U/S EDELMAN'S MEETING WITH ASST MINISTER OF

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 04 RIYADH 005082

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/25/2016
TAGS: MARR MASS MCAP MOPS PARM PGOV PREL PINR PTER
SA
SUBJECT: U/S EDELMAN'S MEETING WITH ASST MINISTER OF
DEFENSE PRINCE KHALID BIN SULTAN

Classified By: Ambassador James C. Oberwetter for reasons 1.4 (b) and (
d).


1. (S) Summary: Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Eric
Edelman discussed the U.S.-Saudi defense relationship, Iran,
and regional security during his June 6 meeting with Prince
Khalid bin Sultan, Assistant Minister of Defense and Aviation
for Security Affairs. The overall tone of the meeting was
very up-beat and Prince Khalid praised the US-Saudi
mil-to-mil relationship. However, Prince Khalid did raise
three main concerns: Saudi Arabia's lack of an early warning
air defense data-link; frustrations over obtaining visas for
official travel to the U.S.; and Congressional reluctance to
release certain equipment to Saudi Arabia. Specifically, he
singled out Congress' unwillingness to release Radar Vision
2i, a motion detection device that he sees as crucial for
army and navy special forces. He was generally supportive of
the U.S. approach toward Iran, but cautioned that gaining
support from the Saudi public will be difficult unless a
statement is made on Israel's nuclear activities. End
Summary.


2. (S) During their June 6 meeting, Under Secretary of
Defense for Policy Eric Edelman and Prince Khalid bin Sultan,
Assistant Minister of Defense and Aviation (MODA) for
Security Affairs, discussed the U.S.-Saudi security
relationship, regional security, helicopters, Iran, Iraq, and
visas. Ambassador Oberwetter, Michael Coulter (DAS for
PolMil Affairs),Lt Gen Jeffrey Kohler (Director, DSCA),RADM
Robert Moeller (CENTCOM J-5),BG Michael Jones (Joint Staff
J-5 Deputy Director for PolMil Affairs),Maj Gen Twitchell
(CH-USMTM),DATT, and PolMilOff (notetaker) also attended the
meeting, as did approximately 10 senior officers from MODA
and the Saudi armed forces.

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U.S.-SAUDI MILITARY RELATIONSHIP
--------------


3. (S) Prince Khalid praised the U.S.-Saudi friendship, and
said that our cooperative efforts to liberate Kuwait in 1991
"proved to the world the strong alliance between the United
States and Saudi Arabia." He said that the U.S. and Saudi
Arabia have the same national interests, including justice,
respect for individuals, respect for other countries, and
world peace. He added that we have moved beyond our
differences since September 11, "and we now have the best
military relationship ever." He said that Saudi Arabia "is
committed to our strong relationship, and a strong ally needs
a strong defense." Prince Khalid thanked U/S Edelman for the
successful recent visit of a USAF delegation, and said he
looks forward to the upcoming visit of 68 USAF personnel to
conduct a comprehensive review of the Royal Saudi Air Force
(RSAF). He is also optimistic that the Strategic Joint
Planning Committee (SJPC) will re-start this year. He added
that the Military Joint Planning Committee (MJPC),to be held
in September, will help to prepare for the SJPC.


4. (S) U/S Edelman said that President Bush and VP Cheney are
committed to the U.S.-Saudi relationship, and that the USG
intends to conduct regular, senior-level consultations with
the SAG, including through interagency delegations. He said
that both the SJPC and the MJPC could be used to help develop
strategic plans for the region. He added that the USAF plans
to present its report on its review of the RSAF in September.


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IRAN
--------------


5. (S) U/S Edelman reiterated Secretary Rice's May 31
statement on Iran, and said that constant new developments in
the region require constant consultations with our allies.
He said that Iran presents a strategic challenge to the U.S.
and to the region, and that we need to work with our allies
to develop a strategic response.


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6. (S) Prince Khalid said that any nuclear development in the
region is dangerous, and he expressed his hope that the
Iranian nuclear standoff would be resolved peacefully, in a
way that "saves face" for Iran. He said that dismantling
Iran's nuclear program by force would be "the worst scenario"
and should be avoided "by any means." He fears that using
military force against Iran's nuclear facilities would result
in a war more vicious and more violent than the 1991 Gulf
War. He added, "I thank God that the U.S. is the world
leader, and I pray to God that if there is to be only one
nuclear power, that it's the U.S., because the U.S. stands
for justice and is responsible with its power."


7. (S) Prince Khalid said that Iran's nuclear efforts need to
be the focus of the international community, but he stressed
that the world cannot simultaneously ignore Israel's nuclear
programs. He countered the argument that Israel, unlike
Iran, is not a member of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty
by asking, "does Israel have the right to develop nuclear
weapons, just because it never signed the treaty?" He said
that he does not expect Israel to disarm, but he suggested
that even a USG statement recognizing Israel's nuclear
capability would help gain public Saudi support for our
policies on Iran. He said he would like to see Israel give
its assurances to renounce nuclear weapons if the entire
region, including India and Pakistan, were free of nuclear
weapons. He said that convincing the Saudi public that Iran
does not have the right to develop nuclear weapons will
continue to be difficult as long as Israel is ignored.


8. (S) U/S Edelman said that the USG was grateful that the
SAG sent a representative to observe the Proliferation
Security Initiative (PSI) exercise held in Turkey in May. He
noted that the U.S. and Saudi navies conduct joint exercises,
and that there is no reason why such exercises could not take
place as part of PSI.

