SPECIAL MEDIA REACTION: DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE'S

UNCLAS KUWAIT 002345

SIPDIS

STATE FOR THE DEPUTY SECRETARY
STATE FOR INR/R/MR, NEA/ARP, NEA/PPD, PA, INR/NESA
STATE FOR IIP/G/NEA-SA, INR/B
WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE
LONDON FOR GOLDRICH, PARIS FOR O'FRIEL
USDOC FOR 4520/ANESA/ONE/FITZGERALD-WILKS
USDOC FOR ITA AND PTO/OLIA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV OIIP KU
SUBJECT: SPECIAL MEDIA REACTION: DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE'S
INTERVIEW IN KUWAIT



1. SUMMARY: Deputy Secretary Armitage's exclusive interview
with local Arabic daily Al-Rai Al-A'am (7/18) generated a
wealth of coverage in the local press. The interview, which
ranged widely from democracy in Kuwait and stability in Iraq
to the war on terror, the Arab-Israeli Conflict and the
Lebanese political situation, appeared across four pages of
the paper, including the entire front page above the fold.
The interview was widely noted and discussed in Kuwait, and
generated even more intense scrutiny in Lebanon, where it
was picked up by at least three dailies there. END SUMMARY.


2. Armitage's reassurances on several issues of concern to
the Kuwaiti audience were covered closely and displayed
prominently in the paper. He praised the Kuwaiti democratic
model, while noting that the U.S. was not interested in
imposing democracy on the region, but rather assisting
homegrown reform movements. He explained that the
recognition of Kuwait as a Major non-NATO Ally would carry
practical benefits in areas such as security and defense
cooperation and training, and would also give notice to U.S.
companies that Kuwait was a good place for them to do
business. He also stressed Kuwait's continued strategic
importance to the U.S., countering rampant local speculation
that an evolving Iraq would replace Kuwait as the U.S.'s
most-favored regional partner.


3. With a circulation estimated at about 70,000, Al-Rai Al-
A'am enjoys a broad readership among Kuwaitis and Arab
expatriates living in Kuwait, particularly Syrians and
Lebanese. Predictably, the interview ranged to issues of
concern to these readers, such as the Arab-Israeli Conflict,
Syria's role in the war on terror, and Lebanese politics.
Deputy Secretary reiterated recent statements by President
Bush that 2005 was no longer a realistic goal for the
establishment of a Palestinian state. Commenting on the
Security Wall, Deputy Secretary Armitage said that it must
not prejudge final status or unnecessarily inconvenience
Palestinians. He also said that internal conflicts within
the Palestinian Authority prevented Israel from having a
true partner in the peace process. On Syria, the Deputy
Secretary said that Pres. Assad must do more to combat

SIPDIS
terror, such as securing the Syria-Iraq border. Coverage of
all


4. It was Deputy Secretary Armitage's comments on Lebanon
that pushed his press outside Kuwait and made his interview
a two-day story locally. Deputy Secretary Armitage said that
Lebanon's constitution should only be changed to extend
Lebanese President Emil Lahoud's term with the full
deliberation and involvement of the Lebanese people, but
that currently, their fate was not in their own hands These
comments were prominently reported, alongside various
editorial responses, by Lebanese dailies Al-Anwar
(centrist),Al-Nahar (Christian),and Al-Mustaqbal (pro-
Syria),as well as by other Gulf dailies. This coverage
became the subject of a second-day story in Kuwaiti Al-Rai
Al-A'am, which referred to Secretary Armitage as "Armitage
the Lebanese," because of what was perceived as his call for
Lebanese self-determination and full participation in their
own political process.

TUELLER