AFRICOM: FCO AND DFID INTERESTED BUT IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 LONDON 001649

NOFORN
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EUCOM PASS PLEASE TO AFRICOM
ADDIS FOR USAU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/18/2018
TAGS: PREL MASS KPKO MOPS PINS XA UK
SUBJECT: AFRICOM: FCO AND DFID INTERESTED BUT IN
"WAIT-AND-SEE" MODE

Classified By: Political Counselor Richard Mills, reasons 1.4 (b/d).


1. (C/NF) Summary. FCO and DFID officials report they are in
a "wait-and-see" mode on AFRICOM and have allowed the MOD to
take the UK Government lead in engaging the USG on AFRICOM.
Saying they have been "kept well informed" as USG thinking on
AFRICOM develops, MOD officials have said they get the sense
that their FCO and DFID counterparts are concerned that
AFRICOM will only be a "military exercise," neglecting
important development and policy issues. One FCO official
also commented that the FCO has been hesitant to engage
directly with AFRICOM because of the bad press it has
received in some African countries. The FCO has an
increasing focus on developing African militaries' capacity
and professionalism to help create stable democratic
institutions and to increase the number of troops capable of
deploying to peacekeeping operations. With senior-level USG
engagement, the U.S. may be able to garner more active FCO
and DFID support on AFRICOM, including political support in
multilateral fora (like the UN and AU) and peacekeeping
capacity development programs. End summary.

FCO and DFID: In a Wait-And-See Mode
--------------

2. (C/NF) In separate May 20 meetings, FCO Peacekeeping Team
Leader Nicola Murray and DFID Africa Conflict and
Humanitarian Unit Leader Martin Leach said that they were in
a "wait-and-see" mode on AFRICOM. Leach said that General
Ward's initial "charm offensive" had been greatly
appreciated, but that there had been little follow-up
communication. Leach said DFID's current understanding of
AFRICOM was "more on a conceptual level than an operational
one" and that MOD -- as the defacto UK Government lead -- was
"more aware." Murray said that there were lots of internal
FCO questions on AFRICOM's progress. She offered that
AFRICOM could play a valuable role in providing a more
strategic framework for developing African militaries'
capabilities to participate in peacekeeping operations, as
efforts thus far had been piecemeal and on a one-off basis.
Murray thought that a strategic approach would add "another
tool to the UN toolbox" that would help encourage stable
democratic institutions in fragile countries and diversify
resources available for deployment to conflict areas.


3. (C/NF) Former head of the FCO's Pan Africa Policy Unit
Jennifer Townson told poloff June 17 that the UK thought
AFRICOM was a "positive step" toward joining up the USG's
various capacity-building efforts in Africa and that the UK
remains "as keen as ever" to work closely on these issues.
She, however, said that FCO has felt it needs to "be mindful"
of its engagement with AFRICOM because of the "unfortunate PR
surrounding its birth." Townson said that as she saw it the
bad press was largely based on misconceptions of AFRICOM's
mandate, especially on counter-terrorism. She hoped the U.S.
would be able to salvage AFRICOM's reputation and move
forward with "practical capacity-building."

MOD: UK's Well-Informed Lead on AFRICOM
--------------

4. (C/NF) MOD Africa Policy Planner Paddy Duncan told poloff
June 17 that MOD had been "kept well informed" on AFRICOM
developments and was "poised on pins" to learn what type and
level of UK liaison representation AFRICOM wanted at its HQ.
Duncan said MOD is also interested to know who between State,
USAID, and AFRICOM would control what kinds of funds, as it
would likely have a significant impact on AFRICOM's
operational philosophy. Duncan said he had the sense that
his FCO and DFID counterparts were concerned that AFRICOM
would only be a "military exercise," neglecting important
development and policy issues. From late 2007, he said, FCO
and DFID sensed that DOD was in the lead, so they stepped
back and let MOD be the principle UK interlocutor on all
AFRICOM issues.

Comment
--------------

5. (C/NF) Force generation for difficult PKOs, like UNAMID in
Darfur, has been an eye-opening experience for the FCO and
DFID. They are looking for ways to continue using
multilateral tools while ensuring that those tools are robust
enough to deal with complex conflict situations. This
tendency toward multilateral engagement in conflict and
post-conflict areas has resulted in increased UK interest in
helping develop more capable African militaries. The FCO and

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DFID have been putting more resources into security sector
initiatives, like training and equipping troops for PKOs.
While there may be some initial hesitation to work directly
with AFRICOM because of the bad press it has received in many
African countries, senior-level USG engagement could result
in more active FCO and DFID support for AFRICOM, including
political support in multilateral fora (like the UN and AU)
and peacekeeping capacity development programs. Couching
AFRICOM's mission in terms of military capacity development
and allaying concerns about AFRICOM's mission creep into
traditional development areas are crucial issues for FCO and
DFID officials. End comment.

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