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PROBLEMATIC ISSUES
--------------

Early Warning Data-Link
--------------

9. (S) While striking an overall upbeat tone about the
U.S.-Saudi military relationship, Prince Khalid raised
several problematic issues that the SAG has consistently
voiced: the lack of an early warning air defense data-link;
difficulties obtaining visas for official travel to the U.S.;
and Congressional resistance to releasing certain equipment
to the Kingdom. Prince Khalid said that giving Kuwait, but
not Saudi Arabia, the early warning data-link "is a big
insult." He said that he cannot explain to his officers why
Saudi Arabia does not have the link, and that he has been
trying to resolve this issue for the past two years. He
added that Saudi Arabia must be able to protect itself from
ballistic missiles, saying, "It won't be the Iranian Air
Force, or Navy. It won't be ships or boats. It will be
missiles."


10. (S) RADM Moeller said that there is only one issue that
needs to be resolved before the CISMOA is finalized. He said
that he will return to Saudi Arabia the following week, and
hopes to complete the agreement soon.


11. (S) Prince Khalid insisted that an agreement to support
the broader cooperative defense effort "should be kept
simple. Otherwise, if we add other countries, it won't happen
at all. All we need to do is adopt the same agreement we had
in 1991. I signed that agreement with General Schwarzkopf.
We just need to implement it." He continued, "if the USG had
listened to us four years ago, we would have the system by
now." Prince Khalid said that he welcomes U.S. experts to
work on the problem, "but it is urgent -- we should not wait
until September to discuss it." Maj Gen Twitchell presented
Prince Khalid a letter and point paper outlining the
historical background and solution to obtaining shared
early-warning. It was suggested that MODA, CENTCOM and USMTM
meet as soon as possible to discuss.

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Visas
--------------

12. (S) Turning to the visa issue, Prince Khalid said that a
MODA Air Defense Committee plans to travel to the U.S. soon,
but the Air Defense Forces G-3, who is their number three
official, has not yet been issued a visa. Prince Khalid
insisted that the Committee will not go to the U.S. without
the G-3. "Please let me know why he cannot get a visa. If
he is a terrorist, I will take care of it. But I know how
loyal and committed my officers are," he pleaded. U/S
Edelman acknowledged Prince Khalid's frustrations and said
that Secretaries Rice, Rumsfeld, and Chertoff are all
personally engaged in fixing the system to strike a better
balance between security and access.

Releasability
--------------

13. (S) Prince Khalid raised the SAG's increasing
frustrations with Congress' unwillingness to release certain
weapons systems and other equipment to Saudi Arabia. He
cited Executive Branch advice to MODA to buy certain weapons,
only to have Congress deny the sales. "As an example, the
U.S. insisted that MODA buys Stingers, and we agreed to pay
cash. But Congress said no. It was the same thing with
AWACS," he said. He also voiced his displeasure with
Congressional objection to RSAF basing its F-15 fighter
planes in Tabuk, near Israel, but he was grateful that issue
was resolved before OIF. He said that he would prefer that
the USG would not even discuss arms sales with the SAG until
Congress approves the potential deals. "It's not like the
'70s. The Saudi public read the news and has access to the
internet and satellite TV. We cannot accept being insulted
for buying and paying for weapons that we never receive," he
said. Citing MODA's successful purchase of the Hawk and
Patriot missiles, Prince Khalid said, "I insisted that we
would not discuss those deals with the company until it was
approved in Congress. And it worked."


14. (S) U/S Edelman said that the USG will "do what it can"
on the releasability issue, and noted that the SJPC will be
very important. He added that Congress is becoming more
focused on the strategic aspects of the region, particularly
in relation to Iran. He added that private companies are
different than the USG and that the defense industry should
continue to work directly with Congress.


15. (S) Mr. Coulter added that he and Lt Gen Kohler work with
Congress on arms sales, and said "there is a new environment
on the Hill." Rather than using a "piecemeal approach," he
said the Executive Branch is starting to engage in a "more
holistic, principled" discussion with the Hill about creating
regional partnerships for regional security, and "Iran weighs
heavy" in the discussions. He said that he believes there is
an opportunity now to engage Congress with a different vision
for the region. Lt Gen Kohler added that he and Mr. Coulter
are working with Congress to move forward on authorizing
upgrades to Saudi Arabia's Apaches, Blackhawks, and M1A2
tanks. Prince Khalid said that he is "more concerned about
weapons for RSAF," and he suggested a lease-to-sale
agreement, similar to what was done four years ago, prior to
OEF and OIF.


16. (S) Prince Khalid said that MODA's priority is to fight
terrorists, and over the past three years, MODA has increased
training, equipment, and soldiers in the Special Forces. He
specified electronic reconnaissance equipment that the
Special Forces units in both the Royal Saudi Land Forces and
the Royal Saudi Naval Forces urgently need: Radar Vision
2-I, which allows soldiers to detect personnel through walls
and other barriers. He clearly stated, "we are going to buy
it from another country if we can't get it from the U.S. We
are not going to waste our time waiting for Congress."


17. (S) U/S Edelman said that he would look into this, and
added that he is committed to improving the interagency
process to at least get the Executive Branch all on the same
page.

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18. (S) Comment: Prince Khalid tends to be frank and direct
in raising his concerns with the USG. His frustrations over
releasability, the early warning data-link, and visas are not
new, and he will likely continue raising these issues until
they have been satisfactorily resolved. Likewise, he
consistently raises Israel in reference to Iran's nuclear
programs. While he and the rest of the senior SAG leadership
are clearly concerned about Iran's nuclear ambitions, the SAG
is reluctant to publicly support our stance given Saudi
perceptions of Israel' nuclear activities. Finally, Prince
Khalid invited U/S Edelman, as he has invited other official
visitors, to stay longer, in order to experience Saudi
hospitality. End Comment.


19. (U) U/S Edelman and Mr. Coulter cleared this cable.
OBERWETTER