BOSNIA- PRESIDENCY APPROVES NEW IRAQ DEPLOYMENT,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SARAJEVO 001110

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EUR (DICARLO),EUR/SCE (HOH, SILBERSTEIN, FOOKS),
EUR/RPM; DEFENSE FOR FATA, BEIN; NSC FOR BRAUN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/07/2018
TAGS: PREL PGOV PINR MARR BK
SUBJECT: BOSNIA- PRESIDENCY APPROVES NEW IRAQ DEPLOYMENT,
TAPS BOSNIAN SERB GENERAL AS NEW CHOD

REF: SARAJEVO 1021

Classified By: Acting DCM Michael Murphy for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

SUMMARY
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1. (C) At its July 4 session, the Presidency gave final
approval for the deployment of a "platoon-plus" to serve with
coalition forces in Iraq for fixed-site security duties. The
unit is currently scheduled to arrive in Iraq on or about
August 1, and will be the first multi-ethnic operational unit
deployed by the state of Bosnia overseas. The Bosnian
Tri-Presidency also designated current Deputy Chief of the
Joint Staff, Bosnian Serb Major General Miladin Milojcic, to
succeed Lieutenant General Sifet Podzic, a Bosniak, whose
term as CHOD was set to expire on July 21. Milojcic has
already assumed the duties of Acting CHOD while the rest of
the general officer appointments and rotations are decided by
the Ministry of Defense and Presidency. Podzic, who remains
on active military duty, is expected to receive an
appointment as either Bosnian military representative to NATO
or an Ambassadorship. Milojcic's appointment restores ethnic
balance at the top of the defense leadership structure
(Defense Minister Cikotic is a Bosniak),and should serve to
blunt Serb critiques that defense institutions and defense
reform are Bosniak-dominated and led. The deployment and
appointment of general officers now require approval by both
houses of Parliament. End Summary.

PRESIDENCY GIVES OKAY FOR NEW IRAQ MISSION
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2. (C) At its July 4 session, the Presidency gave final
approval for the deployment of a Bosnian "platoon-plus" for
fixed-site security duties in Iraq. The Council of Ministers
had given its legal opinion that the deployment was
consistent with Bosnian law on July 3. COM action on the
deployment had been pending for over four months as Prime
Minister Spiric waited for legal comments from relevant
ministries. The COM only took action after significant
Embassy engagement to break the logjam. The 49-member unit is
multi-ethnic and is currently scheduled to arrive in Iraq on
or about August 1. Both houses of the Bosnian parliament must
now approve the deployment. We do not anticipate any serious
political opposition to the deployment, but we are concerned
that the calendar is tight. The Bosnian parliament is
scheduled to take its summer recess soon, and both houses may
meet only one more time before then. We will work closely
with the leadership of both houses to put the deployment
approval on a "fast track" before August 1. (Note. Though
previous rotations of Bosnia's Explosive Ordnance Disposal
unit were deployed to Iraq before the required parliamentary
action, we do not know if the Ministry of Defense would do
the same with the platoon-plus absent parliamentary approval.
End Note.)

MILOJCIC ASSUMES CHARGE
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3. (C) During its July 4 session, the Presidency also
appointed current Deputy CHOD, Bosnian Serb Major General
Miladin Milojcic, as Acting CHOD, formally beginning the
transition of the general officer corps mandated by the
expiration of former CHOD LTG Sifet Podzic's four-year term
on July 21 (reftel). The Presidency instructed Defense
Minister Selmo Cikotic and Milojcic to consult on further
general officer appointments and rotations as mandated by the
Law on Defense, and present a comprehensive proposal for the
appointments to the Presidency within a week. Senior advisors
to all three Presidency members told us that the entire
general officer corps should be in place by July 21, and that
MG Milojcic will certainly be appointed to a four-year term
as CHOD. The appointments of CHOD, the two Deputy CHODs, and
the Commanders of the Support and Operational Command will
require parliamentary approval.


4. (C) While there remains some latitude regarding the

SARAJEVO 00001110 002 OF 002


general officer appointments, the parameters of the
transition are by and large set. Under provisions of the Law
on Defense, the two DCHODs and the commanders of the Support
and Operational Commands may not be of the same nationality
as the CHOD. In all likelihood, the two Deputy CHODs will be
the current Bosnian Croat DCHOD MG Slavko Puljic and the
current Armed Forces Inspector General, BG Rizvo Pleh, a
Bosniak and close Podzic friend. The current Support Command
Commander, Bosnian Serb MG Dragan Vukovic, has told Cikotic
that he will accept an appointment as Deputy Support
Commander in the event of Milojcic assuming the CHOD post.
Cikotic has told us that he intends to propose the current
Fifth Brigade Commander, BG Mirsad Gutic, a Bosniak, to take
over the Support Command. The Operational Command leadership
under Bosnian Croat BG Ante Jelec will likely remain
unchanged.

AMBASSADOR PODZIC?
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5. (C) The Bosnian Tri-Presidency released CHOD LTG Sifet
Podzic from duty two weeks before the mandated expiration of
his four-year term in office. Senior Advisors to the
Presidency members have told us that Podzic, who remains on
active duty despite his transition from the CHOD post, will
receive either an appointment as Bosnian military
representative to NATO or an Ambassadorship. Advisors to
Presidents Radmanovic and Komsic told us that despite earlier
plans, an ambassadorial post is now more likely. The decision
will rest with Bosniak member of the Presidency, Haris
Silajdzic, who takes responsibility for the appointment of
Bosniaks to diplomatic posts. We have actively engaged the
Presidency to ensure that Podzic receives an appointment
consistent with his high-level and successful service to the
state.

COMMENT: PRESIDENCY MAKES SOLID CHOICE ON CHOD
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6. (C) We have engaged the Ministry of Defense and Presidency
to ensure that the CHOD transition proceeded smoothly. With
that in mind, we are pleased that the Presidency seems to
have taken its responsibilities as Commander-in-Chief
seriously in moving the CHOD and general officer transition
forward. In making the early designation of Milojcic before
the appointments of all other generals, the Presidency has
encouraged a process that will promote a stable change of
command for the military leadership. The appointment of a
Bosnian Serb to the CHOD post also returns "balance" to the
top leadership of defense institutions, and should serve to
limit complaints from the Republika Srpska leadership that
Serbs have been excluded from senior defense positions.
Milojcic is well-known to the Embassy and has been a strong
partner. He is professional and has a solid understanding of
defense reform and the NATO integration process. We hope to
build on our already strong relationship with him and develop
the level of rapport we had with Podzic. End Comment.
ENGLISH