VZCZCXRO3033
RR RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHAB #0379 1021722
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 121722Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY ABIDJAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2824
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS ABIDJAN 000379 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL UN IV
SUBJECT: GOVERNMENT, REBELS AND IMPARTIAL FORCES DISMANTLE 
BUFFER ZONE 
 
REF: ABIDJAN 347 
 
 ¶1. (SBU) Representatives of the Ivorian army, the New Forces 
and ONUCI and Licorne peacekeepers signed an agreement on 
April 11 to dismantle the zone of confidence (ZOC) starting 
Monday, April 16.  The drawdown of the ZOC will begin at 
midnight in a concrete step to implement the Ouagadougou 
Peace Accord (OPA) signed by President Gbagbo and NF 
Secretary General and now Prime Minister Guillaume Soro in 
 
SIPDIS 
March.  ONUCI and Licorne force commanders have professed 
optimism that the elimination of the ZOC will succeed in 
reunifying the country and furthering the peace process.  In 
a press statement today, ONUCI averred that the dismantling 
of the buffer zone will not create major upheaval on the 
ground.  The OPA specifies that ONUCI and Licorne troops 
monitoring the area will be reduced by half every two months 
until their complete withdrawal by December 16, 2007.  They 
will be replaced by joint patrols of Ivorian army and NF 
troops.  President Gbagbo announced that for the first time 
since 2002 he will visit former NF controlled areas in the 
north before the end of the month. 
 
¶2. (SBU) COMMENT:  The ZOC has been crime-ridden, especially 
in the western region, since its creation.  Impartial forces 
were unable to do anything more than turn criminals over to 
the NF or the government.  Given the security concerns, 
residents in villages in the ZOC are likely to be nervous 
about the drawdown of the impartial forces.  However, in the 
long run, reasserting Ivorian control may help to normalize 
the area.  END COMMENT 
Hooks