1. Civil-Military Coordination
Mr Fredrik Wallenberg
UN OCHA / ESB / CMCS
Geneva Switzerland

2. What Is UN-CMCoord?
“The essential dialogue and interaction between civilian and military actors in humanitarian emergencies
Protect and promote humanitarian principles
Avoid competition
Minimize inconsistency
When appropriate pursue common goals.”
Coordination is a shared responsibility, facilitated by liaison and common training.

3. Military and Civil Defence Assets
Need for Assistance
Military and Civil Defence Assets
International Civilian Relief
Local/National Response
The United Nations initiated project DPR 213/3 on the background of the growing dimensions, frequency and complexity of disaster, which made it necessary to search for new and varied resources with which to respond.
Time

4. Civilian Military CMCoord Focus Domestic International National
Civil-Military
Relations
- Development (DD&R)
- HR/IHL (Training)
Domestic
Military
CMCoord
Focus
Traditional
Focus of Military
CIMIC
International Civil- Military Relations or
“UN-CMCoord”
International

5. Range of Possible Civil Military Relations
Cooperation
Coexistence
Competition
Conflict

6. Military Missions and Political Conditions
Peace-
time
keeping
Peace
Enforcement
Combat
Conditions
Stable
Unstable
Failed
State

7. Overview of UN-CMCoord Guidelines
Availability and Impartiality of Military Decrease
Mission
Peace-
time
keeping
Peace
Enforcement
Combat
Oslo Guidelines
Natural
Disasters
Conditions
Stable
Unstable
Failed
State
MCDA Guidelines
Escorts for Humanitarian Convoys
IASC Reference Paper
Country Specific Guidelines
Complex
Emergencies
Potential
Need for Assistance Increases

8. Civil-Military Coordination in Cyclone Nargis response operation
Mr Fredrik Wallenberg
UN OCHA / ESB / CMCS
Geneva Switzerland

9. Wind speed up to 70 m/s followed by a 3.5 meter tide wave.
Situation
Cyclone Nargis 2-3 May.
Wind speed up to 70 m/s followed by a 3.5 meter tide wave.
Worst natural disaster to strike one single country in 25 (?) years.
Worst cyclone since 1970 Bhola in East Pakistan (Bangladesh).
Death toll: 77,738 persons (official estimate, source: state TV, date: 16 May)
·    Persons missing: 55,917 persons (official estimate, source: state TV, date: 16 May)
·    Persons affected: 2,400,000 (UN estimate, includes those severely affected)

10. Initial challenges: Concerns on scope of disaster.
Military Junta suspicious against the western world, main driving force: to remain in power?
In-kind donations of relief goods to government welcome, but not humanitarian workers.
Access: Few visas to Yangon for short term. No access to delta region.
Tap on - tap off
No assessment of needs.
Conflicting figures.
Initial “blind” assessment: Lack of everything.

11. Why UN-CMCoord in the operation?
Military units involved in early bilateral response
Scale of disaster creating potential need for military assets
Experience from Tsunami operation
Cobra Gold exercise in Thailand

12. Arrival (10th - 28th May)
Establish contact with humanitarian organisations
IASC Head of Cluster meeting
Log Cluster / WFP
Inventory of main military actors
US Transport airplanes.
French, US and UK navy vessels outside Irrawaddy delta
India and Thailand on bilateral basis.
Thailand, Australia, India and Singapore and Malaysia.

13. Available military resources
Air transport from Log Base in Thailand to Yangon
Water purification (Mistral: 100 M3 / 24 hrs)
Handling of cargo at Yangon airport
Landing crafts in delta region.
Medical teams
Food, NFI, shelter.
Helicopters

14. Transport to affected areas
Mae Sot
US Helicopter flights
No permission O
Don Muang
WFP Log Base O
U-Tapao
US C-130 Flights O

15. Logistics
Unclear situation with no waiver for customs clearance.
Consignees a problem. Cargo confiscated by Myanmar authorities?
Access to delta region by national staff only.
When will we get access? After referendum? All messages interpreted.
From Yangon – to Irrawaddy delta:
Fuel and bridges are a problem – mainly shipping by barges and boats.
Port in Yangon damaged.
Airlift
No high loader at Yangon, but personnel available. Accountability?
Don Muang Airport or U-Tapao
UN Mi-8 Helicopters, now in mission.
No military helicopters allowed into Myanmar airspace.

16. US
Participated in multinational civil-military exercise in Thailand.
Helicopter flights planned from Mae Sot into Myanmar and later from USS Essex
In contact with Myanmar military officers.
Initial plan to airdrop from C-130 in Irrawaddy delta.
Bilateral agreement with Myanmar covered only shipment of goods to Yangon.
Up to 9-12 sorties daily with C-130 from U-tapao.
As of 02 June: 100 flights w/total weight: 897 Metric Tonnes
Offered to deliver cargo to implementing partners on ground. Origin of aid?

17. Total Daily Lift Capacity
United States Cargo Delivery Capacity
Vehicle / Cargo Sorties/Capacity per Day
C per day
Capacity=25000 lbs per , ,000 lbs
(11 MT) ( MT)
22 Heavy Lift Helicopters
6 CH-53 Helicopter per day
Capacity=15000 lbs ,000 lbs
(6.8 MT) (61.2 MT)
16 CH-46 Helicopters per day
Capacity=3000 lbs ,000 lbs
(1.4 MT) (35.4 MT)
4 Heavy Lift Landing Craft
2 Landing Craft Units per day
Capacity=180 tons tons
(163 MT) (326.6 MT)
2 Landing Craft per day
Air Cushioned
Capacity=60 tons tons
(54.4 MT) (210 MT)
Total Daily Lift Capacity MT 1

18. French helicopter carrier
Granted access – later denied.
Off-loaded in Phuket and goods transported by commercial means to Yangon.
Le Mistral,
French helicopter carrier
Use of UN helicopters from Le Mistral?
400 tonnes of rice
10,000 cans of water
40,000 water purification tables
20,000 tarpaulins
10,000 mosquito nets
10,000 sets of cooking utensils
Medical teams
Landing Crafts
Engineers

19. Conclusions Natural disaster but very politicized context.
Main challenge was consequences of perceived affiliation.
Constantly changing situation and no assessment of needs, nothing could be ruled out.
International military only involved in logistic / indirect assistance (appropriate)
Humanitarian organizations bilaterally in contact with US and Thai military.
Military bilateral support to Myanmar from Thailand, India and Singapore.