at the CAERT if they are
not prepared to discuss tangible assistance.
FORD