BELGIAN MINISTERS VISIT DRC

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRUSSELS 000719

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/07/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL BE DRC CH
SUBJECT: BELGIAN MINISTERS VISIT DRC

Classified By: EPOLCOUNS RMEASON REASON 1.4(B)

1.(SBU) SUMMARY- Belgian Defense Minister (MoD) Pieter De
Crem, Foreign Minister (FM) Karel Du Gucht, and Development
Minister (DM) Charles Michel visited the Democratic Republic
of Congo (DRC) from April 16-23, 2008. The visit, intended
to show a unified approach by Belgium,s new coalition
government (GOB) toward its former colony, made waves after
DRC President Joseph Kabila characterized as "insulting"
remarks by FM de Gucht regarding the need for peace,
transparency, and democracy in the troubled nation. In
Kinshasa, the Belgian visitors also raised the issue of
transparency concerning a recent mining contracting between
China and the DRC. DRC authorities asserted that they are a
sovereign state and can sign contracts how they please. MOD
De Crem also visited Kananga while De Gucht and Michel also
traveled to Goma and Bukavu for a closer look at issues
surrounding the civilian population including hospitals
attempting to deal with victims of sexual violence.


2. (C) In a readout to western diplomats on April 29, senior
MFA Belgian Africa specialists said the goals of the visit
were threefold: to send a strong message of Belgian political
unity to the DRC; to promote development, human rights, and
transparency; and to reiterate Belgium,s support and
engagement in the troubled eastern provinces of North and
South Kivu. The MFA urged solidarity among western nations in
working with Kinshasa to promote democracy and peace in the
DRC. Belgium told diplomats that they had acted as
"international spokespersons" for the positions of many
European Union countries with which they had consulted before
their trip. Stating that the DRC is "not a hopeless case."
The MFA urged western solidarity toward the country. END
SUMMARY


Ministers Discuss Defense, Political Cooperation, and
Development



3. (SBU) On his first major trip as a national leader,
Defense Minister Pieter De Crem focused his April 16-22
visit to the DRC on becoming informed about its on-the-ground
situation and military issues, with an eye to focusing his
visit on future military cooperation between the two
countries. A highlight of his trip was the stop in Kananga,
where Belgium has some 60 troops. Referring to several
poorly-organized visits by his predecessor, Socialist MoD
Andre Flahaut, De Crem acknowledged a previous lack of
coordination between various Belgian ministries with regard
to the DRC and promised "a better synergy between the
Defense, Foreign Affairs, and Development ministries."
"Belgium will, from now on, speak with one voice when it
comes to involvement in Africa," he said.



4. (SBU) De Crem visited Congolese military bases, where he
observed first-hand the Army's obsolete, often broken,
equipment and the difficult living arrangements of soldiers
and their families. He announced that Belgian military
support would shift from an active humanitarian, peacekeeping
role to one of logistical and medical support. Belgium has
some 75 troops in DRC, among which six are in Kinshasa, 60 in
Kananga, two in Bukavu and nine in the United Nations Mission
in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC). The shift would
not reflect a decrease in overall monetary aid to Congo, but
simply a shift to professional, especially medical, training
and cooperation, he said. De Crem reiterated Belgium,s
willingness to station a rapid response force in the Congo to
help quell future outbreaks of violence. He offered Belgian
military to help train and reorganize the Congolese Forces as
legitimate assimilated soldiers transformed from renegade
rebel groups.


5. (SBU) Most Belgian and French media reports on the visits,
from across the ideological spectrum, have noted that De Crem
drew a mixed reaction during his visit to war-torn northern
Kivu. One group of local officials was reported to have
brushed aside the minister,s discussion on defense issues,
instead wanting to talk about Belgian methods for hog
insemination. Some citizens expressed skepticism about the
effectiveness of foreign military aid, recalling past
maintenance problems with donated equipment. De Crem was
shown Belgian trucks that were unable to run because of a
lack of spare parts, gasoline, or both. De Crem referred to
his visit as seeing "real Africa."


