FOREIGN MINISTER: PROGRESS ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS, IRAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 KUWAIT 001777

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARPI

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/27/2015
TAGS: PREL PGOV ECON PBTS KUNC KPAL IZ KU WOMEN POLITICAL RIGHTS KUWAIT IRAQ RELATIONS KUWAIT IRAN RELATIONS
SUBJECT: FOREIGN MINISTER: PROGRESS ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS, IRAN
TRAVEL AVERTS CRISIS, AND IRAQI SECURITY CONCERNS

REF: A. KUWAIT 1633

B. KUWAIT 1600

C. KUWAIT 1557

D. KUWAIT 1131

E. KUWAIT 1089

F. KUWAIT 943

Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: During an April 27 meeting with the
Ambassador, Foreign Minister Shaykh Dr. Mohammed Al-Sabah
Al-Salem Al-Sabah told the Ambassador that he believes that
the GOK has enough votes to pass the women's rights bill for
Municipal Council elections on May 2 and that once women are
registered to vote at the municipal level, success on the
issue of women's national political rights would be "sealed."
The Foreign Minister also discussed his recent trip to Iran
describing it as a successful effort to prevent Iran from
unilaterally drilling in a disputed off-shore gas field (refs
E and F). He said President Khatami, who has accepted an
invitation to visit Kuwait, has committed to resolving this
issue during his time as president. Shaykh Dr. Mohammed also
raised concerns about the Iraqi insurgency and Iraqi military
training and informed the Ambassador that the USD 78 million
of frozen Iraqi assets to be transferred to the Development
Fund for Iraq is still with Kuwait's UN Mission but opined
that at least a portion could be passed to the GOI now (ref
C). Regarding support for the Palestinians he stated that
Kuwait announced the release of USD 40 million during the
Algiers summit and is expecting Palestinian Authority
President Mahmoud Abbas to visit Kuwait (ref D). Shaykh Dr.
Mohammed mentioned an interest in traveling to Washington
during May in advance of Prime Minister Shaykh Sabah Al-Ahmad
Al-Sabah's anticipated visit. End Summary.

Women's Rights Will Not Be Held Hostage By MPs' Tricks
-------------- --------------

2.(C) The Foreign Minister said the GOK is taking the issue
of women's political rights "one step at a time." He
believes the GOK has successfully separated the religious
argument from the political one. He remarked that no one can
hide behind an obscure fatwa to oppose women's rights. He
said that what is important is to get women voters
registered, because once they register, "the debate will
change overnight."


3. (C) Regarding the second reading of the recently passed
bill granting women political rights at the Municipal Council
level, which will take place on May 2, he said that "some MPs
are playing tricks with us (refs A and B)." He seemed
concerned that the Islamic Bloc would raise the issue of
voting rights for police and military personnel to scuttle
the current bill and the effort to grant women political
rights. (Note: Currently Kuwaiti police and military
personnel can neither vote in national elections nor run for
political office. Many Islamists believe it would be an
injustice if Kuwaiti women gained the right to vote while
many adult male Kuwaitis remain legally prohibited from doing
so. End Note.) The Foreign Minister also suspected that some
MPs may add to the existing bill the controversial issue of
electoral redistricting to further reduce chances of support
for the women's rights legislation. One such proposal would
allow citizens to vote only in the district in which they
reside, as indicated on the national ID card. He likened
this approach to redistricting without going through the
legislative process. Remarking that it was a very contested
issue, he said that some people currently "shift" every
election to the district of those they wish to support. The
Foreign Minister said the GOK is willing to discuss all of
these additional issues but that it would not be held hostage
by them. He said he is confident that the GOK position has
enough votes to pass the legislation.


4. (C) Shaykh Dr. Mohammed said the GOK intention is to start
registering women to vote as soon as the legislation passes.
He explained that the registration process for the Municipal
Council is the same as that for national Parliamentary
elections. He stated that the issue would be "sealed" if the
municipal bill passed.


5. (C) He further outlined two possible GOK strategies to
secure women's political rights at the national level. The
first scenario is for the GOK to introduce a bill calling for
women's national political rights during the Municipal
Council elections. He said that no one would stand up and
say women cannot vote in Parliamentary elections while they
are queuing up to cast ballots in municipal elections.
Another option is to dissolve Parliament once women are
registered to vote and then call new Parliamentary elections
allowing all registered women the right to vote and run as
candidates.


6. (C) The Foreign Minister remarked that most in the GOK and
Parliament know that the Municipal Council bill is a prelude
to Parliamentary voting rights for women. He also said that
women's political rights introduces an element of uncertainty
for most MPs. He remarked that it is a politically
courageous position for an MP to support the measure because
many will be voting against the will of their constituents,
especially MPs in rural areas, but also some liberal urban
MPs.

Iran Drilling Threat Prompts FM's Trip
--------------


7. (C) The Minister frankly admitted to recent problems with
Iran. He said that he recently visited Iran to settle a
dispute over the contested continental shelf, a disagreement
that he mentioned has been ongoing since 1968. (Note: The
Foreign Minister visited Iran April 20-22. End Note.) He
explained that discussions centered on the off-shore Al-Durra
gas field of which about ten percent is in dispute. He said
that the Iranians, in 1997, moved into the disputed region
and began drilling into the northern tip of the gas field, 90
percent of which he stated is squarely in Kuwaiti territory.


