KING COVERS DOMESTIC AND REGIONAL ISSUES IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 003319 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/10/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER KDEM KPAL JO SUBJECT: KING COVERS DOMESTIC AND REGIONAL ISSUES IN SATELLITE TELEVISION INTERVIEW REF: A. AMMAN 2906 ¶B. AMMAN 2750 ¶C. AMMAN 865 ¶D. 05 AMMAN 9476 Classified By: Ambassador David Hale for Reasons 1.4 (b),(d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: King Abdullah gave an extensive interview May 7 with Arab satellite station Al-Arabiya in which he discussed both domestic and regional issues. He reiterated earlier pledges to balance security with public freedoms, hailed positive signs in Iraq, and claimed there is only a "two-year window of opportunity" to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The King's strong emphasis on moving ahead with political reform should help dispel doubts about his commitment on this front, as well as serve as a reminder to Parliament ) which came close to being dissolved before the November 9, 2005 hotel bombings - that obstruction of reform legislation will be viewed very negatively by the palace. END SUMMARY. TERRORISM -------------- ¶2. (U) The King said that terrorism cannot be fought only with security measures, but also through a comprehensive strategy that "rejects violence and denounces the exploitation of democracy or religion to justify terrorist acts." He added that a new anti-terrorism law the GOJ plans to introduce ) but which has not yet been made public - "will not be at the expense of democracy or public freedoms." IRAQ -------------- ¶3. (U) King Abdullah hailed the agreement of Iraqis on a president, prime minister and head of the Iraqi National Assembly as "positive signs" leading towards "the empowerment of the Iraqi people to achieve sovereignty throughout Iraqi territory." He cautioned, however, that the new Iraqi government must represent "all sectors" and not be dominated "by one sect or group." ISRAEL-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT -------------- ¶4. (U) Asked for his "forecast" for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the King stated that the peace process had become "hostage to the agenda of the new Israeli government and the new Palestinian government's program." He continued that the "window of opportunity for a settlement is two years," and warned that if a peace agreement was not reached during this time frame, "the Palestinians will have nothing left over which to negotiate." He urged the Quartet to "reactivate" the roadmap and pledged Jordan's support for the Palestinian people and their right to statehood. Noting that "everything that happens in the Palestinian territories affects Jordan," the King said that Jordan should have a role in negotiations over Jerusalem, refugees, water and borders, though he expressly denied having any special agenda or ambitions in the West Bank. HAMAS -------------- ¶5. (U) Regarding the Hamas-led Palestinian government, King Abdullah said "the world has to respect the choice of the Palestinian people and their right to choose their leadership." He added, however, that Jordan hoped the Palestinian government "will apply the utmost realism" in its policies and bear in mind "the position of the world ... and the many new realities that cannot be ignored or changed." The GOJ, the King commented, will deal with the new Palestinian government "according to our national policy." ¶6. (U) Asked if recent GOJ charges of weapons smuggling against Hamas were a "ruse" in order not to receive PA Foreign Minister Zahar (ref A),the King replied: "When Jordanian security services arrested the terrorist Sajida, there were some who doubted the (truth). This doubt probably exposes support and sympathy for those who commit such operations or for these terrorist operations or whoever stands behind them." NOTE: "Sajida" refers to Iraqi national Sajida al-Rishawi who is being tried for her role in the November 9, 2005 hotel bombings in Amman. END NOTE. The King further stated that Jordan had given "all the information" on the charges to PA President Abbas, and that a Palestinian delegation would be dispatched to Amman to follow up on the matter. REFORM AND PARLIAMENT -------------- ¶7. (U) King Abdullah denied that reform in Jordan was being undertaken to appease the U.S. He stated that "all Jordanians agreed on the necessity of reform and development," although he added that there were differences on "the best way to (achieve reforms) and how reforms should be prioritized." The King identified the National Agenda (ref D) as laying out a comprehensive strategy for needed reforms. ¶8. (U) In response to a question on the agenda for an extraordinary session of Parliament (ref B),the King mentioned that the following legislation "must be completed quickly" )- an anti-corruption law, a municipal elections law, an anti-terrorism law, a political parties law, and an ombudsman law. He declined to say whether he would consider dissolving Parliament if it did not take action on these laws. Rather, the King stated that "any delay in finalizing (the laws) would pose an obstacle to our national march," and later added that "I will not accept any obstacles to be placed in the way of our national march." Expressing confidence in Parliament, he stated, "I believe that the (members of Parliament) are up to the responsibilities and the challenges that we have to face." POLITICAL PARTIES -------------- ¶9. (U) The King cautioned that political reform could not be achieved "simply by changing the (national) elections law." He continued that strong national political parties ) free of "guidance or connections or finances" from outside the country ) were essential to meaningful political development. "We need to foster the culture of democracy so that people would know that neither democracy nor political development are complete without a mature national parties system." ¶10. (U) Asked why Jordanians refrained from joining political parties, the King placed blame on the "negative image" parties acquired in the 1950s and 1960s. He claimed that many parties during this time had sought to change "the identity of this country" under the direction of people outside Jordan. He also chided current parties for failing to develop concrete platforms ) as opposed to "slogans without content" - and for not reaching out to a broad audience. "I ask here why these small Jordanian parties don't joint together to form a larger party with a majority that stands in the middle between left and right. I am confident that such a party will have a wide popular base," the King stated. A POLITE NOD TO THE SAUDIS -------------- ¶11. (U) The final interview question asked if the King or GOJ had "contacts" with Saudi Arabia on the renewal of oil grants in the face of the recent sharp reduction of fuel subsidies in Jordan. The King responded that there had been "some discussion of this issue," and added that the Saudis "have never been anything but generous." ¶12. (C) COMMENT: The King's remarks in the interview are generally in line with his previous public comments on the subjects addressed. His pledge to balance security with public freedoms, for example, mirrors his speech opening the last session of Parliament (ref D). His guarded remarks on the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority - clearly intended for the Arab television audience - belie his desire to see the Hamas government fail. But his sense of urgency in calling for a resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, despite the current difficult environment, is sincere. The King's strong emphasis on moving ahead with political reform should help dispel doubts about his commitment on this front, as well as serve as a reminder to Parliament ) which came close to being dissolved before the November 9, 2005 hotel bombings ) that obstruction of reform legislation will be viewed very negatively by the palace. END COMMENT. Visit Amman's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/ HALE