A report on the border situation between the DR and Haiti prepared for Dominican President Leonel Fernandez by the United States Southern Command, is recommending the creation of a specialized military body whose only mission will be to guard the frontier. In order to guarantee the success of such a task, the report recommends that more soldiers should be assigned to frontier duties, that new military bases are constructed along the frontier, that a new aviation unit is created and attached to the border patrol, and, finally, that the salaries of those on border patrol should be doubled. While the report is supposed to be confidential, the Diario Libre reports that it has seen parts of it, and the proposal seems to include the creation of a specialized, air cavalry unit, equipped with helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. There is also mention of improved ground transport vehicles and improved military installations. The report was hand delivered to President Leonel Fernandez by General John Craddock, the head of the United States Army Southern Command. It was drawn up by a group of United States experts on frontier issues who spent several weeks studying the border between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. A government source told Diario Libre that the report is confidential since some of the suggestions are long term concerns of the armed forces, and some of these have already been included in the 2005 budget. One of the suggestions is to create a joint initiative by several of the state’s security organizations, such as the DNI, the Armed Forces and the DNCD.