VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBR #0055/01 0492147
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 182147Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY BRASILIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0502
INFO RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ
RUEHPU/AMEMBASSY PORT AU PRINCE
RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO
RUEHSO/AMCONSUL SAO PAULO

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRASILIA 000055 
 
SIPDIS 
STATE FOR HAITI TASK FORCE, WHA, S/CT 
AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PASS TO AMCONSUL RECIFE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2020/02/18 
TAGS: EAID PREL PTER SNAR ASEC BR BL HA DHS KOLY
SUBJECT: BRAZIL: AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES SECURITY, CN, AND UPCOMING 
GAMES WITH GSI MINISTER FELIX 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Thomas Shannon, Ambassador, State; REASON: 1.4(B), (D) 
 
¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Institutional Security Office (GSI) Minister 
General Jorge Felix shared with Ambassador Shannon on February 9 
Brazil's top security concerns, which include: assistance and 
cooperation in Haiti; increased drug trafficking in the region and 
consumption in Brazil; and security for the four upcoming sporting 
events to be hosted by Brazil, to include the 2014 World Cup and 
2016 Olympics. Felix encouraged deepening the existing partnership 
between Brazil and the U.S. on providing assistance to Haiti. He 
expressed his concerns with the difficulties Brazil is experiencing 
in counternarcotics efforts in the region, particularly with 
Bolivia. Felix candidly told the Ambassador that terrorism and 
drugs are constant security worries for Brazil, and said Brazil 
will look for intelligence sharing during the 2011-2016 sporting 
events. END SUMMARY. 
 
 
 
-------------------------------- 
 
LOOKING TO ENHANCE POSITIVE PARTNERSHIP ON HAITI 
 
-------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶2. (C) Ambassador Shannon on February 9 met with the Institutional 
Security Office Chief, General Jorge Felix, Deputy General Geromel, 
and Secretary General Fernando de Lima Santos. Ambassador Shannon 
thanked Felix for Brazil's long-term work in Haiti and MINUSTAH and 
for its post-earthquake assistance and partnership with U.S. forces 
on the ground. Ambassador Shannon also highlighted the new 
opportunity presented in Haiti for Brazil, the United States, and 
the UN to work together. Felix said that Brazil's history and 
experience with Haiti has helped in providing emergency assistance. 
However, assisting Haiti is a challenge too great for just a few 
countries to handle. Felix explained that Brazil's permanent 
assistance to Haiti over the years has not improved the situation 
on the ground. While security has improved in Haiti, assistance has 
not taken Haitians out of the misery they live in. The next phase 
of assistance to Haiti needs to focus on helping Haitians provide 
for themselves, said Felix; we need to "teach them to fish instead 
of giving them the fish." Felix explained that what has been coined 
in the media as President Lula's "Bolsa Haiti" is actually a series 
of projects that were implemented or planned by Brazil to promote 
development in Haiti. 
 
 
 
¶3. (C) Felix stated that Brazil's next steps on Haiti include the 
Haiti Donors meeting. Brazil will bring its proposals to the 
meeting but Felix emphasized the need for partnership with the U.S. 
and active participation and commitment by the Haitian government 
to successfully assist Haiti. Felix also confirmed that Lula will 
be traveling to Haiti on February 25 to present Brazil's proposals 
to the Haitian government. The Ambassador highlighted the 
importance of coordinating our actions and understandings in the 
run-up to the donors conference. Felix agreed and added that it 
would be very useful if Brazil and the U.S. show up at the Haiti 
Donors meeting with coordinated ideas. Felix closed his comments on 
Haiti by recalling that he has been to Haiti several times and at 
every departure he leaves his hope for Haiti behind. The situation 
in Haiti, he said, is too difficult to improve, "but we have to 
try." 
 
 
 
-------------------------------- 
 
GSI LISTS ITS TOP SECURITY CONCERNS 
 
-------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶4. (C) Felix reciprocated the Ambassador's willingness to 
cooperate, especially on security issues, adding that GSI "wants to 
be part of the solution, not the problem." Felix explained that 
there are many areas of great interest to GSI that could be better 
addressed with a deeper partnership with the United States, 
including critical infrastructure protection, information security, 
and the constant problems of terrorism and drugs.  Felix noted that 
 
 
critical infrastructure protection is something they should likely 
discuss with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and 
information security, which is now a top concern for most 
countries, is an issue he would like to better address by getting 
Brazilian and U.S. technical folks together and by deepening 
relationships with private U.S. firms that have successfully dealt 
with cyber threats. 
 
 
 
-------------------------------- 
 
BOLIVIA AND COUNTERNARCOTICS 
 
-------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶5. (C) The Ambassador noted that organized crime and drugs is also 
a great security concern for the United States. Political changes 
in the region, however, had complicated traditional U.S. 
cooperation programs. In this kind of environment, the Ambassador 
said, cooperation with Brazil was more important than ever. Felix 
described Brazil's difficult experiences with Bolivia and 
emphasized the importance of addressing the issue of organized 
crime and the drug trade in Latin America. Felix explained that 
Bolivian cocaine, coca paste, and crack are low in quality and 
cheap-therefore unacceptable for sale in the United States and 
Europe-and have instead infiltrated Brazil. This has led to an 
explosive increase in consumption among Brazilians, which also 
coincided with the increase of coca cultivation in Bolivia. Brazil 
shares a 3,400 km border with Bolivia, Felix said, which makes 
monitoring almost impossible, especially because traffickers 
frequently change their drug routes. Now that the Brazilian 
government has been able to decrease the number of drug flights 
from Bolivia, by increased monitoring, there has been a noticeable 
increase in trafficking via vehicles. 
 
 
 
¶6. (C) Felix complained about how hard it is to work with other 
countries in the region on counternarcotics. He told the 
 
Ambassador, "You saw how difficult it is to work with Bolivia," and 
explained that Bolivia's complex and unique history has led it to 
the transition it is still experiencing today, and "no one knows 
where the transition will take them."  Felix said Brazil has tried 
to work with Bolivia on several issues. According to Felix, after 
Bolivia expelled DEA, the GOB wanted Brazil to step in, even 
substitute, the role the United States had played in 
counternarcotics efforts.  But in practice cooperation did not 
work.  Felix explained that, although Brazil had had greater 
influence in Bolivia in the past, the relationship had matured and 
Brazil now has to negotiate more with Bolivia. 
 
 
 
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UPCOMING EVENTS AND GAMES 
 
-------------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶7. (C) Felix also listed the four upcoming sporting events Brazil 
will host as top security challenges to tackle. Felix noted that 
while most attention is being paid to the 2014 World Cup and 2016 
Olympics, Brazil will also first host the Military World Games in 
2011 and the Confederations Cup (a soccer tournament organized by 
FIFA) in 2013; these smaller events, Felix remarked, will help 
prepare Brazil for the larger 2014 and 2016 competitions. Felix 
said Brazil will make intelligence-sharing among the countries 
participating in the events a priority. He noted that Brazil had 
already experienced successful intelligence sharing during the 2007 
Pan American Games-hosted by Rio de Janeiro-and that they plan on 
doing the same for the upcoming events but on a larger scale. Felix 
concluded that "we very much need cooperation with the United 
States and other games participants" to ensure successful and safe 
celebrations. (Comment: The intelligence sharing during the 2007 
Pan American Games was a lopsided arrangement. The USG provided 
extensive resources and information to the Brazilian hosts, yet 
 
 
received no information beyond what was shared with all other 
nations participating in the Games.  End comment.) 
 
MINIMIZE CONSIDERED 
SHANNON