US embassy cable - 05CAIRO2896

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 002896 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/14/2015 
TAGS: PREL, MOPS, MASS, EG 
SUBJECT: EGYPT:  COS WEHEBA AND CENTCOM DEPUTY COMMANDER 
REVIEW COOPERATION ON BRIGHT STAR EXERCISES, IRAQ, 
AFGHANISTAN 
 
 
Classified by Charge Gordon Gray for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
1.  (C)  Summary:  Meeting with Egyptian Chief of Staff 
Weheba on April 13, senior U.S. military commanders led by 
Deputy CENTCOM Commander LTG Smith agreed that plans for 
BRIGHT STAR 2005 were on track.  Weheba hoped to invite 
Congressional observers to that exercise.  Weheba welcomed an 
apparent downturn in violence in Iraq, reiterating Egypt's 
offer to train more Iraqi soldiers.  He said the Iraqi 
military needed U.S. advice to develop an effective force 
structure and training regime.  Weheba also reiterated 
Egypt's commitment to donate more arms and ammunition to the 
Afghan army, without offering to help transport this material 
from Egypt due to "limited" airlift capacity.  LTG Smith 
emphasized the symbolic value of Egyptian participation in 
the airlift effort.  In closing, Weheba appealed for DoD 
support in explaining Egypt's military contributions to the 
U.S. Congress.  End summary. 
 
2.  (SBU)  CENTCOM Deputy Commander LTG Smith, joined by 
ARCENT Commander LTG Whitcomb and BRIGHT STAR lead planner MG 
Comstock, met with Chief of Staff of the Egyptian Armed 
Forces Weheba in Cairo April 13.  Reviewing the status of 
BRIGHT STAR planning (and the ongoing National Force 
Commanders Conference associated with that exercise), these 
senior officers agreed that BRIGHT STAR this fall will 
showcase a high degree of military cooperation among the 
various participants.  LTG Whitcomb noted that the U.S. and 
Egypt worked as "one team in concert" planning this exercise. 
 Weheba encouraged the attendance of U.S. Congressional 
observers for portions of the exercise and reiterated that 
Iraq and Afghanistan were welcome as observers. 
 
3.  (C)  Discussing a welcome downturn in violence in Iraq, 
Weheba asked about reports of some coalition members pulling 
troops out of Iraq.  LTG Smith noted the need to focus on 
training of Iraqi security forces and hoped that some nations 
might shift their participation to training missions rather 
than pulling out altogether.  Regarding Egypt's offer to 
train Iraqi forces, LTG Smith said the Iraqi MoD was inclined 
to pursue training programs in Iraq where possible; overseas 
training offers were often judged on cost.  Weheba said "we 
have given our offer and are waiting."  LTG Smith emphasized 
the utility of Iraqi forces seeing how a professional 
military operated in another Arab country.  He also stressed 
USG hopes that efforts to build the leadership structure of 
the Iraqi military would be complemented with continuity in 
that leadership -- without frequent changes in the military 
structure each time a new political leadership took control. 
 
4.  (C)  Weheba said the Iraqi military needed U.S. advice as 
it structured its new military and trained its forces.  He 
felt that various training offers from European states should 
complement "strong U.S. advice on force structure" to avoid a 
piecemeal approach.  LTG Whitcomb cited the value of BRIGHT 
STAR as one of many opportunities for Iraq to observe 
effective military training and planning.  Weheba said Egypt 
needed U.S. advice regarding how to deal with Iraq, as 
Egyptians often failed to understand the ethnic animosities 
and other internal dynamics of their Iraqi neighbors.  Weheba 
was optimistic that there were "no obvious divisions" in the 
new Iraqi government, yet cautioned that internal divisions 
in a military could divert attention from the crucial goal of 
developing defensive capabilities. 
 
5.  (C)  The Chief of Staff reiterated Egypt's offer to 
donate more arms and ammunition to the Afghan National Army. 
(In a subsequent conversation, a close advisor of the 
Minister of Defense stressed to Embassy personnel that the 
MoD wanted the U.S. to begin transporting these shipments 
soon.)  Weheba was less forthcoming, however, when asked 
whether Egypt might assist in the airlift effort to deliver 
the materiel to Afghanistan.  LTG Smith emphasized the value 
of Egypt assuming one or two of the dozen sorties that would 
be required in the operation.  Weheba quipped that he would 
have to fly commercial if he visited Afghanistan, stating 
that Egypt did not have the airlift capacity to entertain 
many overseas missions.  "C-130's are very limited," he said. 
 LTG Smith cited the importance of a strong Egyptian signal 
to Washington (and a powerful visual of Egyptian aircraft on 
site in Afghanistan) to bolster U.S. appreciation for Egypt's 
contributions to Afghan reconstruction. 
 
6.  (C)  Turning the conversation to Congressional 
perceptions of Egypt's contribution to regional stability, 
Weheba said that delegations visiting the MoD were usually 
laudatory of Egyptian efforts.  "We can't talk to all" the 
members of Congress, he lamented, appealing to the USG to 
help tell the story of Egypt's contribution.  "We count on 
you" to raise awareness in Washington, he concluded. 
 
7.  (U)  LTG Smith did not have an opportunity to clear this 
cable before departing Cairo. 
 
 
Visit Embassy Cairo's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/cairo 
 
You can also access this site through the 
State Department's Classified SIPRNET website. 
 
GRAY