VZCZCXRO7251
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RUEHPW RUEHROV RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHAH #0389/01 0881125
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 281125Z MAR 08
FM AMEMBASSY ASHGABAT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0511
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 3559
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING PRIORITY 1377
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 1244
RUEHIT/AMCONSUL ISTANBUL PRIORITY 1813
RUEHUNV/USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA PRIORITY 0046
RHMFIUU/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0761
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RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEABND/DEA HQS WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEAWJA/DOJ WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ASHGABAT 000389 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, INL 
DUSHANBE AND MOSCOW ALSO FOR DEA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL SNAR UNAUS RS KZ TX
SUBJECT:  TURKMENISTAN:  CARICC OFFICIALS URGE DEA PRESENCE 
IN ALMATY TO FACILITATE COOPERATION 
 
¶1.  (U) Sensitive but unclassified.  Not for public Internet. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) SUMMARY:  March 26 meetings with Turkmenistani 
counter-narcotics officials went very well, the Acting 
Director of the newly established (counter-narcotics) Central 
Asian Regional Information and Coordination Center (CARICC), 
Mukhtarbek Madybayev, and the UNODC's Senior Coordinator on 
establishing CARICC, Tofik Murshudlu, told the Charge during 
a March 27 briefing.  Turkmenistan's officials said all the 
right things about wanting to cooperate on counter-narcotics 
operations within the CARICC framework, and have already 
appointed a liaison to the Center.  While member states have 
been reluctant to share their most sensitive 
counter-narcotics intelligence, there has nonetheless been a 
steady flow of more general information, and Madybayev 
suggested that getting access to sensitive information may 
just be a matter of confidence building.  Outlining what 
CARICC has accomplished since its opening on November 1, 
2007, the two made clear their determination to strengthen 
the fight against narcotics trafficking in the region -- and 
beyond.  Noting the strong U.S. support for CARICC, they 
suggested that it would be helpful to post a second DEA agent 
to the region in order to relieve some of the pressure on the 
overstretched agent already based in Dushanbe.  Almaty -- 
fast becoming a Central Asian hub and the home of CARICC -- 
would be a perfect base.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Madybayev and Murshudlu visited Turkmenistan March 
26-27 to discuss CARICC-related cooperation issues with 
Turkmenistan's senior counter-narcotics officials.  During 
their visit, they met separately with Embassy personnel 
during a March 27 UNODC-hosted lunch and a March 27 meeting 
with the Charge.  The two told the Charge that even though 
only six of the Center's seven full member-countries have 
signed the CARICC agreement (the five Central Asian countries 
and Azerbaijan have signed, Russia has not), the Center has 
been up and running in a pilot phase since November 1, 2007. 
(NOTE:  Madybayev said Russians attending the UNODC's March 
10-14 meeting in Vienna told him that Russia's President 
Putin will sign the CARICC agreement before leaving office on 
May 1.  END NOTE.)  Matabayev, a Kyrgyzstani, has been 
serving as Acting Director since that time, but the Center's 
first full Director, a Kazakhstani, will begin work April 1. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) While in Turkmenistan, Madybayev and Murshudlu met 
with Minister of Internal Affairs Orazgeldi Amanmuradov and 
State Counter-narcotics Service Chairman Murat Yslamov.  They 
told the Charge that both officials said all the right things 
about wanting to work closely within the CARICC framework 
with law enforcement officials from other countries in the 
region to combat narcotics trafficking and the flow of 
precursors. 
 
¶5.  (U) To date, all member countries have sent liaison 
officers to serve in the Center.  CARICC has established 
contacts with Interpol and Europol.  Interpol has given 
CARICC full access to its databases.  Once Interpol 
establishes its planned liaison office in CARICC, it will 
also have access to CARICC's databases.  CARICC has also been 
in touch with drug authorities in other key countries, 
including Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, India, and China to 
establish working relationships beyond the Central Asia 
region.  Murshudlu said CARICC has already started to collect 
counter-narcotics information from member countries. 
However, he acknowledged, most countries will be reluctant to 
share their most sensitive intelligence until they have more 
confidence that the Center will properly protect the 
information. 
 
¶6.  (U) CARICC has carried out several joint activities, 
 
ASHGABAT 00000389  002 OF 002 
 
 
including a controlled delivery.  (NOTE:  When asked about 
the controlled delivery during lunch, Murshudlu acknowledged 
that the delivery had been more of a training exercise to 
identify coordination and information weaknesses than a 
full-fledged interdiction.  END NOTE.)  Over the coming 
months and years, the Center also hopes to carry out training 
for Center personnel and focus points in member countries on 
intelligence analysis and coordination of international 
operations. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) In response to a question, Madybayev acknowledged 
how difficult it is when leaders protect other officials 
involved in narcotics trafficking.  However, he added, in 
cases where CARICC cannot get countries' leaders to act 
against officials, the organization can circulate trafficking 
information to appropriate law-enforcement agencies in other 
countries so that those officials can block trafficking 
activities. 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Madybayev noted that U.S. support for combatting 
narcotics trafficking is well known.  He asked that the 
Embassy give full diplomatic support to CARICC.  Madybayev 
noted the difficulties with having only one DEA officer cover 
the entire region.  He urged that the United States consider 
posting a second DEA agent in Almaty, which is becoming a 
regional hub and is CARICC's home.  Noting that the building 
that houses CARICC still has four empty floors, he suggested 
that a new DEA agent could be based there to facilitate 
coordination. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) COMMENT:  Under Murshudlu's apparently energetic 
mentorship, Madybayev and CARICC appear to have made 
substantial strides in a relatively short time.  We are 
pleased by Turkmenistan's apparent support for CARICC, which 
is consistent both with its new focus on combatting narcotics 
and with its efforts to increase regional contacts.  We 
suspect, based on Turkmenistan's reluctance to share 
narcotics seizure and use information, that Turkmenistan may 
be one of the countries that is dragging its feet on sharing 
intelligence, the fact that it is participating in the 
Center's activities at all is a big step forward from where 
it was little more than a year ago.  END COMMENT. 
HOAGLAND