German Out-Of-Area Deployment Update

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BERLIN 000105 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: MOPS PREL MARR NATO EUN GM AF SU KV BK LE GG ET SUBJECT: German Out-Of-Area Deployment Update REF: Berlin 1822 ¶1. (SBU) As of January 13, Germany had 6,481 military personnel in out-of-area deployments (compared to 7,173 in late December),plus 5,700 on stand-by for the NATO Response Force (NRF). All military out-of-area (OOA) deployments, with the exception of those in support of UN observer missions, require parliamentary approval. A law regulates the parliamentary process, allowing expedited procedures only for non-controversial deployments. What follows is a brief run-down on Germany's current OOA deployments. (Note: OOA deployments are defined as deployments outside the territory of the NATO member states. End Note.) -------------- - International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) -------------- - ¶2. (SBU) The Bundeswehr currently has 3,206 military personnel (3,176 in December) operating under ISAF in Afghanistan based on a one-year combined mandate approved by the Bundestag October 12. This combined mandate includes deployment of six Tornado reconnaissance aircraft, which were previously covered by a separate mandate first approved in March 2007. The troop ceiling for the mandate is 3,500, which combines the previously separate troop ceilings for ISAF (3,000) and the Tornados (500). Because the Tornados only require about 200 troops, the merger automatically created additional headroom for Germany to take on additional tasks. ¶3. (SBU) The German government has announced its intention to use this additional troop capacity to boost the Bundeswehr's involvement in the training of the Afghan National Army (ANA). Some ideas under consideration include expanding a drivers and mechanics school in Kabul into a logisticians' training center, setting up a combat engineer school in Kabul and establishing an infantry training center in Mazar-e-Sharif. ¶4. (SBU) Germany currently provides an Operational Mentoring and Liaison Team (OMLT) for a maneuver battalion based in Kunduz. It also contributes to two multinational OMLTs -- one for the HQ of the 209th Corps and the other for the HQ of the 1st Brigade of the 209th Corps. Both HQs are located in Mazar-E-Sharif. In early January, Germany provided an additional OMLT temporarily for a second maneuver battalion based in Mazar-E-Sharif. This German OMLT will remain in place until Latvia is ready to take responsibility for it in fall 2008. A new ANA brigade -- 2nd Brigade, 209th Corps -- is scheduled to be stood up in Kunduz in the fall of 2008. Germany plans to contribute four of the seven OMLTs required for this brigade. Germany also plans to build garrisons for the new brigade in the north. ¶5. (SBU) Germany has been active in ISAF since the operation's creation in January 2002, and was the first country to volunteer to lead an ISAF Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) outside of Kabul. Germany currently commands ISAF's northern region (RC-North),where it leads two of the five PRTs (Kunduz and Feyzabad) as well as the Forward Support Base in Mazar-E-Sharif. Norway has announced that it will cease providing the company-sized (approximately 150 soldiers plus support personnel) Quick Reaction Force (QRF) for RC-North in June 2008. In the absence of any other capable or willing countries, Germany has indicated that it will take on this role. Parliamentarians from all parties agree that the QRF can be covered by the current ISAF mandate. If and when Germany takes over responsibility for the RC-North QRF, it will for the first time, in theory, have a force that can be deployed around the country quickly on short notice and which can conduct combat missions. This will constitute a significant change in the character of the Bundeswehr deployment in Afghanistan, whose forces up to now have been focused almost solely on stabilization and force protection missions. ¶6. (SBU) The ISAF mandate limits normal Bundeswehr operations to Kabul and RC-North, but allows temporary, limited deployments to other parts of the country on a case-by-case basis. In early May, at the request of ISAF, Defense Minister Jung approved the temporary deployment (three to four weeks) of a three-man psychological operations team to southern Afghanistan. German radio operators have also been deployed temporarily to provide communication support to Regional Command South in Kandahar. However, MOD has thus far not allowed German OMLTs to accompany their ANA units on deployments outside the north. Meanwhile, the ISAF mandate allows the reconnaissance aircraft to operate throughout Afghanistan, but restricts the distribution of the resulting information outside of ISAF channels. The information can only be passed to OEF in instances where doing so directly supports ISAF operations. -------------- Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) -------------- BERLIN 00000105 002 OF 003 ¶7. (SBU) The parliamentary mandate for OEF was extended for one year on November 15. It allows for the deployment of up to 1,400 personnel. Currently, there are 246 German sailors (no change since December) and one frigate under OEF, operating around the Horn of Africa. The mandate authorizes the deployment of up to 100 German Special Forces (KSK) in Afghanistan. Reportedly, no KSK have been deployed to Afghanistan under OEF in more than two years, which led some politicians to question the utility of maintaining this part of the mandate during the recent debate over its renewal. ¶8. (SBU) Despite parliamentary approval, OEF remains unpopular in Germany due to misperceptions of the mission as a strictly combat operation and its association with civilian casualties. OEF is an especially divisive issue within the Social Democratic Party (SDP), the junior party in the Grand Coalition government. Some 42 SPD parliamentarians -- about 20% of the caucus -- voted against extending the OEF mandate this past year. While significantly higher than in 2006, when only 13 opposed OEF, the number of defections is significantly below what