PALESTINIANS SEEK PROGRESS ON CROSSINGS AMA

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 004472

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE; NEA/IPA FOR
WILLIAMS/SHAMPAINE/STEINGER; NSC FOR ABRAMS/DORAN/WATERS;
TREASURY FOR SZUBIN/LOEFFLER/NUGENT/HIRSON

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/11/2016
TAGS: ECON PREL PGOV ETRD KWBG IS
SUBJECT: PALESTINIANS SEEK PROGRESS ON CROSSINGS AMA
IMPLEMENTATION

Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) ConGenoffs, accompanied by USSC, USAID and Embassy
Tel Aviv representatives, met October 10 with Palestinian
negotiators from the previous PA government who were involved
in the negotiation of the Agreement on Access and Movement
(AMA). The informal meeting, the first in a series of
preliminary brainstorming discussions intended to
reinvigorate AMA implementation efforts, focused exclusively
on crossings, particularly the Karni/al-Mintar crossing.
The Palestinians, led by representatives of the PLO's
Negotiations Support Unit (NSU) and including former Minister
of Planning Ghassan al-Khatib, reiterated that efforts should
also be made to develop a common management system that could
be used as a model for other crossings.

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Crossing Problems
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2. (C) The meeting began with a review of the situation at
the crossings. According to the Palestinian side, persistent
problems at Karni/al-Mintar include:

-- Throughput is actually worse than before November 2005.
(Note: Average export volume in September 2006 was 15
truckloads per day. End Note.)

-- In light of last growing season's catastrophic losses due
to the inability to export fresh produce, many farmers in
Gaza did not plant crops this season.

-- The GOI is not employing USG-leased scanners to make the
security screening process more efficient. (Note: USAID
staff have observed USG-leased scanners being efficiently
used at West Bank crossings. End note.)

-- Products from the West Bank that have already undergone
inspection and/or scanning at West Bank crossings are
regularly subject to inspection and scanning again at
Karni/al-Mintar before entering Gaza whereas Israeli products
destined for Gaza are not subject to similar scrutiny.

-- Raw materials and other industrial inputs rarely make it
on to the schedule for delivery into Gaza while finished
Israeli products continue to flow.

-- Israeli products are given priority over West Bank goods
in terms of scheduling import shipments into Gaza.

-- The lack of transparency in crossing management operations
has fueled corruption on both sides.


3. (C) NSU Policy Advisor Nizar Farsakh commented that, even
with the current system and procedural shortcomings, the
crossings could be operating much more efficiently.
Karni/al-Mintar, for example, could handle 150 truckloads per
day from Gaza, an AMA goal to have been reached by December
31, 2005, without additional scanner technology. The
Palestinian side noted that having the Israeli side agree to
standardized packing of shipments at all crossings would help
the private sector and could expedite security screening.

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Israeli Commitment Sought
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4. (C) Ghassan Khatib said he feels that the Israelis
continue to severely restrict movement for political reasons,
often in the context of unspecified threats to crossings. In
his view, what is needed is a security plan that satisfies
the Israelis and is fully implemented and adhered to by all
parties to the agreements. Khatib said that the Palestinians
had no problem with the USSC's project for improving security
at Karni/al-Mintar, but he had yet to hear details of Israeli
views on the plan. Palestinian participants expressed some
optimism on the Karni Project but also stressed the need for
Israeli concurrence. Khatib added that Israeli agreement on
a crossing management system is also necessary if efforts to
improve crossing efficiency are to succeed.

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PA Presidency Forms Crossings Steering Committee
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5. (C) Farsakh advised that the PA Presidency had
established a steering committee on crossings, chaired by PLO
Chief Negotiator Sa'eb Erekat, consisting of representatives
from the PA President's office (Mohammed Mustafa and Rafiq
Husseini),the General Administration on Crossings and
Borders (GACB),the Presidential Guard, and the private
sector. NSU Legal Advisor Zeinah Salahi confirmed after the
meeting that this body would be involved in any "formal"
discussions on crossings.

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Next Steps: Common Management System for Karni?
-------------- ---


6. (C) Meeting participants agreed with ConGen EconChief's
suggestion that a December 2005 draft proposal on crossing
operations could serve as a basis for formulating a proposal
on a management system for Karni/al-Mintar. All agreed that
the management system adopted at Karni/al-Mintar would
subsequently serve as a model for other crossings. Such a
proposal on a management system would complement the USSC-led
efforts on improving security on the Palestinian side of the
crossing. ConGen will follow up with Embassy Tel Aviv, USSC
and USAID.

WALLES