VZCZCXRO5365
OO RUEHPW
DE RUEHBUL #1415/01 1621134
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 101134Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4324
INFO RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 001415 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR SCA/FO, SCA/A 
PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG 
NSC FOR JWOOD 
OSD FOR SHIVERS 
CG CJTF-101, POLAD, JICCENT 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PINR PHUM PREL AF NL
SUBJECT:  DUTCH CONTRIBUTIONS IN AFGHANISTAN 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  The Dutch are shouldering a heavy burden as the 
lead nation in Uruzgan, one of the most underdeveloped provinces in 
Afghanistan.  There are almost daily attacks on ISAF forces and 
civilians by the Taliban, often resulting in serious injuries or 
death.  The Dutch focus on supporting and promoting reconstruction 
efforts by the Afghan government and NGOs as well as training and 
monitoring of Afghan security forces, with the aim of ensuring 
effective control by the Afghan army and police.  Their mission is 
that of stabilization and support aimed at transferring 
responsibility to Afghans, inherently linking their security and 
development objectives.  The Dutch motto remains:  "reconstruction 
where possible, military action where necessary." 
 
Security Contributions 
------------------------------ 
 
¶2. (U) The Netherlands has been the lead nation in Uruzgan since 
August 1, 2006, with Australia as a junior partner.  On November 30, 
2007, two-thirds of the Dutch parliament supported the decision to 
retain the main responsibility for supporting the Afghan authorities 
in Uruzgan, including military, reconstruction, and governance 
assistance, until August 1, 2010.  Over 1,300 of the 1,770 troops 
that the Netherlands currently contributes to ISAF are based in 
Uruzgan, with the rest in Kabul and Kandahar.  Dutch troops serve 
six-month tours of duty.  After August 2008 France, Czech Republic, 
and Slovakia will deploy troops in Uruzgan, enabling the Dutch to 
reduce the number of their troops in Uruzgan to approximately 
1,000-1,100. 
 
¶3. (U) The Netherlands military presence in Uruzgan consists of a 
Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT), a Battle Group, and logistical 
support, divided between the two bases in Tarin Kowt and Deh Rawod 
(Western Uruzgan).  The Netherlands also provides two Operational 
Mentoring and Liaison Teams (OMLTs) to help train and guide the 
Afghan army; after August 2008 the Dutch OMLTs will be replaced by 
Hungarian and Slovakian OMLTs. They deployed police trainers in 
Uruzgan, and they will continue to contribute five Apache combat 
helicopters and four F-16 fighter planes to ISAF.  Starting November 
1, 2008 the Netherlands will provide the commander of ISAF's 
Regional Command South, General De Kruif.  The Dutch-led PRT is 
actively engaged in training, mentoring, and equipping Afghan 
National Police (ANP) in coordination with CSTC-A's police training 
and mentoring program.  In April, a Dutch delegation to Kabul 
pledged up to five Police Mentoring Teams (PMTs) to support CSTC-A 
training efforts for Uruzgan police.  Task Force Uruzgan (TFU) has 
established a fourth line of operations, "credible task force," to 
ensure freedom of movement and action for the TFU forces and to gain 
the trust and confidence of the local population, enabling further 
separation from the insurgency.  Since the start of the Dutch 
mission on August 1, 2006, a total of 16 Dutch soldiers have been 
killed in Afghanistan, including the son of General van Uhm, the 
Chief of Defence of the Netherlands. 
 
Nationwide Reconstruction and Development Contributions 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶4. (U) Dutch development priorities are:  health, education, 
infrastructure, rural development (which includes alternative 
livelihoods for poppy growers), gender, human rights, and conflict 
transformation.  The Netherlands has disbursed more than Euros 500 
million in official development assistance to Afghanistan since 
¶2001.  The Netherlands is the fifth largest donor to the Afghan 
Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF), with Euros 242 million since 2002. 
 In 2008 the Netherlands will again contribute Euros 25 million to 
the ARTF in addition to contributions to national programs, 
including Euros 4.07 million to the Education Quality Improvement 
Project (EQUIP) for 2 years and Euros 6.3 million to Microfinance 
Investment Support Facility for Afghanistan (MISFA) for three years. 
 The Netherlands is also one of the main donors to the Law and Order 
Trust Fund for Afghanistan (LOTFA), contributing Euros 10 million in 
¶2007.  The Dutch fund a range of nationwide projects, including 
Euros 3 million for legal sector development, with a focus on 
transitional justice, detention, and women's rights; Euros 2.3 
million for World Food Program; Euros 3 million for UNHCR to support 
the return of internally displaced persons (IDPs); Euros 0.5 million 
to UNICEF for health and education; Euros 2 million to UN Mine 
Action Services for demining and awareness; Euros 1.4 million to 
HALO trust for demining; and Euros 1 million to the International 
 
KABUL 00001415  002 OF 003 
 
 
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). 
 
