ARGENTINE MOD GARRE AND AMBASSADOR REVIEW BROAD

C O N F I D E N T I A L BUENOS AIRES 000216 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/20/2028 TAGS: PREL MARR MASS AR SUBJECT: ARGENTINE MOD GARRE AND AMBASSADOR REVIEW BROAD RANGE OF COOPERATION ISSUES Classified By: Ambassador Wayne for reasons 1.4 (b) & (d). ¶1. (SBU) Summary and introduction: The Ambassador called on Argentine MOD Nilda Garre February 19 to review ongoing and future cooperation. Garre expressed interest in enrolling Argentine personnel in U.S. courses related to civil-military relations, peacekeeping operations and peace maintenance, disaster planning, and resource management. Following the meeting she put out a press release thanking the U.S. for its cooperation in these areas. She said she or her officials wanted to visit JIATF-S, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD),US Northern Command (NORTHCOM) and the Pentagon to exchange ideas on strengthening civil-defense agency cooperation. The MOD also indicated her desire to renew the Professional Military Education Exchange Agreement. She said it would be useful to discuss a Reciprocal Defense Procurement MOU at the Bilateral Working Group meeting in Washington in April. Garre noted that Brazil and Argentina would be signing during President Lula's visit February 22 an agreement to co-produce an all-terrain vehicle and were exploring aircraft production agreements. She noted Argentina and Chile were making progress on their binational peacekeeping brigade, Cruz del Sur, and hoped to have it ready by the end of the year for acceptance into the UN Standby Arrangements System. Other Latin American and Caribbean peacekeeping nations had welcomed the GOA's initiative to establish a regional association of peacekeeping contributors. Garre politely declined the Ambassador's invitation to visit WHINSEC but was amenable to having her staff do so. The Ambassador made a pitch for Northrop Grumman 3-D radars, but she said the procurement was still stalled by a legal review. End summary. ¶2. (C) Comment: Garre, who continues to serve from the last administration, was warm and gracious during her first meeting with the Ambassador under the new Kirchner government. She and her team conveyed a strong desire for further engagement, which bodes well for April's Bilateral Working Group meetings, which will be led on the Argentine side by Secretary Forti. End comment. ¶3. (U) The MOD was accompanied by Secretary for Military Affairs German Montenegro, Secretary for International Defense Affairs Alfredo Forti, and MOD Chief of Staff Raul Garre. The Ambassador was accompanied by Milgroup Commander Col. Joseph Napoli, Defense Attache Col. Douglas Lengenfelder, and Political Counselor (notetaker). Bilateral Cooperation -------------- ¶4. (U) The Ambassador said he appreciated the close cooperation the Embassy enjoyed with the MOD and Armed Forces. Noting the busy calendar of bilateral exchanges and meetings, the Ambassador described this year's annual Bilateral Working Group meetings in Washington in April as a good opportunity to review the full range of bilateral cooperation. ¶5. (SBU) The Ambassador noted it had been very useful to establish with the MOD five priority areas for cooperation (strategic planning, defense resource management, reform of the professional military education system, science and technology, and training of MOD civilians). MOD Garre said she and her team had reviewed some areas of training offered by the USG, and were particularly interested in courses related to civil-military relations, peacekeeping operations and peace maintenance, disaster planning, and resource management. She also rattled off a list of U.S. defense sites that she or her officials wanted to visit, including JIATF-S, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD),US Northern Command (NORTHCOM) and the Pentagon to exchange ideas on strengthening civil-defense agency cooperation. The MOD also indicated her desire to renew the Professional Military Education Exchange Agreement, and that the GOA would provide us its revisions to the original agreement shortly. WHINSEC Visit -------------- ¶6. (C) Following up on a letter he had sent the MOD, the Ambassador urged her to visit the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC) and see for herself the excellent training it offers and the strong human rights component of its curriculum. Garre said she understood there were many positive changes since WHINSEC's "re-founding," but she said the GOA would forego any training opportunities at WHINSEC because "it would create domestic political problems for us" to send people to WHINSEC. She was, however, amenable to some of her staff possibly visiting WHINSEC during upcoming scheduled visits to the United States. Liaison Officers -------------- ¶7. (C) The Ambassador asked Garre to consider replacing the GOA's liaison officer at SOUTHCOM and sending a liaison officer to Air Forces South. Garre said that due to budget restrictions and shifting priorities, the MOD was reorganizing and redistributing its attaches, adding some new attache positions in Asia (to include China, Japan, Thailand South Korea) and elsewhere, but cutting back in Europe and North America. She said the SOUTHCOM liaison responsibilities would be covered through "steady, constant contact" by their military attache in Washington. USS George Washington -------------- ¶8. (U) The MOD thanked the Ambassador for the invitation to visit the aircraft carrier USS George Washington when it passed near Argentine waters in early May. The Ambassador confirmed that the Argentine Navy and Air Force would have the opportunity to conduct exercises with the George Washington. Eviction Notice -------------- ¶9. (C) The Ambassador acknowledged receipt of Garre's letter notifying the Embassy that it would need to find new office space for the U.S. Science & Technology office currently located at the MOD. Noting this was an important area of cooperation, the Ambassador urged Garre to reconsider. Garre said the issue was not just space, although MOD space was at a premium. She noted that despite the intense, close military-to-military cooperation with Brazil and Chile, they did not have offices at the MOD. She said other countries were asking for office space, but she considered it "illogical" for the GOA to house foreign offices and had decided to remove all foreign offices from MOD facilities. Clarity on Radars -------------- ¶10. (C) The Ambassador asked about the status of the MOD's procurement of 3D radars to improve air surveillance along the northern border and made a pitch for consideration of Northrop Grumman's radars. Garre said the MOD was waiting for the Treasury Solicitor to sort through numerous challenges filed by other bidders and issue a finding. The Ambassador suggested the MOD consider a government-to-government FMS purchase of the Northrop Grumman radars. Garre said she felt obliged to wait for the Treasury Solicitor's finding to see if it could resolve some of the legal issues and allow the MOD to proceed with its procurement. Waiving "Buy National" -------------- ¶11. (C) The Ambassador said it would be beneficial to renew stalled discussions of a Reciprocal Defense Procurement MOU to allow both countries to waive "buy national" restrictions and customs duties so that each other's contractors could bid competitively on a non-discriminatory basis. The Ambassador noted that such an MOU could help Argentine vendors sell to DoD. MOD Secretary for International Affairs Forti acknowledged that the MOU had met with stiff resistance from Argentine vendors who had blocked it for fear it would lead to greater competition. The MOD agreed that this should be discussed further during the upcoming Blateral Working Group. Peacekeeping Developments -------------- ¶12. (SBU) The Ambassador congratulated Garre on the development of Cruz del Sur, the Argentine-Chilean binational peacekeeping brigade. Garre said she planned to visit Chile in April in connection with the Chilean air and space show (FIDAE) March 31 - April 6. She noted with chagrin that the GOA was behind in equipping the Argentine units dedicated to Cruz del Sur but hoped to have the brigade ready by the end of the year for acceptance into the UN Standby Arrangements System. She also said she was seeking congressional authorization to let the Argentine Gendarmerie and Coast Guard participate in international PKOs. The Ambassador asked about the GOA's initiative to establish an association of Latin American and Caribbean peacekeeping nations. Garre said there would be a meeting in May or June to approve a statute for the association. Garre mentioned that, in an effort to build cooperation with neighboring nations, the GOA's peacekeeping training facility (CAECOPAZ) had opened its training courses for humanitarian assistance to students from Brazil and Chile. Cooperation with Brazil -------------- ¶13. (SBU) The Ambassador asked about news reports of an Argentine agreement with Brazil for joint production of arms. Garre acknowledged that the GOA and GOB planned to sign an agreement during President Lula's February 22 visit. She noted discussions of working together on production of an all-terrain vehicle, the "Gaucho," ("like a modified dune buggy with a light armor option") and, with Embraer, some type of military transport aircraft (Embraer 170 - light twin jet transport/civil aircraft). Garre claimed the arms production agreement flowed from President Cristina Kirchner's request, during her December visit to Brazil, for the two countries to develop "concrete" areas of cooperation. Assistance for Bolivia -------------- ¶14. (U) The Ambassador shared with Garre recent aerial photography provided by DAO of flooded Trinidad in Bolivia. He and the Defense Attache explained that the flooding appeared to be worse than last year and that the water was threatening to overrun the few remaining dikes that were protecting parts of Trinidad from inundation. They described USG assistance to the devastated area, including U.S.-owned/Bolivian flagged C-130 flights carrying relief supplies. Garre said the GOA the previous year had provided motorboats and helicopters, but this year the GOB was only asking for helicopters. WAYNE