8. (C) He explained that he was "dispatched" to Iran because
Iran in March declared its intent to begin re-drilling in the
disputed region. He said the two sides managed to agree to
three items: that a disputed area exists, that there will be
no unilateral activity in the disputed area, and that a
technical committee should be formed to resolve the dispute.
He said the reaction from the Iranian government to his trip
was positive and that President Khatami told him that he
wants to finalize the issue during his time as president.
The Foreign Minister was hopeful but not overly optimistic
that President Khatami would make efforts to resolve the gas
field dispute. President Khatami accepted a GOK invitation
to visit Kuwait but no date has been arranged for travel.


9. (C) The FM also said that he conveyed to President Khatami
Kuwaiti concerns about the potential environmental
consequences of the Iranian nuclear plant. He stated that he
told President Khatami that Iran was building the Bushehr
nuclear reactor on unstable territory that was subject to
earthquakes and that Kuwait's concern wasn't just about a
possible Iranian nuclear weapons program but that the reactor
in question was located in proximity to Kuwait. According to
Shaykh Dr. Mohammed, President Khatami responded that the
Germans chose the site years ago and that the technology
being employed is not of the "Chernobyl type" and includes
the latest Russian safeguards.

Iraqi Insurgency And Military Training Levels Concern FM
-------------- --------------


10. (C) The Foreign Minister said he was troubled to read a
U.S. military statement that the level of insurgents
operating in Iraq is unchanged from last year. Shaykh Dr.
Mohammed said because there has been no change, it must be
assumed that a "professional" group is operating in Iraq and
not just Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi's group. He also inquired
about the recent downing of a U.S. helicopter in Iraq and
whether the Iraqi militants had acquired a new military
capability. The Ambassador assured the Foreign Minister that
the attack did not appear to represent an increased insurgent
military capability.


11. (C) The Foreign Minister also inquired about the status
of Iraqi Army training and whether it was behind schedule
because he had heard that Shi'as and Kurds were trying to
move their own militias into the Sunni triangle to quell
unrest. The Ambassador explained that training is
progressing but problems such as a dearth of mid-level
leadership and significant attempts by insurgents to
infiltrate the military continued to hamper efforts. The
Ambassador also made clear that the U.S. did not wish to see
security units segregated by ethnic group, and were working
to avoid this.


12. (C) Shaykh Dr. Mohammed expressed his appreciation for
the U.S. acceptance of the fuel proposal. He remarked that
the next step was to begin the legal procedures with KPC and
provide auditors with required information.

Development Fund Money Tied Up In Legal Department
-------------- --------------


13. (C) The Foreign Minister said that Iraqi Foreign Minister
Zebari inquired about the USD 78 million of frozen Iraqi
assets to be transferred to the Development Fund for Iraq
(DFI) (ref C). Shaykh Dr. Mohammed said the MFA Legal
Department was trying to determine whether these were active
claims and that by law, his "hands are tied" because the
claim must be adjudicated before the GOK could release the
funds to Iraq. The FM offered to provide a legal explanation
to the Iraqis on this issue. He also talked about the idea
of releasing a portion of the money before the issue of
pending claims is fully resolved. The Ambassador urged
prompt resolution of the matter.

Support To The Palestinians
--------------


14. (C) Responding to the Ambassador's question about support
for the Palestinians, the Foreign Minister remarked that the
GOK announced the transfer of USD 40 million to the
Palestinians during the Algiers summit in late March and
pointed out that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud
Abbas accepted an invitation to visit Kuwait but that they
were still waiting on a date (ref D). He then expressed
frustration that Israel had not been helpful as of late. He
said that Prime Minister Sharon was playing politics with
humanitarian issues and raised concerns stemming from a press
report that Israel is employing high-powered x-ray machines
at checkpoints. He said the article claimed that the
machines were the type used in hospitals and could cause
overdoses of radiation and trigger miscarriages in pregnant
women. He remarked that if the claims were true, something
must be done.

FM To Visit Washington Ahead Of Shaykh Sabah
--------------


15. (C) The Foreign Minister expressed an interest in
traveling to the U.S. in the second half of May, ahead of the
desired Prime Minister's visit later in the summer. He said
he would be in Brazil during that period and would like to
stop in the U.S. to meet with the Secretary. The Ambassador
encouraged the Foreign Minister to visit even if the
Secretary were unavailable. He remarked that there are

SIPDIS
others in Washington who would also appreciate meeting with
him. Calling him a very good friend of Kuwait, Shaykh Dr.
Mohammed remarked that perhaps a meeting with the Vice
President would be useful. He added that the U.S. and Kuwait
still need to address long-term issues such as a free-trade
agreement (FTA),dwindling numbers of Kuwaiti students to
U.S. universities, and visa issues.


16. (C) Shaykh Dr. Mohammed mentioned that the GCC wanted to
secure a multilateral FTA but that it was the U.S. that
insisted on bilateral FTA agreements. He mentioned that the
rest of the GCC did not appreciate the Saudi position
vis-a-vis the U.S. FTA talks with Bahrain. The Foreign
Minister said he was glad to see the Saudis moving forward on
joining the WTO.


17. (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