BURKINA FASO: PKO TROOP DEPLOYMENT TO DARFUR RUNS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 OUAGADOUGOU 000938 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/21/2019 TAGS: MCAP KPKO MASS PREL UV SUBJECT: BURKINA FASO: PKO TROOP DEPLOYMENT TO DARFUR RUNS INTO OBSTACLES Classified By: CDA Samuel C. Laeuchli for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Burkina Faso's initial peacekeeping detachment in Darfur has run into several obstacles and thus is behind schedule ON further troop deployment. The first troops departed Ouagadougou in August 2009, but since then meteorological conditions, issues with the transportation contractor, and logistics problems have hampered efforts to set up camp and send for the remaining troops. The battalion is expected to reach full complement no later than December ¶2009. END SUMMARY. The rainy season and the transporter chaos: ¶2. (C) In a conversation with Pol/Mil officer ON October 21st, the Director of Military Cooperation, Colonel Yssoufou Sawadogo, outlined some of the obstacles the Laafi battalion had run into during its initial deployment to Darfur. ON August 4th and 11th, 2009, 275 troops from the Laafi battalion deployed via United Nations charter from Ouagadougou to Sudan. The remaining 525 troops have not been able to join them because the necessary equipment to build the camps has not yet arrived ON site. To date, neither one of the camps has been built. The Director of Operations, Colonel Banagoun Zan, estimated that about 49% of the containers sent to Sudan have actually reached the advance elements of the Laafi battalion in El Geneina. ¶3. (C) When the first troops, primarily made up of army engineers and support staff, arrived in Darfur their initial task was to receive the containers and equipment and START building two separate base camps. The containers and vehicles required to accomplish this task were scheduled to arrive quickly so that excavation work and preparatory work could begin immediately (Note: In fact, the initial troop deployment in August was scheduled to coincide with equipment arrival. End Note.) Not only did the rainy season, making roads impracticable for weeks at a time, hamper efforts to convoy the containers from Port Sudan to Darfur, but, according to Sawadogo, a chaotic dispatching of the containers from the port only served to further aggravate the timeline. ¶4. (C) Still according to Burkinabe officials, the transportation company chartered by the UNDPKO was provided a list of prioritized containers and had been asked to dispatch the containers, in that order, to the camp. Apparently the transportation company failed to adhere to those recommendations and sent the containers in random order. As a result, the engineering teams could not begin their work since the containers they required first remained in Port Sudan. Because there is no base camp, the outstanding 500 troops remain in Ouagadougou for now. Damaged and unsuitable equipment: ¶5. (C) Not only did the transportation contractor dispatch the containers in a haphazard way, thus slowing down the building progress, it also apparently failed to FOLLOW additional transportation and contractual obligations. Army officials told us that in the end, the lack of adherence to the rules caused serious damage to equipment. The Director of Military Cooperation explained that according to the contract, the contractor was required to move vehicles to the final destination via flat or low-bed trucks. Instead, we were told, the contractor chose to drive, not haul, the vehicles from Nyala to El Guenina. As a result, the Burkinabe have noted damage to vehicles. The deterioration ranges from broken bumpers and doors, scratches ON water tanks, to busted windshields. According to Burkinabe records at least 18 vehicles were driven -- not transported via truck -- to El Gueneina. ¶6. (C) Pol/Mil officer also received a report that equipment supplied to the Laafi battalion by Pacific Architect Engineer (PAE) was neither suitable nor adapted for this type of terrain. Casspir shock absorbers, provided for by the contract, were broken while vehicles were ON routine patrol. They will have to be quickly replaced. The Burkinabe Army officer in charge of equipment and logistics told us that as a result, 240 new shock absorbers and 150 tires are needed. The way forward: a few key dates: ¶7. (C) October 29th: The Ministry of Defense will hold an important meeting to discuss the logistical problems associated with the Laafi deployment. November 9th: Air support will be used to take materials and supplies from Ouagadougou to El Geneina. The Burkinabe Air OUAGADOUGO 00000938 002 OF 002 Force will use their CASA plane to airlift an initial 3.8 metric tons of building supplies. A further 40 metric tons will also need to be airlifted, probably incrementally, to Darfur. The GOBF is talking to the UNDPKO to see if a transport plane with a larger capacity can be requested. November 10th: The third contingent of 175 PKO infantry troops will deploy from Ouagadougou to Darfur. They will be used to secure the campsite and run patrols while the engineers START building the camps. December 2009 (estimation): The remaining 525 troops will deploy to Darfur only once the base camps are ready. June 2010 (estimation): Rotations are scheduled to occur approximately every six months, with approximately 1/3 turn over at a time. LAEUCHLI