DPM SHAIKH MOHAMMED DISCUSSES IRAN, IRAQ, NDI WITH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAMA 000936

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/29/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM IR IZ BA OFFICIALS BILAT
REGION, POL
SUBJECT: DPM SHAIKH MOHAMMED DISCUSSES IRAN, IRAQ, NDI WITH
AMBASSADOR


Classified By: Ambassador William T. Monroe. Reasons: 1.4 (b)(d)


1. (C) Summary. In a May 29 meeting with the Ambassador, DPM
Shaikh Mohammed welcomed continued dialogue on Iran, saying
it would be vital to get as accurate intelligence as we can
on Iran's nuclear program. On Iraq, he urged that new Iraqi
ministers make a greater effort to reach out to their
Bahraini and GCC counterparts to look for areas of
cooperation and help counter the steady stream of bad news
that Gulf citizens receive daily via television and
newspapers. He said that Bahraini ministers were reluctant
to travel to Baghdad until the security situation improved.
On NDI's recent closing in Bahrain, he put the blame squarely
on NDI's local director, saying that -- from the government's
perspective -- he focused his efforts on supporting the
opposition, not on developing democracy. Shaikh Mohammed
discussed the 2007-08 national budget, noting its stress on
housing, efficient government (notably e-government),and
vocational education. Everyone recognizes that "we have
broken the back of the unemployment problem," he stated. End
summary.


2. (C) Deputy Prime Minister Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak
Al-Khalifa opened the May 29 meeting with the Ambassador by
expressing his regret that he was not able to meet with the
delegation headed by PM Assistant Secretary Hillen and
Principal Deputy Undersecretary of Defense Henry during their
May 14 visit to Bahrain. He had been briefed by Crown Prince
Shaikh Salman on the discussions, and welcomed continued
exchanges between our two countries in the coming months on
Iran. The Ambassador said that he expected we would have a
regular flow of visitors interested in discussing Iran in the
coming months, and hoped to launch a more formal Gulf
Security Dialogue with countries in the region. Shaikh
Mohammed welcomed this, adding that it would be important to
work together to avoid the two worst-case scenarios -- Iran
getting a nuclear weapon capability or war to prevent that
from happening. As we move forward, he added, it will be
vital to get as much accurate intelligence as we can about
what Iran is really up to.


3. (C) On Iraq, the Ambassador expressed surprise that
Bahrain had not publicly welcomed the announcement of the new
Iraqi government. Shaikh Mohammed, who is no longer Foreign
Minister, was not sure why there had been no statement of
welcome, but said that we should not read any significance in
that. "Every step of the way," he said, "Bahrain had
welcomed positive moves in Iraq." He urged that the new
Iraqi leadership and ministers make a greater effort to reach
out and contact their Bahraini and Gulf counterparts. It did
not make sense that Iranian ministers have been much more
active and aggressive than Iraqi ministers in contacting
their Bahraini colleagues. With the formation of the new
government in Iraq, the new ministers should come to the Gulf
to help build confidence in the new Iraq. They should
contact Bahraini ministers and tell them what they need.


4. (C) Bahrainis, Shaikh Mohammed continued, do not know what
to believe about Iraq, basing all their information on
television and news reports. "All we hear are the bad
things, but if Iraqi ministers come to Bahrain they can tell
the people that there is more happening in Iraq than what
they read in the newspapers." As for Bahraini ministers
traveling to Baghdad, Shaikh Mohammed was more cautious.
Citing the attempted kidnapping and wounding of the Bahraini
charge d'affaires last year, and the recent kidnapping of a
UAE diplomat, he said Bahraini ministers were extremely
reluctant to go to Baghdad. "No," he stated, "the Iraqis
should come to us." The Ambassador urged that Bahrain look
for opportunities to invite Iraqi officials to Bahrain.


5. (C) The Ambassador asked Shaikh Mohammed for his views on
the NDI problem (recent closing of the NDI office in Bahrain
and departure of the office's director) and the way forward.
Shaikh Mohammed said that, unfortunately, NDI got off on the
wrong foot in Bahrain from the beginning when it established
itself in an irregular manner through the palace. Then, it
sent to Bahrain the wrong person, who from the point of view
of the government focused his efforts on supporting the
opposition, not on developing democracy. When Bahrain set up
its own organization to promote democracy (Bahrain Institute
for Political Development),NDI's director was unable to work
with it. Shaikh Mohammed said that Bahrain should have tried
to remove the NDI director a long time ago. "We believe as a
government that he was the source of the problem. He took
sides. He was not helping."


6. (C) Asked how we should move forward, Shaikh Mohammed said
that he was not directly involved in the issue, but suggested

MANAMA 00000936 002 OF 002


that NDI send a new person out to discuss and work out
arrangements.


7. (C) As Deputy Prime Minister for Ministerial Committee
Affairs, Shaikh Mohammed has played an active role in helping
prepare the 2007-2008 national budget, which was approved by
the Cabinet and forwarded to the parliament on May 28. He
wanted to highlight three areas that he felt were
particularly important. First, there is the emphasis on
housing. Until recently, unemployment had been the major
concern, and a source of recurring demonstrations, but now,
he said, everyone recognizes that "we have broken the back of
the unemployment problem." The focus will shift to
eliminating the housing shortage. Second, a major effort
will be launched to make government more efficient and
productive. A key component would be serious development of
e-goverment, something that has been talked about for years
in Bahrain with little result so far. Shaikh Mohammed said
he was heading a committee to push e-goverment, developing
systems to facilitate its use, for example, with vehicle
registration and payment of electricity bills, and
encouraging people to actually use it. Price Waterhouse has
been hired as an advisor for this project. Third, the budget
will focus on education, with increased emphasis on
vocational skills --something that has been seriously
neglected in Bahrain.
MONROE