Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06ISTANBUL1201
2006-06-30 15:10:00
SECRET//NOFORN
Consulate Istanbul
Cable title:  

EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN COUNTER-TERRORISM

Tags:  AMGT ASEC OTRA PTER TU 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0016
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHIT #1201/01 1811510
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 301510Z JUN 06
FM AMCONSUL ISTANBUL
TO RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN PRIORITY 0035
RUEHTH/AMEMBASSY ATHENS PRIORITY 0714
RUEHLB/AMEMBASSY BEIRUT PRIORITY 0045
RUEHEG/AMEMBASSY CAIRO PRIORITY 0066
RUEHNC/AMEMBASSY NICOSIA PRIORITY 0698
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV PRIORITY 0101
RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM PRIORITY 0082
RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5383
INFO RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 5296
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS PRIORITY 0053
S E C R E T ISTANBUL 001201 

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/30/2016
TAGS: AMGT ASEC OTRA PTER TU
SUBJECT: EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN COUNTER-TERRORISM
DISCUSSIONS IN ISTANBUL

REF: A. STATE 90114 B. ANKARA 3327

Classified By: AMB. ROSS WILSON FOR REASONS 1.4 B, D

S E C R E T ISTANBUL 001201

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/30/2016
TAGS: AMGT ASEC OTRA PTER TU
SUBJECT: EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN COUNTER-TERRORISM
DISCUSSIONS IN ISTANBUL

REF: A. STATE 90114 B. ANKARA 3327

Classified By: AMB. ROSS WILSON FOR REASONS 1.4 B, D


1. (S/NF) Summary: U.S. Chiefs of Mission and others from
posts in Amman, Ankara, Athens, Beirut, Cairo, Istanbul,
Jerusalem, Nicosia and Tel Aviv joined representatives from
S/CT, EUR, NEA, the National Counterterrorism Center, EUCOM,
SOCOM, Justice and other agencies at ConGenIstanbul June
16-17, 2006, for an Eastern Mediterranean Regional Security
Initiative meeting. Participants discussed national,
regional and global terrorism threats in their countries, as
well as the interconnections among them where they exist.
They identified five potential areas for which regional
approaches could be feasible and appropriate:

-- establishing a regional law enforcement center with a CT
component;

-- improving border security, to include container security
initiatives;

-- working more effectively to counter PKK terrorist
activities;

-- countering extremist ideologies; and

-- strengthening Lebanon.

COMs agreed to meet again in October either in Washington or
Athens. End summary.

A Regional Nexus
--------------


2. (S/NF) A crossroads of civilization since antiquity, the
Eastern Mediterranean remains a critical transit point for
flows of people, goods and money between the Middle East,
Central Asia, and Europe. Opening remarks highlighted the
unique nature of this conference in bringing together people
from different regional bureaus and military theaters who
don't normally engage with one another. COMs and Washington
participants reviewed key issues country-by-country and
terror group-by-group. All countries deal in varying degrees
with al-Qaida and other global terrorist threats. Several
have regional terrorism problems (PKK, Palestinian groups
that affect Israel and the West Bank/Gaza). A number also
face more or less national/local terrorist challenges
(November 17 and its successors in Greece, Hizballah in
Lebanon, etc.),some of which -- like Hizballah -- also have

international reach. NCTC briefed on the counterterrorism
National Implementation Plan (NIP) and actions flowing from
it.


3. (S/NF) Discussion focused on identifying linkages and
potential areas of cooperation among posts and among the
involved countries on several levels - including security,
political and public diplomacy/public attitudes. Noting that
local and regional aspects of our counter-terrorism efforts
historically have been the least adequately addressed, COMs
discussed how best to use available diplomatic, political and
military tools, as well as public diplomacy, economic power
and support for enhanced rule of law in the region to address
this challenge. In this context, participants identified
five areas for further work as part of a broader Eastern
Mediterranean CT effort.

Specific Proposals
--------------


4. (S/NF) Support for Regional Law Enforcement Training:
Conference participants unanimously agreed on the utility of
developing law enforcement (including CT-specific)
capabilities throughout the region. They believed that it is
time to consider establishing for the Eastern Med countries
something like the International Law Enforcement Academy in
Budapest, noting that this would also help to foster and
enhance personal contacts and cooperation among their
countries that is now lacking. One suggestion was to make
use of the facilities of the Jordan International Police
Training Center (JIPTC) as Iraqi security forces training
there diminishes. NATO,s Center of Excellence - Defense
Against Terrorism (COE-DAT) Center based in Turkey could be
another useful forum. This training could also extend to
promoting regional cooperation between Ministries of Justice
and Public Prosecutors.


