BOSNIA: CONTRIBUTION OF ANSF TRAINERS POSSIBLE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SARAJEVO 000167

SIPDIS

SCA/A FOR RUSH, EUR/PRM FOR CARLAND AND COPE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/19/2020
TAGS: MASS PREL BK
SUBJECT: BOSNIA: CONTRIBUTION OF ANSF TRAINERS POSSIBLE

REF: SECSTATE 14366

Classified By: Amb. Charles English for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) We delivered reftel points to Assistant Minister of
Defense Zoran Sajinovic on February 19, urging Bosnia to
contribute a team of trainers or mentors to ISAF's efforts to
expand the capacity of the Afghan National Security Forces.
Sajinovic told us that Bosnia's Military Representative to
NATO had called him the day before to inform him of the
request of D/SACEUR General McColl, and said that he would
pass along that conversation as well as our points to the
Minister later that day.


2. (C) While Bosnia cannot have an answer by the February 23
force generation conference, Sajinovic was optimistic about
Bosnia's ability to contribute officers who had been through
relevant training for training and mentoring missions. The
request from NATO to Bosnia, as Sajinovic understands it, is
for 10 English-speaking officers, of those who have already
participated in NATO-certified training, to deploy to a
training mission in Mazar-e-Sharif under Norwegian command
and with Norwegian sponsorship. Sajinovic told us that they
have not spoken to the Norwegians about this yet, but that
Bosnia would need 100 percent logistical support for the
deployment, although Bosnia could cover personnel costs.
That said, Sajinovic judged that Bosnia had the capacity to
staff such a depoyment on a continuing basis, and that this
wouldhave no effect on Bosnia's consideration of
contibuting other units to ISAF as well.

Comment
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3. (C) Although Bosnia's inability to mke decisions has
left them dithering over other possibilities to deploy to
Afghanistan for the last year, the defense leadership and all
of Bosnia's leaders support a deployment to ISAF as a way of
proving Bosnia is able to contribute to the Alliance and
bolster Bosnia's case for a Membership Action Plan. We do
not know whether Norway (or another sponsor) is willing to
cover the costs of logistical support for a deployment of
mentors and trainers from Bosnia. If they are, this is
probably one of the quickest and easiest ways Bosnia can
contribute to the ISAF mission. Bosnia has English-speaking
officers who have received relevant training from NATO
allies, and a deployment of ten officers under Norwegian
command to a relatively safe area of Afghanistan would cause
none of the political concerns that have slowed
decision-making on Bosnia's other possibilities to contribute
forces to peace-keeping mission in Afghanistan.
ENGLISH