Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09KABUL3229
2009-10-14 09:46:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Kabul
Cable title:  

Moving Ahead in Fighting Money Laundering and Terrorist

Tags:  EFIN EAID PGOV ETTC AF 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0003
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBUL #3229/01 2870946
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 140946Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2131
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY 0903
UNCLAS KABUL 003229 

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SRAP, SCA/FO, SCA/RA, AND SCA/A
DEPT PASS AID/ASIA BUREAU
CENTCOM FOR CSTC-A, USFOR-A

E.O. 12958 N/A
TAGS: EFIN EAID PGOV ETTC AF
SUBJECT: Moving Ahead in Fighting Money Laundering and Terrorist
Financing in Afghanistan - The Need to Act on Past Assessments

UNCLAS KABUL 003229

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR SRAP, SCA/FO, SCA/RA, AND SCA/A
DEPT PASS AID/ASIA BUREAU
CENTCOM FOR CSTC-A, USFOR-A

E.O. 12958 N/A
TAGS: EFIN EAID PGOV ETTC AF
SUBJECT: Moving Ahead in Fighting Money Laundering and Terrorist
Financing in Afghanistan - The Need to Act on Past Assessments


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Between November 2006 and March 2009, three USG
assessment teams traveled to Afghanistan to identify training and
technical assistance needs in anti-money laundering (AML)/combating
the financing of terrorism (CFT); a number of recommendations for
technical assistance from those visits remain to be implemented. In
November 2006, Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance (OTA) sent
an advisor to assess potential interfaces between the Central Bank's
Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and the Afghan Law Enforcement
Community. In March, 2008, Treasury led an inter-agency needs
assessment to Afghanistan to examine the main features of
Afghanistan's AML/CFT regime and to identify technical assistance
gaps. Finally, in March 2009, the Department's Office of the
Coordinator for Counterterrorism (S/CT) led an interagency (State,
Treasury, Department of Justice, and Department of Defense)
Financial Sector Assessment Team (FSAT) to identify technical
assistance and training needs. The Embassy's review of these
reports finds similarities in many of their recommendations and that
a number of the systemic vulnerabilities they found remain. Embassy
requests Washington agencies review and look to act on the
outstanding recommendations for targeted technical assistance
contained in those reports. End Summary.


2. (SBU) Three interagency USG assessment teams - one led by
Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance in November 2006, another
Treasury-led group in examine the main features of Afghanistan's
AML/CFT regime to identify technical assistance gaps in March 2008,
and a third led by S/CT in March 2009 - have identified a number of
areas where Afghan authorities need outside assistance. This cable
contains the Embassy's review of the concerns identified in the
reports and our understanding of where the teams' recommendations
for assistance stand.

STRENGTHEN THE CENTRAL BANK'S AML/CFT
SUPERVISION DIVISION:
--------------

Need: Provide Anti-Money Laundering/Counter Finance Terrorist
(AML/CFT) training for the Central Bank's Supervision Department.

(Recommended by Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance in 2006;
Treasury Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT Interagency Team in
2009.)

--Status: Banking Supervision staff received training in basic
analysis of suspicious transactions, counter-terrorism (CT),
investigative techniques, forensic accounting and typologies from
their in-house USAID advisors. However, these USAID advisors are
not AML/CFT experts. As a result, Treasury's Office of Technical
Assistance (OTA) is planning to send a resident advisor to work with
the Banking Supervision Department on AML/CFT issues in
January/February 2010. This advisor would compliment the current
USAID contract.

Need: Provide training on International Financial Action Task Force
(FATF) Standards. (Recommended by Treasury Interagency Team in
2008; and FSAT Interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: In April, 2006, OTA advisors worked jointly with
World Bank and Afghan Central Bank to train Central Bank
supervisors, money service providers (hawaladars),microfinance
banks, commercial banks, lawyers, real estate dealers, and jewelry
and precious metal dealers on international best-practices. Note:
We expect more work in this area following completion of the IMF
AML/CFT mutual evaluation of Afghanistan in November.

IMPROVE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF FINTRACA:
--------------

Need: Provide basic Financial Investigative Techniques course.
(Recommended by Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance in 2009;
Treasury Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT interagency Team in
2009.)

--Status: OTA held a Financial Investigative Techniques course
in late November 2008 for members of various law enforcement
agencies and the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Center
of Afghanistan (FinTRACA) analysts. (Note: FinTRACA is
Afghanistan's Financial Intelligence Unit and is responsible for
collecting, analyzing, and reporting financial information to law
enforcement. End Note.) A separate two day introductory course was
provided 24 judges. INL and USAID co-sponsored both courses.
Individuals trained in the November 2008 course are now involved in
active financial investigations. A second Financial Investigative
Techniques course is tentatively scheduled for delivery in the first
quarter of 2010.

Need: Provide I2 (financial analysis) software training to analysts.
(Recommended by FSAT Interagency Team in 2009.)


