GOK OFFICIALS SAY IRAQ BORDER DISPUTE RESOLVED;

S E C R E T KUWAIT 003755 SIPDIS FOR NEA/ARPI; USUN FOR LAPENN; LONDON FOR TSOU; PARIS FOR ZEYA E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/20/2015 TAGS: PBTS PREL PGOV MARR IZ KU UN SUBJECT: GOK OFFICIALS SAY IRAQ BORDER DISPUTE RESOLVED; SEPTEMBER VISIT OF UN TEAM WILL RECONFIRM BORDER DEMARCATION REF: A. CORDON/BROWN EMAIL DATED 8/20/05 ¶B. KUWAIT 3652 ¶C. KUWAIT 3565 ¶D. KUWAIT 3523 ¶E. KUWAIT 3396 ¶F. KUWAIT 3331 (NOTAL) ¶G. KUWAIT 3287 (NOTAL) Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) During an August 20 meeting on security and counterterrorism (septel),the Ambassador asked First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Shaykh Nawaf Al-Sabah for his latest assessment of the border dispute with Iraq (reftels). Shaykh Nawaf said the situation was under control, although some Iraqi farms remained in Kuwaiti territory. He said that only 6 KM of the 217 KM-long pipeline still needed to be completed, which would enhance border security. He told the Ambassador he had spoken to his Iraqi counterpart, and the GOK and the Iraqi Transitional Government (ITG) were in complete agreement that the border had been demarcated by the UN and that pipeline installation was taking place entirely within Kuwaiti territory. He said the real problem was not the pipeline, rather a small group of people who wanted to create problems between the GOK and the ITG. He accused these individuals of misrepresenting, for their personal benefit, the security barrier as an oil pipeline or commercial enterprise. He praised the Iraqi delegation that visited Kuwait for border talks (ref D), welcomed statements made by PM Ibrahim Al-Jaafari on the issue, and said a September visit by a UN team for border pillar maintenance would definitively resolve the matter, "inshallah." He also expressed hope that funds deposited with the UN to compensate Iraqi farmers would be disbursed soon. ¶2. (C) In a separate meeting, Ambassador Abdullah Al-Murad, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Acting Under Secretary and International Organizations Department Director, echoed Shaykh Nawaf's statements. He said the media and both Iraqi and Kuwaiti parliamentarians had exploited the situation. He stressed that the GOK and ITG agreed "there is no border problem." He added that the September visit of the UN team would lend credibility to the existing border demarcation and also help to keep the minor dispute a "technical matter." ¶3. (S) Comment: To facilitate pillar maintenance, CENTCOM is processing satellite imagery of the border area (ref A). This request came from the UN and Deputy Secretary of Defense England agreed to provide such assistance during a May 20 meeting with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Shaykh Dr. Mohammed Al-Sabah. The images should be ready and available well before the arrival of the UN team. End Comment. ********************************************* 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