IRAQIS TREADING CAUTIOUSLY ON ARAB LEAGUE BOYCOTT

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 000861

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/16/2016
TAGS: ECON ETRD KBCT PGOV PREL IS IZ
SUBJECT: IRAQIS TREADING CAUTIOUSLY ON ARAB LEAGUE BOYCOTT
DIPLOMACY

REF: BAGHDAD 765 (NOTAL)

Classified By: EconMinCouns Delare for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Econoff on March 15 met with Hikmat M. Abdullah,
Minister Plenipotentiary and Director of the Arab League
Boycott Office within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA),
to discuss removal of the Arab League Boycott (ALB) from
Iraqi law. Hikmat said Iraqi officials understand the
negative economic consequences of continuing the boycott,
especially in light of GOI interest in WTO accession. He
claimed that enforcement of the boycott is getting weaker
every year. However, he argued that repealing the boycott
from Iraqi law at this time would likely lead to a negative
public reaction that Iraq does not need.

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Political Consequences
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2. (C) Director Hikmat had additional objections to
repealing the boycott. He said that under current political
conditions, Iraq could be viewed as caving to U.S. and
Israeli pressure. He also mentioned the significance of the
sizable Palestinian population in Iraq. Hikmat predicted
that all Iraqis, regardless of sect or region, would react
negatively to a public repeal of the ALB. He said for now
Iraq should leave the ALB law alone while considering ways to
gradually repeal it.

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Getting Out of a Corner
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3. (C) Hikmat said that at the most recent ALB meeting, in
November 2005 in Damascus, attendees from other countries
accused Iraq of having Israeli goods and threatened to put
this accusation into official meeting proceedings. GOI
officials told the meeting that Iraq does not import Israeli
products and does not have any in the country. When some at
the ALB meeting alleged that the U.S. military in Iraq uses
Israeli products, Hikmat told his interlocutors that this is
not an issue the GOI is interested in pursuing with the USG.
Hikmat told us the condition for removing statements from the
official proceedings was that the discussion of Iraq's ALB
enforcement would continue at the May 2006 ALB meeting in
Damascus.


4. (C) Hikmat admitted that Iraq imports Israeli products.
He has requested guidance from the Prime Minister's office
(reftel) on how to respond to queries at the next Damascus
meeting, as well as how to proceed with the ALB as Iraq
simultaneously moves to achieve WTO status.
KHALILZAD