--Status: Treasury's OTA will give a Financial Analytical
Techniques Course (FATC) to FinTRACA analysts October 12-24. The
seminar is a two-week combination of training and follow-on
mentoring. The follow-on mentoring will include real time
application of techniques learned in class to open Afghan cases and
will include training in the I2 Analysts Notebook software.

Need: United States' Financial Intelligence Unit (FinCEN) to lead
efforts to prepare FinTRACA for membership in the Egmont Group.
(Recommended by FSAT Interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: FinCEN provided support to FinTRACA and urged they
be admitted as members of the Egmont Group at the first available
opportunity. The next Egmont Group Plenary takes place in May 2010.
To move the process forward, FinCEN will carry out an on-site
assessment in January 2010. For FinTRACA to be admitted to the
Egmont Group, they must be able to show that they are a fully
operational financial intelligence unit that receives, analyzes and
disseminates data to law enforcement. FinTRACA is receiving more
quality data in 2009, but has not sent any cases forward to law
enforcement for action. Treasury's OTA has taken over all technical
assistance and training responsibilities for FinTRACA and will
deliver a Financial Analytical Techniques Course (FATC) to its
analysts October 12-24. Moreover, OTA maintains a resident advisor
at FinTRACA to help with day-to-day development of the FIU. A
resident advisor supported by the UK Serious Organized Crime Agency
(SOCA) also helps in this work.

Need: Promote interagency cooperation by having detailees from
other domestic law enforcement and regulatory agencies assigned to
FinTRACA. (Recommended by Treasury Interagency Team in 2008.)

--Status: Not started. As part of Afghanistan's forthcoming
IMF AML/CFT mutual evaluation, FinTRACA organized several
national-level working group meetings. Through this process,
FinTRACA improved relations with law enforcement entities and is
better positioned to execute the recommendation. Furthermore,
FinTRACA is considering detailing someone to the Major Crimes Task
Force (MCTF),a positive step that would connect the FIU directly to
law enforcement.

Need: Provide training on how to process Suspicious Transaction
Reports (STR's) within FinTRACA. (Recommended by Treasury
Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT Interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: The OTA training for FinTRACA analysts October 12-24
will focus on prioritizing, targeting, processing and analysis of
Suspicious Transaction Reports.

Need: Providing a FinCEN advisor to lead efforts in the development
of the financial intelligence unit. (Recommended by FSAT
Interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: FinCEN is deploying a member of its staff to the
Afghan Threat Finance Cell (ATFC) in October 2009. Besides
providing direct analytical support to ATFC investigations, the
FinCEN advisor will serve a conduit through which U.S. law
enforcement will access FinTRACA's financial intelligence while
abiding by Afghan law and international best practices.

Need: Continue Hawala registration and oversight efforts outside
Kabul. (Recommended by Treasury Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT
Interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: This is the first year (since Taliban rule) hawalas
in the provinces have been successfully licensed. To date, 159
hawalas are licensed in Kabul, 29 in Jalalabad, 43 in Kunduz and 67
in Mazar-e Sharif. More work is needed in Herat, Kandahar, and
Mazar-e Sharif. Placing an AML/CFT Advisor in the Central Bank's
Financial Supervision Department will help these efforts. In the
interim, the Treasury Attache office is moving this work forward
through regular outreach to the Central Bank at the highest levels.


Need: Establish a separate hawala regulatory division in the
Central Bank's Financial Supervision Department. (Recommended by
Treasury Interagency Team in 2008.)

--Status: At OTA's urging (including a written recommendation
from OTA's Regional Advisor and meeting with the Central Bank Deputy
Governor) the Central Bank established a separate AML/CFT section in
the Financial Supervision Department in late 2008. This section is
responsible for hawala regulation and oversight of the formal
financial sector in this area. While establishing this section is a
positive step, it is understaffed and needs additional training.

IMPROVE BORDER ENFORCEMENT AND
OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY:
--------------

Need: Training the Finance Ministry's Customs Revenue Department to
augment mobile verification capacity, training in auditing and
development of a Customs Institute to professionalize personnel.
(Recommended by Treasury Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT
interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: The Finance Ministry's Customs and Revenue
department is beginning to implement a number of initiatives to
professionalize its staff and to extend connectivity and operations
from Kabul into the provinces. The Ministry of Finance recently
signed an agreement to open an Afghan Custom's Academy, which will
begin operations in January 2010.

Need: Provide training to combat bulk cash smuggling. (Recommended
by Treasury Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT Interagency Team in
2009.)

--Status: In May 2009, OTA's resident advisor provided Bulk
Cash Smuggling and Trade Based Money Laundering (TBML) training in
Herat province part of a DOJ training session. Another TBML/BCS
training is being coordinated and planned for December 6-9 in Kabul,
sponsored by DHS/CBP/ICE.

