KUWAITI TECHNICAL TEAM ON FUEL TO TRAVEL IN APRIL;

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 001125 SIPDIS FOR NEA AND PM; OSD/ISA FOR A/S RODMAN AND PDASD FLORY E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/19/2015 TAGS: PREL EAID EFIN MARR PGOV KU SUBJECT: KUWAITI TECHNICAL TEAM ON FUEL TO TRAVEL IN APRIL; GOK EXTENDS HOC MANDATE REF: A. KUWAIT 1061 ¶B. KUWAIT 762 Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4(b) and (d) ¶1. (C) During a March 19 meeting on Arab League matters (septel) the Ambassador asked Ministry of Foreign Affairs Under Secretary Khaled Al-Jarallah about the timing and agenda of a delegation to Washington for discussions on OIF fuel and related issues. Al-Jarallah reported that Foreign Minister Shaykh Dr. Mohammed Al-Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah recently chaired a meeting of representatives from the ministries of Defense, Interior, Communications, Information, and Finance, as well as Kuwait Petroleum Company. A technical sub-committee was formed which met the week of March 12 and which will meet again the week of the 19th to prepare proposals for the Washington talks. Al-Jarallah anticipates that an expert-level team, to be led by Kuwaiti Ambassador to the U.S. Shaykh Salim Al-Abdallah Jabir Al-Sabah, will be ready to travel in April. Al-Jarallah was optimistic that progress would be made during the visit and referred to a report of the March 18 meeting between Shaykh Salim and DOD A/S Rodman during which A/S Rodman noted the Kuwaiti offer of $24 per barrel with appreciation and said a response would be forthcoming soon. ¶2. (C) The Ambassador expressed appreciation for the March 16 decision to keep open the Humanitarian Operations Center - HOC (septel). Al-Jarallah agreed that the HOC has played a vital role in the reconstruction of Iraq, but said it was a priority for the GOK that UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) assume this function. He noted the GOK's frustration that Parliament has not yet approved the UNAMI/GOK agreement. The Ambassador commented that much of the HOC's success was due to the active role played by Kuwait, in conjunction with coalition personnel, and encouraged the GOK to remain engaged once UNAMI is fully operational. ¶3. (U) Baghdad: Minimize considered. ********************************************* Visit Embassy Kuwait's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website ********************************************* LEBARON