Uruzgan Development Contributions 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (U) The Netherlands also has a significant civilian component in 
Tarin Kowt, Uruzgan; they plan to expand to 13 diplomats and 
development staff by August 2008.  The TFU management board, 
consisting of the Commander of TFU and the Civilian Representative, 
make the 3D decisions (diplomacy, defence, and development) for the 
Dutch interventions in Uruzgan.  The Dutch have funded more than 
Euros 75 million in Uruzgan since August 1, 2006. 
 
¶6. (U) Education:  The Dutch are funding EQUIP to work specifically 
in Uruzgan for Euros 2.5 million.  EQUIP, Afghanistan's largest 
education initiative, operates through the extensive involvement of 
community members.  Elected Parent-Teacher Associations and School 
Management Committees are trained in project and budget management; 
they are then responsible for identifying community education needs, 
developing proposals, and overseeing the implementation.  The Dutch 
also give many local NGOs smaller grants for education development 
in Uruzgan.  For example, they have a Euros 150,000 grant for the 
protection of vulnerable children, a teachers' hygiene course, and 
radio programs.  Due to the extreme lack of teachers in Uruzgan, the 
Dutch are also starting a teacher training course, with a 100 
scholarships for a one-to-two year training program in India.  The 
recipients must make a commitment to teach in Uruzgan for 
three-to-five years after they complete the training. 
 
¶7. (U) Healthcare:  The Dutch gave Euros 2.3 million over two years 
to support the Uruzgan provincial Ministry of Health office's 
efforts to provide a basic health package to Uruzgan's inhabitants, 
including community health centers, training for healthcare workers, 
purchasing basic pharmaceuticals, training midwives, and training 
boys as nurses.  The Dutch also have many smaller health projects 
through local NGOs. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Rural Development:  The Dutch are giving the Ministry of 
Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) in Uruzgan Euros 5 
million for the construction of infrastructure (roads, irrigation 
systems, etc).  However, the MRRD's absorptive capacity is very low 
and this project is facing many problems. The Dutch are also 
utilizing a public-private partnership to introduce saffron 
cultivation in Uruzgan, where the growing conditions are optimal. 
The private Dutch company provides mentors for 120 farmers and also 
guarantees that it will buy back the saffron at world prices, if the 
farmers cannot sell it.  The Dutch also give several local NGOs 
small grants, including a Euros 1 million grant for developing 
capacity to farm fruit trees and a Euros 2 million grant for very 
small scale infrastructure development, including rural roads, 
wells, and building shelters where homes have been destroyed. 
 
¶9. (U) Establishing Implementing Partners:  The Dutch are giving 
GTZ, the German equivalent of USAID, Euros 34 million over three 
years to establish an office in Tarin Kowt.  GTZ will focus on 
building a road from Tarin Kowt to Chora, capacity building of the 
provincial government, and assessing the agricultural chain of 
production.  The Dutch gave the UN Food and Agricultural 
Organization Euros 2.4 million to launch a project to help a 
thousand farmers in Tarin Kowt and Chora. They will be provided with 
seeds, fertilizer, and tools; training in technical aspects of 
farming; and taught how to sell their products to their best 
advantage.  The Dutch gave the Microfinance Investment Support 
Facility for Afghanistan (MISFA) Euros 6.3 million to establish an 
office in Tarin Kowt and expand their work into Uruzgan. 
 
¶10. (U) Information and Access:  The Dutch support Radio Nava, which 
reaches a wide range of listeners across Uruzgan in both Dari and 
Pashto.  They also support a radio drama series and public service 
announcements raising drug awareness.  There is currently no 
civilian airport in Uruzgan, which greatly hinders the mobility of 
government officials as well as NGO and IO staff.  The Dutch are 
working with a humanitarian air service to develop a fee-based 
charter system. 
 
¶11. (U) Security Structure:  The Dutch are giving the MOI and UNODC 
Euros 5.2 million to improve the security structure in Uruzgan, 
including prisons and police and army resources and training. 
 
KABUL 00001415  003 OF 003 
 
 
 
Baghlan Development Contributions 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶12. (U) After the Hungarians took over the Baghlan PRT the Dutch 
began slowly phasing out their Baghlan-speific projects; however, 
they still have Euros 2 million to support EQUIP education 
programming and Euros 3 million to Aga Khan to implement 
agricultural projects. 
 
DELL