MCNS - MALIKI ON OIL SMUGGLING, DIYALA SECURITY

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 BAGHDAD 003456 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/13/2016 TAGS: IZ MOPS PGOV PINS PNAT PREL PTER SUBJECT: MCNS - MALIKI ON OIL SMUGGLING, DIYALA SECURITY Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Daniel Speckhard for reasons 1.4 (b) a nd (d) ¶1. (S/REL GBR AUS) SUMMARY: During the September 10 meeting of the Ministerial Committee for National Security, Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki: -- Cited petroleum smuggling as a key source of terrorist financing that must be addressed together with energy infrastructure protection; -- Called for better control of entry points on the border with Jordan and improved security on the Baghdad-Jordan highway; -- Expressed strong concern over the deteriorating security situation in Diyala province and ordered that provincial government and security officials be brought together to plan countermeasures; -- Asserted that multiple operations centers could not substitute for interagency coordination in the field. Maliki called for simpler command and control arrangements. END SUMMARY -------------- OIL SMUGGLING -------------- ¶2. (S/REL GBR AUS) Prime Minister Maliki said that terrorists were involved in a range of organized criminal activities, including oil smuggling. Fourteen tanker trucks used for oil smuggling had recently been seized, along with falsified documents, car bombs, and an array of weapons. Eight terrorists had been arrested. ¶3. (S/REL GBR AUS) Noting that the Bayji-Bagdad pipeline had been sabotaged, Maliki asserted that a political solution was required for resolution of the interlocked fuel smuggling and infrastructure problems. Technology and the support of local people must be harnessed to protect pipelines and prevent smuggling. He asked Ministers to join coalition forces in studying the issue, stating that there was a need for a long term plan to secure Iraqi oil. The Minister of State for National Security suggested building up the Coast Guard and forming a National Association to Combat Smuggling. -------------- IRAN'S ROLE -------------- ¶4. (S/REL GBR AUS) Maliki commented that a security agreement with Iran might be a useful anti-smuggling tool. At present, he said, Iranian border police participate in smuggling. Maliki appealed for coalition assistance in combating smuggling in the Northern Gulf. Maliki said that the UN or Arab League might also be asked to play a role in organizing the efforts of neighboring countries to combat the smuggling of Iraqi oil. -------------- ECONOMIC INCENTIVES FOR OIL SMUGGLING -------------- ¶5. (S/REL GBR AUS) Minister of Interior Boulani said that regional fuel price differential encouraged people to steal. He called for the relevant laws to be simplified and the prices rationalized. Deputy National Security Advisor Dr. Safaa said the Deputy Ministerial Committee for National Security was studying a plan to bring Iraq's fuel prices into line with neighboring countries, depriving smugglers of a profit motive. Safaa noted that Deputy Ministerial Committee for National Security had also discussed a proposed National Operations Center to would coordinate the anti-smuggling actions of various ministries. ¶6. (S/REL GBR AUS) The Prime Minister declared that Iraq's current infrastructure protection force was neither qualified nor loyal. New units should be formed, he said, and aircraft used to patrol pipelines and electrical power lines. Agreements aimed at seeking Iraq's tribes' cooperation had been an expensive failure, opined Maliki. ¶7. (S/REL GBR AUS) MNC-I's Commanding General Chiarelli said that although Iraq's strategic infrastructure battalions are improving, corruption continues to rob the country of its wealth. Chiarelli said that Operation Spigot -- a joint Coalition-Oil Ministry plan -- could soon be implemented to enable the Coalition and Iraq to work more aggressively to arrest smugglers. Coalition forces were also analyzing how many troops are needed to protect power lines. Chiarelli would soon be able to provide this information to Iraqi leaders. BAGHDAD 00003456 002 OF 003 -------------- DIYALA -------------- ¶8. (S/REL GBR AUS) The Prime Minister turned to the deteriorating security situation in Diyala province. He listed his concerns: -- Residents are being forced to flee their houses; -- Murders and kidnappings are increasing; -- Baathists are resurgent, again putting up pictures of Saddam; -- Provincial officials are unreliable, with the Deputy Governor suspected of cooperating with Baathists and the Iranian Muhajedin-e-Khalq terrorist organization. ¶9. (S/REL