US embassy cable - 05VIENNA2211

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 VIENNA 002211 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/ACE, INL/AEE, EUR/RPM, NP/ECC, AND EUR/AGS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, SNAR, PBTS, PREF, ETTC, KCRM, AU, ECRM 
SUBJECT: BORDER MANAGEMENT: AUSTRIA HOSTS FOURTH MEETING ON 
THE CENTRAL ASIAN BORDER SECURITY INITIATIVE (CABSI) 
 
 
1.  Summary.  On June 6-7 2005, in Gumpoldskirchen, Austria, 
the Austrian Ministry of Interior (MOI) hosted the fourth 
meeting of the Central Asian Border Service Initiatives Group 
(CABSI), a component of the European Commission's border 
management program for Central Asia (BOMCA).  Representatives 
of the Austrian MOI, European Commission, United Nations 
(UNDP and UNODC), International Organization for Migration 
(IOM), and International Center for Migration Policy 
Development (ICMPD) discussed BOMCA programs.  All called for 
enhanced cooperation among the donor nations and stressed the 
need to follow up on the February 2005 donor conference in 
Dushanbe.  Participants also discussed the situation on the 
Tajik-Afghan border, which European Commission (EC) 
representatives called BOMCA's "most pressing problem." 
 
SPEAKERS URGE MORE DONOR COOPERATION 
 
2.  Soeren Klem from the European Commission's EuropeAid 
Cooperation Office (AIDCO) in Brussels and Task Manager for 
the Commission's TACIS (Technical Assistance to the 
Commonwealth of Independent States) Drug Action Program, 
called for enhanced donor cooperation.  He said the February 
2005 Dushanbe donor conference achieved good results in 
improving cooperation with the U.S. and other donors in 
Central Asia.  He pointed out the need to "link our 
activities" in Central Asia in order to maximize donor 
cooperation and resources.  He also urged expansion of border 
management programs to the South Caucasus region.  Klem 
underscored the need for BOMCA to maintain credibility in 
delivering its border management programs. 
 
3.  Karl Harbo, Head of the European Commission's office in 
Afghanistan, noted that while the donors have different ways 
of approaching the overall situation in Central Asia, their 
objectives are the same.  He said the situation on the 
Afghan-Tajik border is the "most pressing problem" for BOMCA 
in Central Asia.  On Afghanistan, he said that the complete 
absence of rule of law and of a robust police force are the 
biggest problems for the country.  This blocks progress in 
capacity building, security, and stamping out transnational 
crime.  The CABSI forum, Harbo stressed, is important for 
establishing good donor cooperation and program coordination 
in the region.  Ortwin Hennig, who leads Germany's efforts to 
train Afghan and Iraqi police, advocated expanding BOMCA. 
Interlinking border management projects in the region would 
more effectively reduce "cross-border problems," he said. 
 
THE BOMCA FRAMEWORK 
 
4.  BOMCA's overall goal, according to Klem, is to help 
achieve political stability and regional economic growth in 
Central Asia.  It does this by achieving strict control of 
the green borders, establishing a limited number of effective 
border crossings, and fostering cooperation among border 
police and customs services.  Such measures, Klem said, will 
facilitate the legal flow of people and goods.  It will also 
eliminate trafficking in illicit goods, corruption, and other 
transnational crime.  Klem introduced two subcomponents of 
BOMCA.  The Central Asia Drug Action Program (CADAP) prevents 
drug trafficking and drug abuse.  The European Commission's 
new program for the fight against crime in Central Asia 
(CRIMCA) will reinforce Central Asia's operational capacity 
to fight money laundering and organized crime. 
 
5.  The European Commission's Department of Justice and 
Homeland Affairs manages BOMCA from Brussels.  According to 
Sezin Sinanoglu, a Deputy Resident Representative for the 
United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and for BOMCA and 
CADAP in Kyrgyzstan, UNDP jointly implements BOMCA and CADAP 
through field offices in Central Asia.  It subcontracts 
specialized projects to the United Nations Office of Drugs 
and Crime (UNODC), the UN Office of the High Commissioner for 
Refugees (UNHCR), and to the IOM and ICMPD.  UNDP pays ten 
percent of the costs of BOMCA and CADAP, and funds the 
salaries of BOMCA's regional managers in Bishkek, Philip 
Pierce and Alain Scolan.  They are responsible for providing 
technical advice, ensuring "European visibility," and 
implementing BOMCA programs.  Sinanoglu said that "delivery" 
is a key theme this year for BOMCA.  She also said Brussels 
hopes to expand participation in BOMCA to the new EU Member 
States, which have recent experience in reforming border 
management practices to EU standards. 
 