De Gucht Directly Addresses DRC Issues in Major Address



6. (SBU) After four days focused on defense issues, De Crem
was joined in Kinshasa on April 20 by FM de Gucht and DM
Michel. The meetings between Belgian and Congolese officials
touched on a range of subjects and discussions described by
the Belgian MFA in a readout to western diplomats on April 29
as "intense and animated." Briefers included Amb. Guy
Trouveroy,Director for Sub-Saharan Africa; Amb.Jozef Smets,
Senior Envoy for the Great Lakes; Amb. Koen Adam, DRC desk.


7. (SBU) In the major speech of the visit, FM de Gucht said
on April 21 that Belgium considers peace, security,
prosperity, and democracy as the priorities facing the DRC;
with Congolese leaders addressing those issues through
political and economic transparency> The leaders should
ensure that agricultural and mineral products benefit the
many (and not just the few),lead the fight against
corruption, and support the growth of a responsible political
opposition. De Gucht referred to an agronomist,s estimate
that the Congo had the capacity to feed two billion people if
properly exploited. He noted the need to "attack the
fabulous privileges of the few." Hailing the political
capacity of the Congolese people, the FM stressed that
freedom of political choice could make the nation a model
throughout Africa. In their debrief, the MFA Africa experts
named several personalities in whom they see increasing
democratic leadership potential. These included: Abbe
Malumalu, the presidents of the Senate and House, with whom
De Gucht and Michel met, as well as leaders in some areas of
the private sector whom they also met. The three ministers
also held separate meetings with Congolese parliamentary
leaders, government officials covering mining,
transportation, and relations with the IMF, and with business
leaders. MFA debriefers reported finding serious and
competent interlocutors within parliament and the business
community, for example, growth of the country (?),De
Gucht,s remarks clearly irritated Kabila, who responded
through the media by calling for an end to the "slave-master
relationship" between the two countries.

Chinese Mining Contract



8. (SBU) The MFA briefers said that a key area of sensitivity
between the two sides was the recent mining contract between
China (the PRC) and the DRC. The details of the reported
multi-billion dollar deal, which would accord DRC mining
rights to Chinese firms, have been kept secret (in fact, in
its readout sheet of the visit, the DRC Embassy in Brussels
characterized de Gucht's inquiry into the matter as "simply
indecent"). Stating that Belgium has "no problem" with the
fact that the PRC has huge contracts in the DRC, the MFA
focused its concern on lack of transparency in investment
transactions that would make commitments covering much of
Kinshasa,s mineral wealth. In addition, the Belgians were
concerned that these commitments were not tied to balancing
the DRC,s debt to the broader international community, not
just to Belgium but also to the European Union and the
International Monetary Fund (IMF). Lacking any detailed
knowledge of the deal, the MFA briefers continued, the IMF
will be unable to judge how to treat DRC requests for easy
terms from the international lending community. During the
visit, Development Minister Michel expressed concern that the
sudden, overwhelming influx of Chinese resources could
undermine international aid structures.


9. (SBU) The Belgian debriefers expressed cautious optimism
about the situation in eastern Congo based on the fact that
the Goma and Nairobi processes remain on track. The MFA
officials stressed the importance of international
involvement as the Goma peace process moves forward. They
praised the United Kingdom, Sweden, and the United States for
their efforts in the region. They also cautioned against
strikes targeting rebel groups, such as the FDLR, lest they
take retribution against civilian populations.


10. (SBU) In their debrief, MFA officials acknowledged that
comments made by the Belgian officials during the visit on
human rights and corruption in the DRC as well as the slow
pace of economic reform ruffled the feathers of some DRC
Officials. The Belgian ministers emphasized that they were
sending a strong message to the Congolese government about
the need for future reforms. The Belgian MFA informed
members of the diplomatic corps that the message carried to
Kinshasa by FM de Gucht and the other ministers had been
cleared by a number of its EU partners.


11. (C) COMMENT: The level of the delegation that Belgium
sent to the DRC illustrates the importance Belgian places on
stability and development in its former colony. Belgium
clearly continues to feel a responsibility to its former
charge, more than forty years after it was granted
independence. Belgian concerns about the DRC are certainly
heightened by Chinese maneuvers in a resource-rich part of
the world. Belgium worries both about a potential loss of
economic and commercial influence but also about the
possibility that Chinese deals might weaken
democracy-building in the DRC, reverse recent improvements in
transparency, and return the country to the kleptocracies of
years past.
Bush