VZCZCXRO1261
RR RUEHAST RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHLH RUEHLN RUEHPW RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHEK #1288/01 2900225
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 170225Z OCT 07
FM AMEMBASSY BISHKEK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0275
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 2298
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0720
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 2702
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2085
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO BRUSSELS BE
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RUEHLMC/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORP
RUMICEA/USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BISHKEK 001288 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/CEN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KG
SUBJECT:  BISHKEK LAW ENFORCEMENT WORKING GROUP MEETING 
 
BISHKEK 00001288  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY:  DCM chaired the Embassy's Law Enforcement Working 
Group (LEWG) meeting on September 19.  In addition to reports from 
Bishkek-based officers, the meeting included presentations by the 
regional Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) officer and the 
regional FBI Legal Attache.  The regional LEWG afforded Embassy 
Bishkek a good opportunity to meet and share ideas with regional 
partners from DEA and FBI.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (SBU) On September 19, the DCM chaired a meeting of the Embassy's 
Law Enforcement Working Group (LEWG).  Attending the meeting were 
the Bishkek-based Department of Justice Resident Legal Advisor 
(RLA), the Senior Law Enforcement Advisor (SLEA), the Assistant 
Regional Security Officer (ARSO), and the Defense Attache (DATT). 
In addition, two regional officers with responsibility for 
Kyrgyzstan attended the meeting:  the Drug Enforcement 
Administration (DEA) officer from Tajikistan and the FBI Legal 
Attache from Astana. 
 
¶3. (SBU) The regional LEWG afforded Embassy Bishkek a good 
opportunity to meet and share ideas with regional partners from DEA 
and FBI.  Each agency described its mission and programming at post 
and addressed key issues and areas of concern.  Bishkek ARSO 
discussed the anti-terrorism assistance program and detailed the 
concern of providing training to the Kyrgyz in light of the 
non-renewal of the counterterrorism assistance program provided by 
Louisiana State University.  The ARSO expressed the need to continue 
such programs and intimated that funding for necessary equipment may 
be available, but personnel training may not be available in FY 08. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Bishkek SLEA discussed his ongoing programs with the Drug 
Control Agency (DCA), Traffic Police, and the Police Academy.  The 
SLEA and DEA debated the importance of setting narcotics seizure 
rates for the DCA, as well as the importance of ridding all law 
enforcement entities of corruption.  SLEA, DEA, and FBI discussed 
the importance of providing crisis management and hostage 
negotiation training for the Kyrgyz Ministry of Interior (MVD).  All 
three entities vowed to explore avenues of mutual cooperation in 
funding and providing such trainings. 
 
¶5. (SBU) The Defense Attache provided information about numerous 
Department of Defense projects planned for Kyrgyzstan in the next 
fiscal year.  One such project is a comprehensive narcotics 
interdiction plan, utilizing mobile interdiction teams within the 
DCA and case management software and equipment for the Procuracy 
which would be utilized to ensure narcotics offenders are 
successfully prosecuted and sentenced appropriately 
 
¶6. (SBU) The DEA country attache, based in Tajikistan, discussed the 
DEA mission of providing funding and training to Kyrgyz law 
enforcement for operational purposes to interdict narcotics.  He 
outlined DEA's goal of eschewing investigating lower level narcotics 
dealers in order to turn law enforcement attention to the 
large-scale narco-traffickers.  He again expressed DEA's desire to 
establish a resident presence in Embassy Bishkek.  However, the lack 
of space within the embassy will be a large stumbling block to 
overcome. 
 
¶7. (SBU) The Astana-based Legal Attache explained the FBI's role in 
the region as primarily operational:  to facilitate ongoing federal 
investigations that have a nexus to the U.S.  In addition, the FBI 
invited other represented agencies to nominate local contacts as 
potential FBI National Academy students for the upcoming fiscal 
year. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Bishkek RLA discussed his programs for the enhancement of 
the Rule of Law.  RLA discussed ongoing criminal law reform within 
Kyrgyzstan and solicited other agencies' assistance in supplementing 
training for law enforcement agents in developing capacity to 
investigate and prosecute complex criminal cases, such as 
corruption, organized crime, and money laundering cases. 
 
 
BISHKEK 00001288  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
YOVANOVITCH