Résumé
At 1 PM on April 7th, Secretary of State Warren Christopher established a "24-hour working group" as "the center of all Department activity" concerning "the situation in Kigali and Bujumbura." The task force concluded its work April 15, following the evacuation of American citizens and the closure of the U.S. Embassy. Notably, at this early stage, the State Department apparently perceived the crisis as confined to the capitals of both countries. Christopher appointed Deputy Assistant Secretary Bushnell as head of the task force. Bushnell would go on to play a major role in the U.S. response to the genocide; after the working group concluded, she headed an inter-agency task force designated with monitoring the crisis and developing and implementing the U.S. response.
Citation
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Document Number: 1994STATE092008
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DRAFTED BY: WGRW01:DAURS
APPROVED BY: S/S:MGROSSMAN
S/S-0/CMS:DURS
S/S-O:GTDAVIES
AF:PBUSHNELL
S/S-0:PPETRIHOS
DESIRED DISTRIBUTION
SS SSO WG1 CMS P M FMP MFLO CA DS INR PM AF PA
39554F 080032Z /38
O 080014Z APR 94 ZFF4
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO AMEMBASSY KIGALI NIACT IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY BUJUMBURA NIACT IMMEDIATE
ALL DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR POSTS IMMEDIATE
SPECIAL EMBASSY PROGRAM IMMEDIATE
JOINT STAFF WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6950
SECDEF WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8693
AMEMBASSY LUANDA IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY DUSHANBE IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY ASMARA IMMEDIATE
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AMEMBASSY BRATISLAVA IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM IMMEDIATE
C ONFIDENTIALSTATE 092008
FOR THE AMBASSADOR FROM THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARY
E.O. 12356: DECL:OADR
TAGS: PINS, AEMR, CASC, PREL
SUBJECT: WGRW01: WORKING GROUP FORMATION TO DEAL WITH
THE SITUATION IN KIGALI AND BUJUMBURA
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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE
REVIEW AUTHORITY:
HARRY R. MELONE
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2. ON APRIL 7, 1994, AT 1300 EDT, THE SECRETARY
DIRECTED THAT A 24 HOUR WORKING GROUP BE ESTABLISHED IN
THE OPERATIONS CENTER TO DEAL WITH THE SITUATION IN
KIGALI AND BUJUMBURA. TELEPHONE NUMBERS FOR THE WORKING
GROUP ARE 202-647-6614, 6616, 6617 FOR INTERNAL STATE
DEPARTMENT BUSINESS AND 202-647-0900 FOR CONGRESSIONAL,
PUBLIC AND PRESS INQUIRIES. THE NUMBER 202-647-0900 IS
THE ONLY NUMBER THAT SHOULD BE GIVEN OUT TO THE PRESS OR
GENERAL PUBLIC. WORKING GROUP SECURE TELEPHONE NUMBERS
ARE: STU III - 202-647-0764 AND 202-647-0765 AND STATE
DEPARTMENT MLP-1 INTERFACE #2010.
3. THE WORKING GROUP IS UNDER THE DIRECTION OF AF
ACTING ASSISTANT SECRETARY PRUDENCE BUSHNELL. THE
WORKING GROUP INCLUDES REPRESENTATIVES OF THE FOLLOWING
BUREAUS AND OFFICES: AF, INR, CA, IM, H, PA, DS, IO AND
PM
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4. THE WORKING GROUP IS THE CENTER OF ALL DEPARTMENT
ACTIVITY CONCERNED WITH THIS SITUATION. ALL REPORTING
RELATED TO THE WORKING GROUP SHOULD INCLUDE THE SAME
INDICATOR WHICH APPEARS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SUBJECT
LINE OF THIS MESSAGE:
-
WGRW01; RPT WGRWO1.
5. KIGALI AND BUJUMBURA ARE REQUIRED TO UNDERTAKE THE
FOLLOWING ACTIONS IMMEDIATELY:
- A. SHOULD THE DEPARTMENT ESTABLISH A 24-HOUR OPEN
TELEPHONE LINE BETWEEN KIGALI AND THE WORKING GROUP, THE
LINE SHOULD BE MONITORED AT ALL TIMES.
- B. BY RETURN NIACT IMMEDIATE CABLE, PLEASE PROVIDE
THE OFFICE AND RESIDENCE TELEPHONE NUMBERS OF ALL
COUNTRY TEAM MEMBERS AND OTHER KEY OFFICERS WHO WILL
HAVE ACTION RESPONSIBILITIES DURING THIS CRISIS.
- C. PROVIDE THE TELEPHONE NUMBER AND LOCATION OF ALL
SECURE VOICE ASSETS AND OTHER USG COMMUNICATIONS ASSETS
LOCALLY AVAILABLE WHICH CAN BE USED FOR IMMEDIATE SECURE
VOICE COMMUNICATIONS.
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- D. START A SINGLE, COMPREHENSIVE LOG OF ALL
SIGNIFICANT EVENTS AND ACTION ITEMS. THE LOG SHOULD BE
ESPECIALLY ATTENTIVE TO REPORTING AND INFORMATION PASSED
VIA SECURE AND NON-SECURE VOICE. LOG SHOULD BE FORWARDED
TO S/S AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE WORKING GROUP.
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- E. PREPARE A DAILY SITUATION REPORT TO BE SUBMITTED BY
1500 EDT FOR AS LONG AS THE WORKING GROUP IS IN OPERATION.
-
F. REVIEW POST'S EMERGENCY ACTION PLAN.
6. MINIMIZE CONSIDERED. CHRISTOPHER
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