TANZANIA'S UNDERSTATED ROLE IN THE DRC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KINSHASA 000785

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/19/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL ECON ETRD CG TZ
SUBJECT: TANZANIA'S UNDERSTATED ROLE IN THE DRC

REF: A) IIR 6 959 0112 06 B) 07 DAR ES SALAAM 1215 C)
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Classified By: Ambassador William Garvelink for reasons 1.4 (b) and
(d).


1. (C) Summary: The Government of Tanzania plays a quiet,
but useful, role in facilitating a peaceful resolution of the
conflict in the DRC's East. The reasons behind this are
likely connected to Tanzania's historical connections to the
Kabila family, refugee issues, and economic interests.
Increasing stability in border areas with Tanzania has
accelerated commercial ties between the two countries.
Tanzanian units reportedly make up a part of the GDRC's inner
circle of Presidential Guard. The GoT's strategy with
respect to the DRC does not appear to be as well defined as
other countries in the region, such as Angola or South
Africa. In general, Tanzania's actions to support its
foreign policy goals in the DRC occur behind the scenes. End
Summary.


Ties with the Kabila Family
--------------


2. (C) As is well-known, President Kabila spent a number of
years in exile in Tanzania with his family. According to a
MONUC contact, this resulted in ties of friendship and trust
between the Kabila family and Tanzanian elites, which
manifest themselves in a number of ways. Tanzania gave
political support to the Kabilas during the DRC wars and,
concurrently, appears to have a more strained relationship
with Rwanda. Ref A noted that Tanzania refused to train the
Rwandan Army because of the GoT's close ties with the GDRC
(Note: This was training in the context of bilateral military
training among East African Community member states. End
Note). In Kinshasa, there are persistent rumors that members
of the DRC Presidential Guard include Tanzanians.


3. (C) Tanzanian President Kikwete was reportedly concerned
that Rwanda was supporting Congolese rebel leader Laurent
Nkunda (ref B). The GDRC apparently approached the Tanzanian
Embassy in Kinshasa to request help in halting Rwandan
support for Nkunda. While there is no further information as
to what, if anything, the GoT did to fulfill this request, it
demonstrates the trust that the GDRC places in Tanzania.
However, there is no formal military agreement between the
two countries, according to a MONUC official.


The Regional View
--------------


4. (C) Tanzania has played a key role in a number of
regional peace initiatives involving the DRC, which indicates
the GoT might want to assume a greater regional role. For
example, Tanzania hosted the September 2007 summit between
Presidents Museveni and Kabila, which resulted in the
Ngurdoto Agreement. This agreement included provisions for
border demarcation between Uganda and the DRC, cooperation on
oil exploration, and cooperation in the fight against the
LRA. Tanzania also hosted another summit between the two
Presidents in May 2008, and was a founder of the
International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR).


Questions of Stability
--------------


5. (SBU) Tanzania continues to host approximately 94,000
refugees (ref C). In January 2005, the UNHCR and the
Governments of the DRC and Tanzania signed a tripartite
agreement, leading to the first organized return of refugees
in October 2005. The aim of repatriating these refugees
likely contributes to Tanzanian interest in regime stability
in the DRC.


Economic Ties
--------------


6. (SBU) Economic links also play a role in Tanzania's
interest in the DRC. DRC-Tanzanian trade remains small and
largely informal, but it is growing significantly, as the
situation in Eastern Congo along the Tanzanian border
stabilizes, according to a Tanzanian Embassy official in
Kinshasa. Dar es Salaam is a major port for import and

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export and there is a large amount of trade across Lake
Tanganyika. However, the majority of trade--even in the
formal sector--passes through Rwanda on the way to Dar es
Salaam. Increased transportation access to the DRC could
therefore help boost Tanzanian growth.


7. (SBU) A Central Transport project, initiated by the GoT
and supported by the World Bank and other donors, will
upgrade key transportation routes in Tanzania. One of the
goals of the project is to strengthen the commercial link
between Eastern DRC and port of Dar es Salaam. The GDRC
apparently views this as a positive step to increase its
trade to East Africa, thus presenting an alternative to
overland transport through Rwanda and Uganda.
GARVELINK