KUWAIT REINFORCES NEED FOR SUNNI PARTICIPATION IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 001560 SIPDIS FOR NEA/ARPI - BERNS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/17/2015 TAGS: PREL PGOV IZ KU KUWAIT IRAQ RELATIONS SUBJECT: KUWAIT REINFORCES NEED FOR SUNNI PARTICIPATION IN SHAPING IRAQ'S FUTURE; FORMAL REQUEST FOR IRAQI ENVOY SOUGHT REF: A. KUWAIT 1467 ¶B. KUWAIT 1460 Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) The Ambassador briefed April 17 Ministry of Foreign Affairs Under Secretary Khaled Al-Jarallah on recent trips of senior U.S. officials to Iraq, stressing the shared U.S.-Iraqi commitment to building a transparent system of governance, ensure security within Iraq and along its borders, and change attitudes toward the military. Al-Jarallah agreed that good governance was needed and in order to achieve it, Sunni participation was essential in drafting the constitution, which he described as "the way to the future." He added that among Iraq's most severe problems was the lack of Sunni political participation and lamented their future isolation if they continued to remain outside the process. He praised the efforts of Vice President Shaykh Ghazi Al-Yawer to promote Sunni involvement and said if Kuwait and Saudi Arabia had a direct channel to Iraq's Sunni community, they would use it to encourage full political participation. Al-Jarallah was also complimentary of Foreign Minster Hoshyar Zebari, a "really good guy for the Iraqis and the region" who knows how to work with other countries. ¶2. (C) Turning to Iraqi-Kuwaiti relations, Al-Jarallah reported the Iraqi Ambassador in Amman had requested agrement for Faeq Al Shaykh Ali as the Iraqi ambassador to Kuwait. In principle, Kuwait has accepted the nomination but is waiting for an official government-to-government communication before announcing the resumption of full bilateral relations. (Note: Al-Jarallah left the impression that the GOK wanted to be sure that Faeq Al Shaykh Ali is the genuine candidate of the Iraqi government.) ¶3. (C) As reported ref a, Al-Jarallah informed the Ambassador that the Istanbul Neighboring Countries Meeting scheduled for April 18-19 had been postponed at the request of the ITG until April 27 so that Prime Minister Designate Ibrahim Al-Jaafari could attend. He added that Foreign Minister Shaykh Dr. Mohammed Al-Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah would represent Kuwait. ¶4. (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