GBR AUS) Minister of Interior Boulani felt that two additional police battalions are needed in the province. Minister of Defense Abdul Qader agreed that there are not enough troops, especially around Baqubah, and said that two or three additional army brigades are required. ¶10. (S/REL GBR AUS) Maliki ordered that Province's Governor, Police Chief and Army Division commander be brought together with the Ministers of Defense and Interior to review the situation and plan countermeasures. He underlined that coalition forces would play the key role in reestablishing Diyala's security. -------------- BAGHDAD SECURITY -------------- ¶11. (S/REL GBR AUS) During the regular Baghdad Security update, Minister of Defense Abdul Qader Al-Muffraji claimed that terrorists were now concentrating attacks on civilians instead of against Iraqi security forces. He expressed concern over foreign fighters from Syria coming in to Iraq in order to carry out suicide bombings. He advocated greater security efforts in areas where car bombs are produced. ¶12. (S/REL GBR AUS) Al-Muffraji continued that security forces' work must be complemented by action from civilian agencies. He asserted that there had been a failure to provide services like banks, medical care, clean water and electricity in newly secured neighborhoods. He said that past security operations in Najaf and Tal Afar had been complemented by civil action. Ministries had set up operations rooms to coordinate civil support. ¶13. (S/REL GBR AUS) Both Minister of Interior Boulani and Commanding General of the Joint Forces, General Babakir Baderkhan Zibari claimed that civilian confidence in the Iraqi police forces was increasing. General said that although people "feared the national police," effective security operations were improving its image. Boulani acknowledged that there were not as many returns of internally displaced families to their homes in newly cleared areas in Baghdad as had been hoped for. ¶14. (S/REL GBR AUS) Boulani stressed the importance of thoroughly surveying neighborhoods and vetting each house's residents, especially when previous residents have been displaced. He cited a raid earlier in the day on a terrorist safe house that had yielded a ton of explosives, including anti-tank mines, suicide vests, and counterfeit documents. The house's owners had been forced out by sectarian threats and the house was occupied by terrorists who set up a front business. -------------- DIVISIVE FEDERALISM DEBATE -------------- ¶15. (S/REL GBR AUS) In response to a recommendation that the debate over federalism in the Council of Representatives be postponed, in order to avoid political tumult, the Prime Minister said stability was a necessary precondition for federalism. Although he supported federalism, he was concerned that the acrimonious debate could stall his national reconciliation efforts. Maliki said that constitutionally mandated sixth month timetable to handle the federalism issue, made it necessary to handle the issue now. The Prime Minister indicated that Parliamentary Speaker Mahmud al-Mashadani had previously told him an agreement for federalism had been brokered, so he was surprised when Council of Representatives members walked out of the debate and the session had to be abandoned. BAGHDAD 00003456 003 OF 003 -------------- COMMAND AND CONTROL PROBLEMS -------------- ¶16. (S/REL GBR AUS) Director General Iraqi National Intelligence Service Mohammed Al-Shawani reported that Saddam's henchman, Baathist leader Izzat Al Douri, had been recently spotted near Al Khalis in Diyala province where he had gone to visit a religious advisor. Minister of Interior Boulani intervened to complain that he had not been immediately notified and protested of poor interagency coordination. The Minister of State for National Security agreed, citing recent discussion of this theme on the National Intelligence Council. ¶17. (S/REL GBR AUS) Al-Shawani said that the INIS had recently provided warning that a Baqubah resident was targeted for kidnapping but no preventative action was taken and the individual was later kidnapped. He said that there had been many similar cases. It was necessary to establish a standard course of action linking intelligence to operations. Abdul Qader responded that the Ministry of Defense had well-defined and well-rehearsed procedures for such cases. ¶18. (S/REL GBR AUS) Prime Minister Maliki opined that further coordinating mechanisms or operations centers are not required, there was a need to simplify current arrangements. There were already many in existence, at various levels. Maliki specified that cooperation in the field is the key requirement. SPECKHARD