VZCZCXRO9825
RR RUEHIK
DE RUEHSQ #0075/01 0531443
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 221443Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY SKOPJE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8901
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE 0610
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 3781
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SKOPJE 000075 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: MASS MOPS MARR PREL AF MK
SUBJECT: VISIT OF THE ADJUTANT GENERAL OF THE VERMONT NATIONAL GUARD 
TO MACEDONIA 
 
SKOPJE 00000075  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Macedonia is prepared to take on increased risk in 
its joint deployment beginning next month with the Vermont National 
Guard (VTNG), GoM leaders told visiting VTNG Adjutant General Dubie 
during his Feb 13-17 visit to Skopje.  President Ivanov said he 
understood that success in Afghanistan was directly relevant to his 
country's security.  Def Min Konjanovski expressed his appreciation 
for the recent support voiced by SECDEF and SACEUR for Macedonia's 
NATO membership.  (End Summary) 
 
¶2. (U) Major General Dubie, the Adjutant General (TAG) of the 
Vermont National Guard (VTNG) visited Macedonia 13-17 February. 
Since 1995, the Vermont National Guard has been the state partner of 
Macedonia under the National Guard Bureau's state partnership 
program.  The purpose of this visit was to discuss aspects of the 
upcoming combined deployment of the Vermont 86th Infantry Brigade 
Combat Team (IBCT) with elements of the Macedonia Armed Forces to 
Afghanistan beginning on 27 February.  MG Dubie, accompanied by 
Ambassador Reeker, conducted meetings with the President of 
Macedonia, the Minister of Defense, and participated in a meeting 
and lunch with the deploying Macedonian contingent at Illinden 
Barracks.  The President also hosted the Ambassador and General 
Dubie at an official dinner at his Villa Vodno Residence in Skopje. 
General Dubie met separately with the Chief of Defense and the 
Director of the GoM's Crisis Management Center. 
 
----------------- 
Deployment Update 
----------------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) The combined deployment of the 86th IBCT and the elements 
of the Macedonian Armed Forces is on track.  The 79-soldier 
Macedonian contingent, consisting of a Ranger platoon, a military 
police platoon, and command and control section will begin 
deployment to Afghanistan on 27 February.  After more than a year of 
planning, exchanges, and combined training, the lead six person 
advanced party from the Macedonia contingent will depart on 27 
February for Afghanistan and link up with the lead elements of the 
Vermont National Guard Brigade.  The main body of the Macedonia 
contingent is expected to deploy via U.S. military air lift at the 
end of March.  The nine-month deployment will raise Macedonia's ISAF 
contribution to 242 soldiers, with the other elements currently 
serving in Regional Command Capital and Regional Command North.  The 
86th IBCT with its embedded Macedonian contingent will conduct full 
spectrum operations in Regional Command East. 
 
-------------------------- 
Ivanov: Risks Are Worth IT 
-------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) MG Dubie briefed the President on the change in focus of 
the Afghan deployment from a training and mentoring mission to a 
partnering and full spectrum operations mission.  The TAG also told 
the President about the seriousness of the situation in Afghanistan 
and the significant risk Macedonian soldiers would face during the 
Afghanistan deployment. President Ivanov was confident, based on 
consultations with the Army's General Staff, that the Macedonian 
soldiers were ready for this deployment.  The General Staff had 
briefed him on the risks inherent in this deployment and he 
understood that the risk for casualties would be higher than 
previous missions.  The President also spoke about the need to be 
prepared in the event of casualties. He spoke of the requirement to 
coordinate and share information quickly so that the government 
could get ahead of expected media and public reactions to 
casualties.  He asked that the VTNG and the ARM's General Staff work 
to clearly establish procedures for casualty notification. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) The President explained why stabilizing Afghanistan was 
important to Macedonia's national security, noting that extremist 
and radical elements were present in Afghanistan and these elements 
could export this dangerous ideology to the Western Balkans. 
Additionally, the flow of drugs from Afghanistan to Europe also 
posed a significant concern for Macedonia.  Thus, Macedonia is 
acting preventively to help stabilize Afghanistan.   The President 
mentioned that he was disappointed in the less than serious 
attitudes of unnamed European leaders on the Afghan security 
challenge.  The Ambassador informed the President that his letter to 
President Obama voicing support for the new Afghanistan strategy was 
very well received.  The USG very much appreciates Macedonia's 
contributions and support in addressing the many global security 
issues that both countries face.  Working together is the best 
approach in solving these serious global security challenges. 
--------------------------------------- 
Konjanovski: Deployment Job One for MOD 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Def Min Konjanovski said that the deployment is the most 
 
SKOPJE 00000075  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
important event for his Ministry, and has the full support of the 
government and the Parliament.  He understood the additional risks 
this deployment presents, but thought that the risk was mitigated by 
pre-deployment training.  The Macedonian contingent has conducted 
several training events and exchanges with elements of the Vermont 
86th IBCT. This included participation in the brigade's Joint 
Readiness Training Center rotation during October-November 2009 at 
Fort Polk, Louisiana.  The MOD mentioned that he had a brief 
discussion with SECDEF Gates on the margins of the NATO Ministerial 
in Istanbul and proudly reported that the SECDEF had applauded the 
contributions of the Macedonian soldiers and Macedonia as a valued 
partner.  He also said that the SACEUR had expressed his desire for 
Macedonia to join the Alliance ASAP.  The Def Min shared that the 
Ministry desired to develop its own pilot training center and hoped 
to participate in a UK and French transport helicopter initiative. 
He also announced the Ministry's plans to renovate the Army's winter 
training facility at Popova Shapka through a tender being announced 
over the next few days 
 
¶7.  (SBU) The Ambassador pushed the MOD to consider what is next 
after this deployment.  The Ambassador pointed out that the current 
technical agreement with U.S. Central Command includes a provision 
for Macedonia to continue the established rotation with the 
follow-on U.S. Brigade that will replace the Vermont 86th IBCT.  MG 
Dubie indicated to the MOD that a Brigade from the Iowa National 
Guard has been identified to replace the Vermont Brigade.  Minister 
Konjanovski told the Ambassador that the Government was considering 
what is next after the current deployment, but no decisions have 
been made.  The Ambassador and MG Dubie both thanked the MOD for 
Macedonia's contributions not only to the current deployment but to 
the past deployments in both Iraq and Afghanistan. 
 
 
REEKER