5. (S/NF) Improve Border Security: Participants agreed that
border security has obvious regional implications and that
cooperation among their countries is lacking in this area,
too. They agreed on the importance of expanding the reach of
border technology programs, such as technologies to prevent
clandestine crossings as well as fingerprint data sharing and
other biometric initiatives. The biometrics project
developed coming out of the Iraq Neighbors S/CT COM regional
meeting, might be a template. Port security, in particular,
was seen as a potential area for leveraging self-interested
support and possible financial assistance from the United
Arab Emirates, which has implemented a successful Container
Security Initiative in Dubai and which has ties to most if
not all of the Eastern Med countries represented.


6. (S/NF) Countering the PKK: Though the region is host to a
number of terrorist organizations, many of which cooperate
with one another, few were seen as operating on a large scale
beyond Iraq, the Palestinian territories or their own
domestic borders. Conference participants agreed however,
that making progress against the PKK was important for
encouraging enhanced Turkish cooperation in regional CT
initiatives. There was also some discussion of trying to
develop better Turkish-Greek cooperation/collaboration on the
PKK. Participants also discussed reinvigorating the existing
tripartite US-Iraq-Turkey initiative on the PKK, the need to
raise the PKK from Tier-3 to Tier-2 status as a target for
USG efforts, strengthening US efforts against the PKK in
Europe, and implementing other actions agreed interagency in
2004-05 to counter the PKK threat more effectively.


7. (S/NF) Countering Extremism: Participants recognized the
need for strategies that address underlying issues, including
especially to counter extremism in the region. They
considered how best to contend with the extremist ideologies
that fuel terrorist operations, e.g., through support for
initiatives such as King Abdullah,s "Amman message" on Islam
as a religion of moderation. Promoting such visions with the
Jordanians, through Turkey,s leadership role in the BMENA
Democracy Assistance Dialogue, and through NATO,s COE-DAT
could help reduce extremism. Participants cited the value of
nurturing scholars, and people-to-people contacts. One
suggestion that may be helpful in many countries was to
develop a long-term and large-scale program to bring imams to
the US for education in US theological faculties, which might
help moderate tendencies to relate to the US and the West
through extremist eyes. EUCOM,s representative described
the success (5 million hits per month) of a website developed
by DOD in conjunction with country teams at our Balkan
embassies aimed at winning the hearts and minds of youth in
that region.


8. (S/NF) Strengthening Lebanon: Participants acknowledged
that Lebanon represented a particularly critical case where
politics and terrorists mix, and where the latter exploit
longstanding confessional power sharing arrangements to
undermine the state further. COMs discussed the need to
strengthen Lebanon,s state institutions and marginalize
Hizballah. One thought was to encourage regional governments
and organizations to promote non-Hizballah Shia leaders by
including them in conferences as legitimate representatives
of Lebanon and/or its Shia community. While a Lebanon
strategy was beyond the obvious purview of this conference,
there was recognition of the need for a more comprehensive
approach with key regional governments toward supporting and
further developing effective governance in Lebanon. It was
noted that Turkey, following a successful visit by PM
Sinoria, might be able to play a more helpful role.


9. (S/NF) Finally, COMs raised concerns and sought
clarification from Washington concerning the impact of the
NIP,s ambitious and multiple taskings on existing operations
and budgets, and requested assistance in obtaining and
obligating significant additional funding to undertake this
regional CT strategy. To focus efforts and support budget
requests, COMs suggested that NEA and EUR consider including
in the CT portion of their BPPs a specific strategy to defeat
terrorism in the Eastern Mediterranean, together with a
coordinated legislative outreach.

Maintaining Momentum
--------------


10. (S/NF) COMs agreed to maintain regular contact and to
meet again in the fall to further refine elements of a
regional strategy. Embassy Athens offered to host the next
meeting in October 2006. As an alternative, there was some
discussion of separate meetings in the fall that might bring
the NEA ambassadors to Washington, to which Ankara, Athens
and Nicosia could be added for a sidebar discussion. Plans
are also in the works to establish in Turkey a position
dedicated to supporting regional CT work and strategy
development, and the Ankara COM undertook to consult with
other participants at the Istanbul meeting as this slot gets
stood up.


11. (U) Participating COMs have cleared this cable.
JONES