JIPTC RETURNED TO GOJ, WILL CONTINUE AS JIPTC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 004019

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

FOR NEA/ELA, INL/RM, INL/I

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/27/2017
TAGS: PREL SNAR MASS KPAL JO IZ
SUBJECT: JIPTC RETURNED TO GOJ, WILL CONTINUE AS JIPTC

REF: STATE 117584

Classified By: Ambassador David Hale for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

Summary
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1. (C) The Ambassador and Jordan's Public Security
Directorate Chief took part in a ceremony returning control
of the Jordan International Police Training Center to the
GOJ. The PSD Chief said that JIPTC would continue its
mission as an international police training center, and that
Jordan was interested in hosting future international police
training at the base, including for Palestinians. The
amendment to the LOA on JIPTC was signed per reftel and is
dated September 24.

JIPTC Returned to Jordan
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2. (SBU) The Jordan International Police Training Center was
symbolically returned to Jordan's Public Security Directorate
(PSD) during a transfer ceremony held at the base on
September 27. The Ambassador and PSD chief Lieutenant
General Mohammad Majed Al-Eitan participated in the ceremony
that saw the lowering of the American flag at JIPTC and a
symbolic signing over to PSD of the last elements of JIPTC
that will be transferred to the GOJ. The Ambassador
presented the folded flag to Eitan. The last day of
full-time American presence at the base is scheduled to be
September 30. After that time, full control of the base
reverts to the PSD.


3. (SBU) The Ambassador thanked the PSD for its support in
helping JIPTC successfully complete its mission. Since
November 2003, more than 56,000 Iraqi police officers,
training officers, border guards and corrections officers
trained at the base that featured, at one time or another
during the mission life-span, 19 countries providing trainers
and mission support for JIPTC. Australia, Austria, Belgium,
Canada, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, Hungary, Iraq, Jordan, Poland, Singapore, Slovakia,
Slovenia, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States
all participated in the JIPTC mission at various times.

JIPTC Lives On
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4. (C) Just prior to the ceremony, General Eitan unexpectedly
told the Ambassador that he and PSD had decided minutes
before the turn-over ceremony that they would retain JIPTC as
its own entity under the name and flag of JIPTC - to be run
by PSD. It will not be subsumed by "PSD Training City" - the
name for the rest of the base - and Jordanian police will not
train in the part of JIPTC known as JITC - Jordan
International Training Center. The surprise announcement of
JIPTC's continuance momentarily disrupted the ceremony, when
the previously-scheduled lowering of the JIPTC flag was
halted by Eitan just before the flag was lowered.


5. (SBU) Eitan told the Ambassador and later the ceremony
audience that PSD is interested in hosting police training
for "neighboring or brotherly countries," and desires to make
JIPTC available for such training opportunities in the
future. Eitan thanked the U.S. for its support of JIPTC, and
pledged future cooperation between the PSD and the USG.
Eitan also indicated to the Ambassador that he would market
the facility as a state-of-the-art international police
training center among the diplomatic community in Jordan,
internationally, and with the UN.

Palestinians at JIPTC
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6. (C) COMMENT: Eitan mentioned briefly to the Ambassador
the possibility of training Palestinian security forces at
JIPTC in the future. While JIPTC would be adequate for
Palestinian training requirements, decisions regarding
Palestinian training do not rest with the PSD, but with the
General Intelligence Directorate and the Royal Court.

LOA Amendment Signed
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7. (U) Prior to the turn-over ceremony, Eitan and the
Ambassador signed the latest amendment to the Jordan
International Police Training Center Letter of Agreement
requested in reftel. The signed documents are dated
September 24, 2007, and cover final JIPTC operations that
were to take place during September, 2007, the turn-over

AMMAN 00004019 002 OF 002


period for returning full control of JIPTC to the PSD.


Visit Amman's Classified Web Site at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/

Hale