SAUDI FINANCE MINISTER TO VISIT MANILA;

S E C R E T MANILA 002749 SIPDIS NOFORN E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/16/2015 TAGS: PTER EFIN PREL KTFN RP SA SUBJECT: SAUDI FINANCE MINISTER TO VISIT MANILA; OPPORTUNITY FOR ACTION REF: A. STATE 106123 ¶B. RIYADH 3812 ¶C. MANILA 2042 ¶D. RIYADH 3715 Classified By: A/DCM Scott Bellard, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (S/NF) Saudi Ambassador Wali has returned to Manila from what he characterized a "family" visit back to Riyadh (he said he escorted his mother and daughter here to Manila) and feigned surprise that our Embassy in Riyadh was engaged in a direct dialogue with his government about terrorist financing links between Saudi Arabia and the Philippines. He noted, however, that the Saudi Finance Minister would travel soon for a one day visit to Manila to chair a bilateral commission. When asked, he claimed that the issue of financing links and enhanced cooperation between the SAG and the GRP on terrorist finance was not on the Minister's expected agenda. ¶2. (S/NF) Action request: The upcoming visit would provide an excellent opportunity for the two governments to forge new and possibly effective patterns of cooperation against these recurrent links between Saudi financiers and Philippine-based terrorists. Embassy recommends that the Department instruct our Embassy in Riyadh to raise with the SAG and encourage this addition to the Minister's talking points for Manila. MUSSOMELI