Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08LUANDA258
2008-04-01 16:58:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Luanda
Cable title:  

ENGAGING ANGOLA ON DESTROYING EXPIRED MUNITIONS

Tags:  MASS PGOV PREL PTER MARR PARM AO 
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VZCZCXRO0338
PP RUEHDU RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHLU #0258 0921658
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 011658Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY LUANDA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4703
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY
RHMFISS/HQ USAFRICOM STUTTGART GE
C O N F I D E N T I A L LUANDA 000258 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/28/2013
TAGS: MASS PGOV PREL PTER MARR PARM AO
SUBJECT: ENGAGING ANGOLA ON DESTROYING EXPIRED MUNITIONS

REF: A) STATE 30482 B) 07 LUANDA 0519

Classified By: Ambassador Dan Mozena for Reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L LUANDA 000258

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/28/2013
TAGS: MASS PGOV PREL PTER MARR PARM AO
SUBJECT: ENGAGING ANGOLA ON DESTROYING EXPIRED MUNITIONS

REF: A) STATE 30482 B) 07 LUANDA 0519

Classified By: Ambassador Dan Mozena for Reasons 1.5 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: GRA concerns at the highest level over the
2007 arms depot explosion in Maputo offer an opportunity to
expand U.S. cooperation with Angola on destruction and/or
toward improved physical security and stockpile management of
the country's vast stocks of expired munitions. Although
bilateral military cooperation with Angola has proven
difficult in the past, a recent request made by the Angolan
National Police to a USG-funded disarmament NGO (HALO Trust)
concerning improved physical security for weapons and
munitions stockpiles could provide an opening for Defense
Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) cooperation. Post will
discretely probe further to gauge the possibility of
assistance in this sensitive area. Although direct USG
engagement with Angola on the management of expired MANPADS
is a non-starter at this point, HALO-Trust - with discreet
U.S. support - may be able to engender sufficient trust with
the Angolans to assist with MANPADS destruction and/or
safeguarding. End Summary.


2. (C) Post welcomes Ambassador Bloomfield's message (ref A),
concerning a renewed focus on MANPADS threat reduction and
bilateral cooperation to secure stores of expired munitions.
Angola's long and well financed civil war, which ended in
February 2002, left a legacy of substantial stockpiles of
aging munitions without proper cataloging, control, or
physical security; many of these stockpiles are in urban
areas. Although our efforts to foster a better mil-mil
relationship with Angola continue, the cold war history of
U.S. support for UNITA against the current ruling MPLA
diminishes our credibility with military leaders here. As a
result, overt U.S. involvement in munitions stockpile
management has time and time again proven to be a non-starter
with both military and civilian decision makers.


3. (C) However, we continue to succeed in munitions
destruction efforts in Angola through U.S. funding of HALO
Trust. HALO has developed an effective working relationship
with the GRA, especially the National Police, which could
provide a new avenue to approach the GRA on Physical Security
and Stockpile Management (PSSM) cooperation. On March 26,
HALO officials told Embassy that in mid-March the national
police approached them to seek assistance to improve the
physical security of weapons and munitions stockpiles and
depots, which are expected to grow in size as the police move
forward with a national disarmament campaign launched in
March 2008.


4. (C) HALO has also made significant advances in its weapons
destruction programs with the Angolan Armed Forces (ref B).
In October 2007 HALO began destroying excess and expired
munitions at the main Army depot in Viana, a densely
populated suburb of Luanda. This marks HALO's first
collaboration with the Army, and HALO reports that the
destruction program has received high-level support and
direction from Casa Militar and President Dos Santos. A Casa
Militar officer told HALO that President Dos Santos had
expressed concern that a Maputo-like explosion could happen
in Angola, and ordered the military to take immediate steps
to destroy dangerous munitions. With rarely witnessed
alacrity, the military turned to Halo for assistance in
destroying these munitions. Although initially the Angolan
military had sought HALO hQp in destroying MANPADS, MANPADS
were subsequently removed from the list of munitions to be
destroyed.


5. (C) Comment: We are encouraged that Angola is looking for
assistance to destroy munitions and improve the physical
security of its munitions stocks. Ambassador Bloomfield's
message is timely, in that DTRA assistance could help expand
ongoing efforts to destroy/safeguard excess munitions. Given
GRA sensitivities, post proposes to explore discretely with
HALO-Trust and DTRA mechanisms for providing greater
resources to HALO so it can expand and broaden its efforts to
destroy excess munitions, including at some point, we hope,
MANPADS.
MOZENA