MULKI REITERATES CALL FOR SYRIAN WITHDRAWAL;

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 002093 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/13/2015 TAGS: PREL PGOV LE SY JO SUBJECT: MULKI REITERATES CALL FOR SYRIAN WITHDRAWAL; JORDANIANS RIVETED BY LEBANON SITUATION REF: A. STATE 39018 ¶B. AMMAN 1829 ¶C. AMMAN 1651 ¶D. AMMAN 1945 Classified By: CDA David Hale for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Foreign Minister Mulki reiterated to Charge on March 13 Jordan's position that Syria must immediately implement Security Council 1559 and withdraw completely from Lebanon (refs). Reflecting an interview he gave to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) on March 12, Mulki said that the discussion should focus on how the resolution should be carried out, not whether it should be carried out. However, in comments to KUNA carried by local papers, Mulki warned that the situation has reached a critical phase, and that all parties must proceed carefully so as to avoid violence. He said that the "organized, quiet and voluntary pullout of troops" as well as Syrian effort to voice a "positive position on Lebanon," would enable Syria "to avert any adverse impact." He also called on "the opposition and other parties" to be "more rational" and warned them against creating a situation similar to the one that set the stage for the outbreak of civil war in 1975. ¶2. (C) Reflecting the public's keen interest, local papers continue to give unfolding developments in Lebanon and Syria front-page coverage since Hariri's assassination. Political analyst and journalist Ureib al-Rintawi commented to poloff on March 7 that Syria is "feeling the heat," but warned that the current situation is "delicate" and potentially dangerous. According to Rintawi, the fact that Arab countries, including Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia, have taken a united position on Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon, is an important and positive development, but given Lebanon's history, special care must be taken to avoid a backslide into violence. ¶3. (C) Rintawi said that his contacts had very recently told him that the Syrian government has expelled HAMAS and PIJ leaders from Damascus, closed their offices, and cut their telephone lines; supposedly HAMAS leader Khalid Mish'al has departed for Qatar while Ramadan Shallah has gone to Beirut. Rintawi stated positive momentum in the peace process is working against the resistance groups, and their sponsors (Syria and Iran) are finding themselves increasingly isolated. He claimed the Jordanians have a role to play in exploiting the current situation to drive wedges between hard-liners and moderates within HAMAS in particular. Noting that some senior HAMAS leaders hold Jordanian citizenship, he believes that Jordan is in a position to encourage pragmatists within the organization to move towards the political track. ¶4. (U) Minimize considered. Please visit Embassy Amman's classified web site at http://www.state.sgov/p/nea/amman/ or access the site through the Department of State's SIPRNET home page. HALE