TOP PARLIAMENTARIANS SHARE VIEWS ON IRANIAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 001600 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/IR AND NEA/ARP, LONDON FOR TSOU, PARIS FOR ZEYA E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/06/2016 TAGS: PREL IR KU KUWAIT IRAN RELATIONS SUBJECT: TOP PARLIAMENTARIANS SHARE VIEWS ON IRANIAN POLICIES AND MOTIVATIONS WITH AMBASSADOR REF: A. KUWAIT 1519 ¶B. KUWAIT 1451 ¶C. KUWAIT 1346 ¶D. KUWAIT 1319 Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) In separate meetings with the Ambassador on May 3, National Assembly Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi, Deputy National Assembly Speaker Mishari Al-Anjari, and Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Mohammed Jassem Al-Sager, who also serves as Speaker of the newly created Arab Parliament, shared their perspectives on Iranian policy and the Iranian regime's underlying motivations. In his usual style, Al-Khorafi criticized the U.S. approach towards Iran. "The way the U.S. is dealing with Iran has strengthened the conservatives to the detriment of the moderates" in Iran, Al-Khorafi argued. He advised the U.S. not to "hurt their pride" and to open up both direct and indirect lines of communication with the Iranian regime using regional allies. "Don't embarrass them publicly. What you tell them behind closed doors can be more accepted" than public criticism, Al-Khorafi stressed. He said Arab publics were not taking U.S. criticism of Iran's nuclear program seriously because it was not balanced by criticism of Israel's nuclear program. He added that regional issues, like Iraqi instability, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and Syrian involvement in Lebanon, were interrelated with the controversy over Iran's nuclear program. Al-Khorafi reported that "one Iranian official who recently visited Kuwait" assured him Iran's nuclear program was for peaceful purposes only. (Note: Al-Khorafi met with Hashemi Rafsanjani during the former Iranian President's April 16 - 18 visit to Kuwait (reftels). End note) "I don't have any reason not to believe them," he concluded. ¶2. (C) Al-Anjari believed the objectives of Iran's nuclear program were threefold: 1) to provide an umbrella for the regime to crack down on domestic opposition; 2) to re-invigorate Iran's export of its revolutionary agenda; and 3) to increase Iranian influence in the Gulf, since, as Al-Anjari argued, Iran would never use nuclear weapons against non-Gulf countries. He suggested other countries in the region, specifically Egypt and Saudi Arabia, should leak information indicating that if Iran developed nuclear weapons, they would be forced to follow suit. Al-Anjari said this would give the international community a "pretext" to push for a nuclear-free Middle East. He also believed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) should more clearly support the efforts of the P5, specifically by stating that Iran's enrichment process would lead to the development of nuclear weapons. In addition, Al-Anjari criticized GCC countries for not adopting "a more clear, open position on Iran." Al-Anjari concluded that a U.S. declaration supporting a nuclear-free Middle East would help silence "some simple-minded Arabs' comparison" of Iran's nuclear program with Israel's. ¶3. (C) Like Al-Anjari, Al-Sager was more critical of Iran than Al-Khorafi. "The Speaker pissed me off for saying there is no danger from Iran," Al-Sager said, commenting on Al-Khorafi's statement to the press after the Rafsanjani meeting. To the contrary, "We are very worried," he argued, noting his own statements to the press during the visit that "Iranian assurances are not sufficient" and "Iran is a clear threat." Iran was showing signs of strength, Al-Sager told the Ambassador. "They have many cards they can play - the Hezbollah card, the Hamas card, the oil card, the (Straits of) Hormuz card - and they are playing them brilliantly. This (Iranian) regime is an absolute danger, even leaving aside the nuclear program," Al-Sager argued. Reporting on his recent visit to Saudi Arabia, Al-Sager said "the Saudis are also scared" of Iran and "are feeling the pressure of the Shi'a in their Eastern province." He said King Abdullah and Prince Sultan, both of whom he met with during his trip, were "very worried." ********************************************* * For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s Visit Kuwait's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ ********************************************* * LEBARON