the SPD suffered in March 2007, when 69 voted against the original deployment of Tornado reconnaissance aircraft to Afghanistan. ¶9. (SBU) During the parliamentary debate on OEF, FM Steinmeier called for evaluating whether OEF could be mandated in the future through a UNSCR, rather than continuing to rely on the self-defense provisions of Article 51 of the UN Charter. He also called for examining the possibility of transferring the ANA training mission from OEF to ISAF, thereby continuing the trend toward an ever larger ISAF and smaller OEF. Finally, he proposed holding an international conference in the coming months to take stock of progress in achieving the goals of the Afghanistan Compact. Thus far, there has been no concrete follow-up by the German government on Steinmeier's proposals. ¶10. (SBU) Renewal of the OEF mandate could be even more challenging next year, in the run-up to the 2009 national parliamentary election, given that popular support for the mission remains low. -------------- Kosovo Force (KFOR) -------------- ¶11. (SBU) Germany currently has 2,226 military personnel (compared to 2,792 in December) in KFOR, far below that allowed under the parliamentary mandate (8,500). The Operational Reserve Force (ORF) battalion, temporary deployed to Kosovo from mid-November to mid-December, returned as scheduled. The mandate is extended automatically each year unless there is a change to the UNSC Resolution framework for the Kosovo Force. While it remains unclear whether a new parliamentary mandate will be required in the event of a unilateral declaration of independence by Kosovo, all political parties agree that the international military presence, including German forces, must remain in place. -------------- European Union Force (EUFOR) Bosnia -------------- ¶12. (SBU) Germany currently has 130 soldiers (compared to 269 in December) in Bosnia as part of the EU's Operation ALTHEA. Most of the German soldiers are deployed as liaison and observer teams. The mandate, amended December 1, allows the deployment of up to 2,400 military personnel. This operation extends automatically unless there is a change to its underlying UNSC resolution. In 2007, Germany reduced its military presence in Bosnia by more than 700 military personnel in coordination with other allies. Germany is relying more on home-based reserve forces and less on deployed troops to provide the necessary security support for the implementation of reform measures mandated by the Dayton Peace agreement. -------------- --- United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) -------------- --- ¶13. (SBU) Germany leads UNIFIL's naval component and has 614 military personnel deployed (compared to 631 in December). The current mandate, authorizing up to 1,400 military personnel, expires on September 12, 2008. The German MOD has announced its intention to hand over leadership of UNIFIL's naval component in February ¶2008. -------------- Sudan (UNAMID and UNMIS) -------------- ¶14. (SBU) Germany currently has 42 military observers (no change BERLIN 00000105 003 OF 003 since December) in the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS),monitoring the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. The parliament imposed a caveat barring military observers from going to Darfur without prior consultation with the Bundestag Foreign Relations Committee's chairman and ranking members. The mandate, which was extended for an additional year on November 15, allows for the participation of up to 75 German military observers. ¶15. (SBU) The Bundestag approved a new mandate in support of the UN/AU hybrid mission in Darfur (UN Assistance Mission in Darfur, UNAMID) on November 15. The new UNAMID mandate replaces the previous AMIS mandate. It authorizes the Bundeswehr to deploy transport aircraft and up to 200 troops in support of the UN/AU hybrid mission. -------------- Georgia (UNOMIG) -------------- ¶16. (SBU) Germany has been part of the UN Observer Mission in the Abkhazian region of Georgia (UNOMIG) since 1998 and currently has 12 personnel (no change since October) stationed there, most of whom are medical personnel and military observers. To meet a UN request for additional medical personnel, the German cabinet decided last August to raise the personnel ceiling for this mission from 13 to ¶20. -------------- Other minor deployments -------------- ¶17. (SBU) Two military observers serve in the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE). One German military observer is seconded to the United Nation Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). The Bundeswehr has seconded 41 military personnel to Strategic Medical Evacuation (STRATAIRMEDEVAC),for which no parliamentary mandate is required, since it is not an armed deployment and the stand-by aircraft are stationed in Germany. -------------- Other force commitments -------------- ¶18. (SBU) The Bundeswehr currently has 5,700 soldiers committed for the tenth rotation of the NATO Response Force (NRF). There will be no Bundeswehr soldiers assigned to EU Battle Groups in the first half of 2008. -------------- Bundeswehr transformation -------------- ¶19. (SBU) The Bundeswehr is currently undergoing a transformation process, the goal of which is to be able to send up to 14,000 soldiers to as many as five different theaters for stabilization missions by 2010. The Bundeswehr will be reduced from its pre-transformation level of 270,000 to a final strength of 250,000 (162,300 Army, 62,700 Air Force and 25,000 Navy). The new Bundeswehr will be composed of three different groups: 35,000 for intervention forces, 70,000 for stabilization forces and 147,000 for support forces. Part of the Bundeswehr's transformation is a comprehensive rebasing program, which is also intended to be completed by 2010. Moreover, transformation includes the procurement of new equipment to fill capability gaps, mainly in the fields of strategic air lift, network centric warfare and armored vehicles. Due to limited funding (Germany spends just 1.3 percent of its GDP on defense, with few prospects of significant increases in the future),the equipping side of transformation is behind schedule. TIMKEN