UZBEKISTAN: RED CROSS CAUTIOUSLY EXPLORING

C O N F I D E N T I A L TASHKENT 001173

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/CEN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/14/2018
TAGS: ASEC PREL MOPS MCAP PGOV PHUM UZ
SUBJECT: UZBEKISTAN: RED CROSS CAUTIOUSLY EXPLORING
ASSISTANCE TO SECURITY FORCES

Classified By: POLOFF Steven Prohaska for reasons 1.4 (b, d).


1. (C) Summary: On September 30, POLOFF and Deskoff met with
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
representative Simon Yule, who discussed ICRC plans to
provide assistance to the Government of Uzbekistan's (GOU)
security forces. Yule believes that this engagement may
reduce the risk of lethal exchanges during periods of civil
unrest by providing the Government of Uzbekistan with better
"graduated response" capabilities. Some preliminary
discussions between the ICRC and the GOU are underway, but
progress is likely to be slow given that this is a new area
for the organization and because of the GOU's inefficient
bureaucracy. End summary.

Targeting the MVD
--------------


2. (C) On September 30, POLOFF and Deskoff met with
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Police and
Security Forces Delegate Simon Yule at the ICRC's Tashkent
office. Yule indicated that the ICRC is examining how to
provide assistance to Uzbekistan's security
forces--particularly for the Internal Troops of the Ministry
of Internal Affairs (MVD)--and that such assistance may
provide Uzbekistan with a larger range of options in response
to potential outbreaks of civil unrest.

The Role of the Internal Troops
--------------


3. (C) Yule said that the ICRC has recently conducted
research to improve its awareness of the role that the
Internal Troops play in Uzbekistan. The Internal Troops are
an element of the MVD structured along military lines, and
have responsibilities that include maintaining internal
security, participating in crowd control efforts, guarding
prisons, and providing border security support. In the event
of civil disturbances, ordinary MVD police would be the first
to respond. Internal Troops would be brought in if ordinary
police proved unable to contain a situation, but the
threshold for this is unclear. Internal Troops are trained
for law enforcement, but have a combat role as well.

Possible Training Events
--------------


4. (C) The ICRC could provide classroom instruction to the
MVD and could serve as a consultant during MVD field
exercises, Yule continued. Other training may include
roundtable sessions that offer case studies of how other
countries respond to civil unrest. The Red Cross is trying
to avoid any training that teaches specific tactics, however.
Moreover, it hopes to convey to the Government of Uzbekistan
that a security forces unit should not have both law
enforcement and combat responsibilities, as a different
mindset is necessary for each of these functions. The ICRC
is carefully considering how to proceed with this assistance,
and discussions with Red Cross management and Geneva are
ongoing.

Poor Equipment Could Raise the Risk of Bloodshed
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5. (C) Yule noted that further engagement with the Government
of Uzbekistan (GOU) will show the ICRC what kind of equipment

the MVD has. Yule warned that not having the appropriate
equipment results in a greater risk of disproportionately
violent responses from authorities. For example, if an MVD
officer lacks adequate protective equipment, he will be more
likely to pull the trigger to minimize the risk to his own
life during a violent exchange. The ICRC is now looking for
equipment donors.

Preliminary Discussions Underway, But Obstacles Remain
-------------- --------------


6. (C) The ICRC's first round of meetings with the MVD on
possible security cooperation took place on July 3. Yule
complained that those in the MVD are not the real
decisionmakers; the security services and Presidential
Apparat will make the decisions on cooperation. Yule noted
that he is preparing for another round of meetings with more
senior officials instead, and hoped to receive some
indications of commitment from the GOU.


7. (C) Uzbekistan has the means to cooperate, but whether it
has the political will is a different story, he continued.
Uzbekistan is saying the right things, but its sincerity is
an open question. Yule said his task is complicated by the
fact that so many of Uzbekistan's ministries have their own
security units and there is significant duplication of effort
among these. Furthermore, obtaining information on these and
their respective responsibilities has been challenging.

Comment:
--------------


8. (C) Simon's point that engagement with the security forces
in Uzbekistan may in fact reduce the risk of lethal exchanges
between authorities and the populace is particularly
interesting. Cooperation so far appears to have been limited
to talks between the organization and the GOU. Further
progress on crowd control assistance is likely to proceed
very slowly given that this is a relatively new area for the
Red Cross--which is also probably anxious to avoid possible
future accusations that ICRC training resulted in casualties
during clashes--and given Uzbekistan's often inefficient and
suspicious bureaucracy. It is also possible that the ICRC
prison visits negotiations, which have stalled, are
contributing to the slow development of cooperation in this
sector. Buy-in from more senior levels of the government
will be necessary before significant cooperation in this
sphere can take place.
NORLAND