VZCZCXRO6381
PP RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHJO RUEHMA RUEHMR RUEHPA RUEHRN
DE RUEHDS #0695 0650613
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 060613Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY ADDIS ABABA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4948
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 7038
INFO RUEHZO/AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
UNCLAS ADDIS ABABA 000695
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR AF/FO, AF/RSA, AF/E
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL MOPS AU
SUBJECT: USAU MEETING WITH UK AND FRENCH AMBASSADORS ON
MARCH 1, 2007
1. (U) Summary - March 1, 2007 USAU Calls Group Meeting
with, UK and French to discuss International Donor/Partner
information sharing and the formation of the AU Strategic
Planning Cell and its support to AMISOM.
2. (U) Participants: AMB Cindy Courville, US Ambassador to
the AU; AMB Robert Dewar, UK Ambassador to Ethiopia/AU; AMB
Stephanie Gompertz, French Ambassador to Ethiopia/AU; COL
Timothy Rainey, US Army, Senior Liaison Officer, US Mission
to the AU; CAPT William Couch, US Navy, Liaison Officer,
CJTF-HOA; Ms. Julie Chappell, Regional Conflict Advisor to
AMB Dewar
3. (U) Background ) The meeting participants discussed two
main topics: (1) the general concern among many of the
international donors/partners of the perceived lack of
information-sharing by the AU in regards to the deployment of
Ugandan forces to Somalia; and (2) the general status of the
implementation of the AU,s Strategic Planning Cell and it,s
ramifications on the upcoming AMISOM deployment.
4. (U) International partners have communicated a
requirement to see concrete mission plans before they pledge
resources. There is little capacity or expertise to produce
the necessary planning documents that would help articulate
and describe the AMISOM mission because there is effectively
no AU strategic planning cell at this time. The AU needs
money and resources from the partners to produce the plans,
but without those plans the partners are hesitant to produce
the necessary resources.
5. (U) Discussion - It was generally recognized that
detailed operational planning for AMISOM should already be in
progress; however, the current pace of strategic and
operational planning is slow and unsatisfactory. This
situation has frustrated partners who feel that information
on the deployment is not being shared and that they have no
venue in which to contribute to the operational planning.
6. (U) There is also dissatisfaction that some non-African
countries who have not pledged any monetary or material
support to the AU have not been invited to contribute to the
operational planning.
7. (U) USAU, France and UK, as members of the Core Group of
countries who have formally pledged support, have agreed to
create a venue that is The objective of this
meeting will be to share and discuss information and how
partners who have yet to identify support for the deployment
of AMISOM may provide support.. Participants also discussed
that personnel and resources to augment the planning cell
were slow in materializing and this was having an impact on
the planning for the AMISOM deployment and international
donor support.
8. (U) AU Peace Support Operations Department (PSOD) on 26
FEB released a request to partners for specific operational
planners to augment the AU Strategic Planning Cell (sent by
unclassified cable). Both the UK and US Ambassadors stated
SIPDIS
that they would be working hard to get their capitals to
immediately release funding to outfit (furniture, office
equipment, telephones, computers, etc.) the planning cell.
Participants also discussed providing funding to sponsor TCC
planners in Addis Ababa. The French Ambassador stated that
France was preparing to deploy an assessment team to Burundi.
9. (U) Way Forward - All three Ambassadors agreed to chair
a meeting to provide clarification of information so as to
generate greater cooperation among the greater international
donor/partner community. It was tentatively agreed to present
briefing on Wednesday, March 3rd from 1500-1700. It was
proposed that the US, UK and France develop and present an
up-to-date status of the political, military and civilian
components of the AMISOM mission to the partner community.
The Embassies would jointly develop the presentation with the
objective of mitigating potential partner concerns and
addressing any outstanding issues. A critical part of the
presentation will be to outline critical needs and potential
candidates to address those needs. Additional partners from
the UN, EU/EC countries, AU countries, Japan, and China would
be invited to attend.
COURVILLE
YAMAMOTO