JORDAN'S PM MEETS U.S. SENATE STAFFERS

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 002240 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/28/2016 TAGS: PREL PGOV KDEM ECON JO SUBJECT: JORDAN'S PM MEETS U.S. SENATE STAFFERS REF: A. AMMAN 2145 ¶B. AMMAN 2119 ¶C. AMMAN 2016 ¶D. AMMAN 1986 Classified By: AMBASSADOR DAVID HALE FOR REASONS 1.4 (b and d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit met with nine U.S. Senate staff members, accompanied by Ambassador, on March 23 as part of their week-long, GOJ-hosted visit. The PM discussed a range of topics from domestic reform to regional issues. Bakhit shared his concern over reactions to an impending increase in fuel prices, and voiced frustration over the difficulties reform legislation faces in Parliament. He also expressed support for a "nuclear weapons free" Middle East, saying that this would require U.S. dialogue with Iran. END SUMMARY. -------------- FUEL PRICES -------------- ¶2. (C) Bakhit noted with concern the potential for a hostile reaction in southern Jordan to the end of fuel subsidies scheduled in April (ref D). He observed that his meeting with the staffers took place one day after the GOJ announced that nine people convicted for inciting riots in Ma'an in 2002 would be sentenced to death (ref A). According to Bakhit, Ma'an - a southern hotbed of discontent - was already stirring over the sentences, and the fuel price issue was likely to further agitate tensions. -------------- REFORM IN JORDAN -------------- ¶3. (C) The PM touched briefly on several reform issues in Jordan. On electoral reform, Bakhit said the draft municipal elections law (ref B) - recently submitted to Parliament - aims for broader citizen participation in the decision-making process. He said that the bill faced an uncertain future in parliament, as a provision reserving 20% of municipal council seats for women (ref C) has drawn the ire of MPs. ¶4. (C) In the interest of hearing a wide range of voices, the PM said he is conducting weekly dialogue sessions with different segments of Jordanian society. He has met recently, for example, with university faculty, think tankers, and leaders of political parties. Regarding attempts to strengthen the role of political parties, Bakhit said that this requires a "generational effort". Jordanian party life suffered from a "cultural problem," he added, noting that Jordan's 32 current political parties - including the Islamic Action Front - have a combined, registered membership of less than 5,000. Moreover, according to Bakhit, only 1.4% of the public say they want to join a political party. Creating a party-based political system, therefore, would "take time." ¶5. (C) Bakhit told the staffers the GOJ needed to focus on reducing poverty in the country. While donor support from the U.S. and others has helped, he asserted that the situation for Jordan's poor was not improving. To combat poverty, Bakhit said Jordan must embark on a strategy to encourage investment, limit population growth, and assist and promote small businesses. He also stressed the need for the "Jordanization" of the QIZs, and the importance of keeping the textile sector competitive in the wake of the expiration of the multi-fiber arrangement. (NOTE: About 25,000 Jordanians and approximately 30,000 non-Jordanians work in the QIZs. END NOTE). ¶6. (C) The PM said that there is a clear relationship between the socio-economic needs of the people and political reform in Jordan. If the government was unable to meet the people's basic needs, for example, this might lead to "unwanted results" from reforms. Repeating a theme the staffers heard many times during the week, Bakhit stated that political reform in Jordan is closely tied to developments in Israel and the Palestinian territories. -------------- TERRORISM, IRAQ -------------- ¶7. (C) On terrorism, PM said that "we need to fight ideas with better ideas, not bullets," and stressed the need to "win the battle (against extremism) in schools, the media, and the mosques." Echoing statements the staffers heard in other meetings, Bakhit said that there are key posts in Iraq - namely the offices of Prime Minister and Defense Minister - that must be filled by neutral, non-militia players with national, rather than sectarian agendas. -------------- IRAN -------------- ¶8. (C) Fearful of Iranian influence in Iraq, and concerned over the potential for the Iranian regime to develop nuclear arms, Bakhit advocated for greater dialogue between the U.S. and Iran. He told the staffers that he would like to see a "nuclear weapon free region", and urged the U.S. to review the nuclear non-proliferation treaty as it had resulted, in Bakhit's eyes, in an "exclusive club." HALE