SECURITY DIALOGUE WITH ALGERIA

C O N F I D E N T I A L ALGIERS 001008 SIPDIS DEPT FOR PM/RSAT, NEA/MAG E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/08/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER MARR AG SUBJECT: SECURITY DIALOGUE WITH ALGERIA REF: A. STATE 112900 ¶B. ALGIERS 959 Classified By: Ambassador David D. Pearce; reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (U) In response to ref A, this message provides information on established security dialogues between the United States and Algeria. ¶2. (U) Joint Military Dialogue (JMD): The JMD was first held in October 2005 under an informal agreement between the U.S. and Algeria. The second JMD, in November 2006, concluded a formal agreement to hold sessions every two years. The most recent JMD took place October 2008 in Washington, DC. The JMD serves as our primary channel for planning bilateral mil-mil cooperation. It is attended by senior flag officers and follows a set agenda agreed to in advance. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Whelan co-chaired the October 2008 JMD with Algerian MG Ahmed Senhadji. The minutes of JMD meetings set down agreements on joint mil-mil activities for a two-year period as well as the date and agenda of the following JMD, the next meeting of which will take place in October 2010. ¶3. (U) Annual Planning Conference (APC): The first APC was agreed to at the 2008 JMD and took place in February 2009 in Algiers. The APC's purpose is to carry out working-level planning of mil-mil activities agreed to during Joint Military Dialogues, including exchanges, joint exercise participation and JCET training. The APC convenes every year and the level of attendance is for officers at the 06 (Colonel)/05 (Lt Colonel) rank, or equivalent. The APC functions well and provides us with the working-level access we need to implement activities agreed to at the JMD. As a result of the first APC meeting, we have significantly increased the number of mil-mil activities over previous years. ¶4. (U) Navy Staff Talks: Staff talks between our navies began in April 2007 and convene every 18 months. The last talks were held in November 2008 in Algiers. The U.S. Navy will host the next meeting in Naples, Italy, in February/March 2010. The talks provide a framework for planning naval exercises, events and training and are chaired by senior flag officers. ¶5. (U) Land Forces Staff Talks: During the February 2009 APC, the Algerians requested regular staff talks for planning land forces joint exercises and training. The first meeting is scheduled for December 2009. This will be a working-level group for officers at the 06 (Colonel)/05 (Lt Colonel) rank, or equivalent. ¶6. (C) Security Contact Group: During Deputy Assistant Security of Defense Huddleston's visit to Algiers October 17 - 19, GOA officials proposed setting up a U.S.-Algeria contact group of political, military, intelligence and other officials that would meet periodically to discuss counterterrorism cooperation (ref B). The Algerians claim to have similar groups in place or planned with Russia, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany and Spain. PEARCE