ADDRESS WEAKNESSES IN NGO SUPERVISION
AT THE MINISTRY OF ECONOMY:
--------------


Need: Inventory Afghan charities/NGOs and existing oversight
mechanisms; identify consolidation methods for more effective
regulatory compliance and enforcement. (Recommended by Treasury
Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT Interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: Not started. Charities and NGO's pose an illicit
finance threat to Afghanistan and some NGOs may negotiate with the
Taliban in operate in areas of low security. Due to insufficient
technology and a lack of capacity, the Ministry of Economy's NGO
division is unable to identify, license, and effectively monitor all
NGO projects in Afghanistan. Earlier this year, PACOM and Treasury
sponsored a South Asia charity workshop in New Delhi, which included
the participation of seven Afghan officials. While this training
provided general awareness, we need to develop and deploy a number
of focused training initiatives that will assist the Ministry of
Economy and its NGO division in fulfilling its roles and
responsibilities. Treasury plans to send a policy advisor from its
office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFFC) to Afghanistan
to map radical support networks, explore alternative opportunities,
and work to assess (and develop recommendations) current NGO
registration and supervision efforts. Training and/or technical
assistance may be the appropriate follow-up step. In June, S/CT
proposed sending an assessment team to Afghanistan, but we have not
heard further on its status.

IMPROVING AFGHANISTAN'S LEGAL FRAMEWORK:
--------------

Need: Expand the DOJ Task Force/Anti-Corruption Unit in the
Attorney General's Office to include financial investigation.
(Recommended by Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance in 2006;
Treasury Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT Interagency Team in
2009.)

--Status: The FBI will provide in depth training to those
working at the Major Crimes Task Force. As part of this training,
investigators will receive instruction on how to conduct financial
investigations. Other efforts are underway to plan additional
Financial Investigative Techniques training in to reach those not
included in the Major Crimes Task Force way ahead.

Need: Training for the Criminal Justice Task Force, Ministry of
Interior and the Anti-Corruption Unit the Attorney General's Office
is forming. (Recommended by Treasury's Office of Technical
Assistance in 2006; Treasury Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT
Interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: Members of the CJTF, SIU Financial Investigative
Unit, and ACU participated in the November 2008 OTA-led Financial
Investigative Techniques course. Efforts are underway to plan
additional Financial Investigative Techniques training in
Afghanistan.

Need: An advisor to provide basic training to prosecutors and
judges for one year on how to combat financial crimes. (Recommended

by the FSAT Interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: The FSAT recommended DOJ place a mentor in
Afghanistan for one year who would focus on basic training to combat
financial crimes. The individual would work closely with the DOJ
mentors already in place and build on the foundation these mentors
have already constructed. The DOJ, however, has not provided such a
mentor. Separately, OTA is planning/ recruiting for a resident
advisor in 2010 to mentor the work of the Major Crimes Task Force
(MCTF),a joint U.S.-Afghan unit dedicated to the investigation and
prosecution of serious crimes, to improve further indigenous
capacity to investigate economic crime cases.

Need: Provide a basic Financial Investigative Techniques course.
(Recommended by Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance in 2006;
Treasury's Interagency Team in 2008; and FSAT Interagency Team in
2009.)

--Status: The OTA held a Financial Investigative Techniques
course, co-sponsored with INL and USAID, in November 2008 to members
of various law enforcement agencies and FinTRACA analysts and a
separate 2 day introductory course for judges. Individuals trained
during the November 2008 course are now involved in active financial
investigations. A second Financial Investigative Techniques course
is tentatively scheduled for the first quarter of 2010 [Note: This
training is also included under "Improve the Effectiveness of
FinTRACA" above. End note.]

RE-INSTATE ARTICLE 61 TO GIVE THE MINISTRY
OF FINANCE OVERVIEW OF INTERNAL AUDIT
--------------

Need: Provide training and technical assistance to Ministry of
Finance employees in the Internal Audit Department on audit
techniques, effective reporting and resolution of identified audit
weaknesses. (Recommended by FSAT Interagency Team in 2009.)

--Status: Re-instating Article 61 of the Public Finance and
Expenditure Law of Afghanistan will give the Finance Ministry audit
authority over all central line ministries. This step is a key
benchmark of the World Bank administered Afghan Reconstruction Trust
Fund (ARTF) incentive program. Currently, the Internal Audit
Department employs 99 people in various capacities (i.e., audit,
information technology, fraud, and administration). Training is
needed in audit techniques, as well as in effective reporting and
resolution of identified audit weaknesses. Treasury's Office of
Technical Assistance plans to send an expert resident advisor to
work with the Internal Audit Department in December 2009.

MOVING FORWARD
--------------


3. (SBU) As the above review shows, the three assessment missions
(performed from 2006-2008) put forth similar recommendations and
proposals. Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance (OTA) is
working to provide capacity building in internal auditing, AML/CFT
central bank supervision, and the Major Crimes Task Force to help
with financial investigations. Both Afghan and international
officials have noted that the international community must avoid
short-term fixes regarding enforcement of AML/CFT. As in other
areas, building Afghan capacity to fight money laundering and
terrorists' use of the financial system will require commitment and
enhanced U.S. coordination (via State, Treasury and others) with
other providers of technical assistance in Afghanistan, including
UK/SOCA, World Bank, IMF, and UNODC.

EIKENBERRY