VZCZCXRO3573
PP RUEHDBU RUEHIK RUEHYG
DE RUEHBUL #1353/01 0870430
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 280430Z MAR 06
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9198
INFO RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE
RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC//JF/UNMA//
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC//J3//
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUMICEA/JICCENT MACDILL AFB FL
RHMFIUU/COMSOCCENT MACDILL AFB FL
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2368
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 2566
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 5744
RUEHUNV/USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA 1212

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 001353 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
RELEASABLE TO NATO/AUST/NZ/ISAF 
 
STATE FOR SA/FO, SA/A, S/CT, SA/PAB, EUR/RPM, INL 
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG 
NSC FOR AHARRIMAN, KAMEND 
CENTCOM FOR CG CFC-A, CG CJTF-76, POLAD 
 
E.O. 12958 N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PTER EAID PREL ASEC AF
SUBJECT: PRT/LASHKAR GAH - MOUSA QALA DISTRCT CHIEF 
AND ELDERS WELCOME UK DEPLOYMENT 
 
REF:  KABUL 735 
 
KABUL 00001353  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  SUMMARY:  Mousa Qala district chief 
Mohammed Wali and tribal elders told visiting UK PRT 
liaison officer, poloff, Poppy Elimination Program 
(PEP) officer, and USAID representative on March 23 
that they are looking forward to better security 
when UK and Afghan National Army troops deploy in 
the province.  The elders suggested several high 
priority projects and expressed disappointment with 
the lack of assistance from the government and the 
PRT.  Poppy fields, some flowering, were visible 
within 50 meters of the district compound.   Earlier 
on March 23, the district police chief was killed by 
one of his own policemen in an apparently personal 
dispute.   END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  As part of its outreach effort to Helmand 
Province's districts, UK PRT liaison officer Major 
Shaun Pendry led a mission to Mousa Qala to meet 
with the district chief and the council of tribal 
elders.  Among the tribal elders was Haji Mohammed 
Naeem, a member of the Provincial Council (PC), who 
lives in Mousa Qala.  PRT poloff and USAID 
representatives accompanied the UK mission.  The 
mission included an approximately 1.5 kilometer foot 
patrol from the helicopter landing location to the 
district center via the town bazaar.  The foot 
patrol drew a large crowd standing along the road, 
in shops, and on roofs. 
 
---------------------------- 
WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE'LL DO 
---------------------------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU)  Major Pendry explained that the UK's top 
priority is security.  He noted that improving 
security is a prerequisite for the overall goal of 
improving development and governance in Helmand 
province.  The deployment of over 2,000 UK troops, 
co-located with an ANA brigade, will bring better 
security to all parts of Helmand, he said. 
Typically, a joint UK-ANA mission will involve 
spending a week in a specific district, engaging the 
local population and officials and conducting joint 
patrols.  The intent is to prevent Anti-Coalition 
Militia (ACM) from moving through Helmand with 
impunity. 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  With respect to development, the UK 
mission will include a representative of the 
Department of International Development.  However, 
the approach will be to channel funds mainly through 
national government agencies who will work through 
their provincial counterparts.  The UK PRT will not 
implement a large number of projects directly, which 
has been the approach of the U.S. PRT. 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  Regarding opium cultivation, Major Pendry 
told the attendees that, the UK forces will have 
nothing to do with poppy eradication; this is the 
purview of the Government of Afghanistan.  He urged 
the elders to pass this word to their 
tribes/villages.  PEP officer Steve Romilly added 
that, his role is to work with the Afghan members of 
 
KABUL 00001353  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
the PEP team and assist the Governor in his opium 
control efforts, especially in public information 
outreach. 
 
---------------------------- 
SECURITY ASSISTANCE WELCOMED 
---------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  District Chief Mohammed Wali said that 
the security situation in Mousa Qala had 
deteriorated over the past year.  Thus, the UK/ANA 
deployment is most welcome.  Taliban are active in 
the area, he added.  Sangin, the district 
neighboring Mousa Qala, is essentially under Taliban 
control, Wali noted, and this impacts Mousa Qala. 
Elders echoed the district chief's comments. 
Provincial Council member Haji Mohammed Naeem said 
that security must be addressed in the district is 
to move forward. 
 
-------------------------------- 
DEVELOPMENT:  WE'RE DISAPPOINTED 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  The tribal elders, led by the district 
chief, said they were disappointed with development 
in the province.  PC member Naeem said that the 
national and provincial governments have done 
nothing for Mousa Qala since the fall of the 
Taliban.  They noted several priority projects. 
(Note:  They presented this list to the PRT in 
February - see reftel. End Note.)  Their priorities 
include a dedicated power line to take advantage of 
the Kajaki dam as well as road and irrigation 
improvements.  They also criticized the PRT for not 
fulfilling what they termed promises made under the 
first PRT commander to undertake some of this work. 
Finally, they reiterated their criticism of the 
recently completed bazaar road, claiming that the 
contractor performed substandard work.  (Note: 
Despite Major Pendry's request, the district chief 
declined to show us the road.  End Note.) 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  Discussing development, USAID 
representative Josh Kefauver informed the district 
chief and elders that USAID is working with the 
provincial government to start a cash for work 
program that will begin within the next two months. 
Rehabilitation of the Mousa Qala to Gereshk junction 
road and the Naw Zad to Gereshk road have been 
approved as cash for work activities.  Kefauver 
appealed for the district's assistance in providing 
security for the planned projects.  District chief 
Wali said that cash for work projects are very 
important; he pledged to provide security for those 
activities. 
 
------- 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶9.  (SBU)  The district chief and tribal elders 
appeared to appreciate the UK outreach.  As we have 
heard in other district visits, security is at the 
top of everyone's agenda.  Disappointment with 
Afghan institutions that have proven generally 
 
KABUL 00001353  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
unresponsive for the past 4.5 years is also a 
typical complaint.  Complaints about PRT activities 
are not new, but at the end of the day, the public 
sector must demonstrate to its citizens that it can 
provide some tangible benefit. 
 
NORLAND