VZCZCXRO4703
PP RUEHGI RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #1842 3291501
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 251501Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9289
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 001842 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AF/SPG, S/CRS, AF SE NATSIOS 
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU 
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPKO SOCI AU UNSC SU
SUBJECT: BASHIR DENIES SUDAN IS DELAYING UNAMID DEPLOYMENT; BLAMES 
UN 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: President Bashir denied that Sudan was delaying 
UNAMID troop deployment and blamed any delays on the UN.  He stated 
that Nordic troops are not acceptable and questioned the necessity 
of deploying Thai and Nepalese troops.  End summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) According to local media reports, in press statements 
November 23 following the NCP's annual congress President Bashir 
denied accusations that he was delaying the deployment of the United 
Nations - African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) peacekeeping 
force.  Arabic language newspapers quoted Bashir accusing 
"Washington and London of delaying the hybrid operations."  Bashir 
continued, "The ones who are hindering the process are those who are 
trying to impose their agenda on us.  If there is any delay in the 
issue, it is from the United Nations and those who are standing 
behind the UN." 
 
¶3. (SBU) Bashir defended his actions saying the Government of Sudan 
(GOS) approved the deployment of battalions from Pakistan, China, 
and Egypt "but after the expiration of the deadline for troop 
offers, the UN sought to bring troops from Thailand, Sweden and 
Norway." He said he could not agree to this, pointing out that the 
original agreement with the AU and UN was for a force made up of 
African troops, backed up with logistical and technical units from 
the UN. 
 
¶4. (SBU) The "Swedish and Norwegian troops are not acceptable. We 
shall not accept them," said Bashir according to media sources. 
Speaking about a proposed Thai battalion, Bashir said," Even if 
there is a shortage of troops from the African continent, we are not 
going to accept these people, because we were not consulted about 
it." 
 
¶5. (SBU) Comment: It is unlikely that President Bashir will ever 
accept the Norwegian/Swedish company given his own consistent and 
very public messages that they are not acceptable.  He and others in 
the NCP have posed legalistic obstacles to the deployment of the 
Nepalese and Thai troops, though previously MFA Under-Secretary 
Mutriff Siddiq and NISS Director Saleh Ghosh have said privately 
that the GOS was not totally opposed to these troops, but that "they 
could come later" after the bulk of African troops have arrived.  As 
we have pointed out previously and repeatedly, the GOS will use and 
manipulate any ambiguity and fissure in the UNSC resolution to 
hollow out the force while trumpeting loudly its adherence to UNSCR 
¶1769.  None of these troops are in and of themselves a major 
component of the force, but the endless Sudanese bickering on issues 
large and small, while doing just enough to plausibly deny outright 
obstruction, could in the end produce a hollowed out, shadow force 
incapable of fulfilling its mandate. End comment. 
 
FERNANDEZ