6.  Klem and Pierce said the European Commission's total 
budget for BOMCA is just over 43 million euros.  This 
includes money for ongoing projects (BOMCA 4.1, BOMCA 4.2, 
and CADAP 2), contracted projects beginning later this year 
(BOMCA 5 and CADAP 3), and projects the European Commission 
has funded, but not yet approved (CADAP 4, BOMCA 7, and 
CRIMCA).  This figure does not include the UK's two million 
euro contribution to BOMCA. 
 
BOMCA, CADAP, AND CRIMCA TIMETABLE AND FUNCTIONS 
 
7.  According to Pierce, BOMCA 4.1 and BOMCA 4.2, implemented 
in January 2005 and March 2005, have a total budget of over 
8.5 million euros.  The programs, main objectives are to 
bring Central Asian legal frameworks in line with EU 
standards, to demilitarize the border guard services, and to 
develop cross-border cooperation.  Further goals of these 
programs are to standardize training curricula and to 
modernize border guard training facilities.  In the "pilot 
border regions," BOMCA 4.1 and BOMCA 4.2 will provide new 
infrastructure, equipment, and training, develop mobile 
units, strengthen border dog capacities, and conduct other 
capacity building measures.  BOMCA 5 (January 2006 - June 
2008), BOMCA 6 (January 2007 - December 2008), and BOMCA 7 
(January 2008 - December 2009) will expand on these sectors 
of assistance.  The program plans to include Uzbekistan and 
Kazakhstan during these next phases.  According to its 
planning forecast, the EC is budgeting a total 16.2 million 
euros for BOMCA 5, 6, and 7. 
 
8.  Pierce noted that the EU and UNODC implemented the CADAP 
2 program in March 2004, with a budget of over 4.9 million 
euros.  CADAP 2's legal assistance component encourages 
countries to adopt international drug conventions.  CADAP 2 
is working to create Drug Profiling Units that will enhance 
interdiction efforts at airports, seaports, and land borders. 
 The program will also establish a centralized drug 
intelligence capability within the regional police forces. 
UNDP and EU experts are also providing CADAP 2 assistance to 
the Ministries of Health.  This will improve collection and 
analysis of drug abuse data, and will provide drug prevention 
and treatment to high-risk groups in Central Asian prisons. 
According to Sinanoglu and Pierce, CADAP's treatment efforts 
include "harm reduction" efforts (e.g. needle exchange) to 
fight the spread of HIV-AIDS. 
 
9.  According to its planning forecast, the European 
Commission is budgeting three million euros for CADAP 3 (July 
2005 to July 2007) and five million euros for CADAP 4 (April 
2006 to April 2008).  CADAP 3 will reinforce counter 
narcotics measures in BOMCA's pilot border regions.  It will 
also improve the quality and collection of forensic drug data 
for use in law enforcement investigations.  CADAP 4 will 
strengthen anti-drug units in the Ministries of Interior.  In 
addition, it will expand EU cooperation with the Central 
Asian Ministries of Health to bring drug prevention and 
treatment measures more in line with the EU acquis. 
 
10.  According to Klem, CRIMCA is a new Justice and Homeland 
Affairs program that will reinforce Central Asia's 
operational capacity to fight against organized crime. 
CRIMCA will focus on developing Interpol information systems 
and on additional measures to combat money laundering.  The 
Commission is budgeting five million euros for the project, 
which will tentatively run from January 2007 to December 2008. 
 
BORDER EFFORTS IN TAJIKISTAN 
 
11.  On Tajikistan, Klem said the European Commission is 
working closely with the U.S. to ensure non-duplication of 
efforts.  Karl Harbo told poloffs the that EC is moving 
forward with budgeting plans to fund port of entry facilities 
on both sides of the Nizhiniy Pyanzh River Bridge.  Harbo 
added that senior Tajik and Afghan border guard officials 
made official contact for the first time at the Dushanbe 
donor conference.  He said the EU should encourage regular 
meetings between the Tajik and Afghan services to exchange 
information and training ideas. 
 
12.  Giles Dickson, Head of the Drugs and International Crime 
Department in the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office, said 
the UK is spending its two million euro contribution to BOMCA 
on capacity building and mobile detection and communications 
equipment for Tajikistan.  Dickson said the UK is trying to 
ensure this equipment is compatible with the Afghan border 
guard service.  Dickson urged BOMCA to deliver on its 
programs by remaining engaged in the region "for the long 
haul."  One of the UK's main priorities for its EU 
Presidency, Dickson added, will be to implement the new EU 
Drug Action Plan.  Among other things, the plan commits EU 
member states to increase their counter narcotics assistance 
to Central Asia and Afghanistan. 
Brown