VZCZCXRO1536
RR RUEHLN RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHMO #0078/01 0141552
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 141552Z JAN 08
FM AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6111
INFO RUCFAAN/FEMA HQ WASHINGTON DC
RHMFIUU/HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEHLN/AMCONSUL ST PETERSBURG 4730
RUEHVK/AMCONSUL VLADIVOSTOK 2594
RUEHYG/AMCONSUL YEKATERINBURG 2931

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MOSCOW 000078 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID PREL SENV RS
SUBJECT: EMERCOM: COOPERATION IN EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT 
 
Summary 
----------- 
 
¶1. (SBU)  The Russian Ministry for Civil Defense, Emergencies and 
Natural Disasters (EMERCOM) and a U.S. delegation led by R. David 
Paulison, FEMA Administrator, met in St. Petersburg December 3-7. 
The purpose of the meeting, the twelfth in a series, was to review 
bilateral cooperation in emergency management.  EMERCOM and FEMA 
have some similarities, but there are significant differences in 
their capabilities and structure.  Relations between EMERCOM and 
U.S. counterparts have been, and remain, productive.  End Summary. 
 
EMERCOM Background 
--------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU)  One of only five ministries reporting directly to 
President Putin, EMERCOM is often referred to as "Russia's FEMA," 
although its mission is much broader.   EMERCOM - known in Russian 
as the Ministry for Extraordinary Situations (MCHS) - was 
established on January 10, 1994.  It was preceded by the Russian 
Rescue Corps, which had existed since December 1990 and an interim 
organization, the Emergency and Civil Defense State Committee.  The 
head of EMERCOM is Sergey Shoigu, an engineer, who has been granted 
the rank of General of the Army.  Shoigu's tenure dates to 1991, 
when he was appointed head of the Russian Rescue Corps.  He is the 
longest serving minister in the Russian government, popular with the 
public and a prominent figure in the United Russia party.  Some of 
EMERCOM's missions correspond to those of FEMA, the USAID/OFDA 
(Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance) and the disaster 
relief/assistance missions of the US National Guard and Coast 
Guard. 
 
The 12th U.S. - Russian Meeting 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶3. (SBU)  As part of a continuing series of Joint Committee 
meetings, from December 3-7, 2007, representatives from EMERCOM, 
FEMA, USEUCOM, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Iowa National 
Guard, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Consulate St. Petersburg, USAID and 
Embassy Moscow met in St. Petersburg to review the past year's work 
plan, to agree on the 2008-2009 Work Plan and to sign the Protocol 
of the 12th meeting of the Joint U.S. - Russian Committee on 
Cooperation in Emergency Management.  The resulting Protocol and 
approved Work Plan encompass five Region-to-Region cooperation 
events, 23 Training and Exercise events, nine Scientific Workshops, 
Conferences and Exhibitions, and discussions of Joint Humanitarian 
Projects in third countries.  First Deputy Minister Ruslan Tsalikov 
headed the Russian delegation.  FEMA Administrator R. David Paulison 
headed the U.S. delegation.  Both delegations delivered 
presentations on firefighting and training exercises.  Administrator 
Paulison commented that there is an opportunity to share 
technologies in the arena of fighting large wild fires.  Tsalikov 
replied that the Russians are looking to unify international 
fire-fighting assets in Europe based on the requirement demonstrated 
by the August 2007 wildfires in Greece.  Tsalikov advocated 
increased coordination and training events between the U.S. and 
Russian organizations.  Paulison agreed that sharing techniques 
would result in better capability for both sides. 
 
Big Difference from FEMA - The Military Component 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶4. (U)  EMERCOM has 23,000 military personnel in its civil 
protection force.  They represent the backbone of the MCHS.  These 
forces consist of rescue brigades, mechanized civil protection 
regiments and battalions, special protection companies and detached 
helicopter squadrons.  They are outfitted with specialized equipment 
for engineering, medical, radiation and chemical and biological 
protection missions.  In peacetime they function within the 
framework of the Unified Emergency Situations Prevention and 
Response State System (UEPRSS).   In wartime, they are under control 
of the Civil Protection System. 
 
EMERCOM: Radiological Response 
------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (U)  Another facet of EMERCOM that differs from FEMA is its 
clinic system for radiological response issues.  The Nikiforov 
Center of Emergency and Radiation Medicine (NRCERM) is specifically 
designed to handle the aftermath of radioactive exposure to EMERCOM 
personnel.  Director Sergey Aleksanin described the capabilities of 
the existing facility and stated that another clinic would open in 
2010 to enhance EMERCOM's capabilities.  He also said that one of 
the trends in collaboration with the U.S. and others has been the 
response to the medical aspects of radiation and bio-chemical 
terrorism.   Referring to a radiological response scenario, he said 
 
MOSCOW 00000078  002 OF 002 
 
 
that his greatest concern wasn't EMERCOM's ability to respond, 
rather that the "public reaction" to such an event was 
unpredictable.  He said the NRCERM maintains a complete register of 
specialists for all EMERCOM regions to be able to respond quickly 
and appropriately. 
 
EMERCOM Command and Control 
---------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU)  EMERCOM's Crisis Management Center (CMC) provides 
continuous management of all forces and assets allocated for 
disaster prevention and response. The Northwest Regional CMC, in St. 
Petersburg, is a modern, 24-hour operation.  General Shamsutdin 
Dagirov demonstrated the center's capabilities, in real time, to 
monitor the situation in major malls, train stations and other 
public areas via cameras.  Flat screen monitors in public areas have 
the ability to display messages or video.  They normally display 
public service messages, but EMERCOM officers in the CMC can quickly 
change them to give safety instructions should there be an incident 
such as fire or public disturbance.  When asked if EMERCOM could 
extend this system to areas such as the Metro, General Dagirov 
stated that the Metro had its own system for surveillance.  However, 
there are plans to extend EMERCOM's coverage to other above-ground 
locations. 
 
International Operations 
------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU)  EMERCOM took part in the international humanitarian 
operation that brought relief to tsunami victims in South-East Asia 
from January - April 2005.  EMERCOM also contributed to the 
Hurricane Katrina relief effort, by their count delivering over 60 
tons of humanitarian aid via three sorties of Il-76TD heavy 
transport aircraft.  As of December 2007, Tsalikov said that EMERCOM 
had signed 54 inter-governmental and international cooperation 
agreements for emergency humanitarian response.  Administrator 
Paulison and First Deputy Minster Tsalikov also discussed future 
cooperative efforts to include table-top exercises, meetings of 
experts and joint efforts to study oil spill clean-ups in ice/snow 
conditions. 
 
Burns