TALABANI AND AMBASSADOR DISCUSS KEEPING IN THE

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 002254

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/07/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL IZ IR
SUBJECT: TALABANI AND AMBASSADOR DISCUSS KEEPING IN THE
SUNNIS, VISITS TO IRAN, CHINA

Classified By: Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: On July 3, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani
met with the Ambassador and Meghan O'Sullivan, and they were
later joined by DPM Barham Saleh. Talabani agreed to mediate
between Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi and Prime Minister
Nuri al-Maliki in an effort to bring the Presidency Council
and PM together and to keep Tawafuq from withdrawing from the
Government. Barham Saleh discussed the July 3 Council of
Ministers meeting, in which the draft hydrocarbons framework
law was reaffirmed. Talabani had recently returned from
visits to China, Iran, and Switzerland. He said that Tehran
committed to negotiations with the U.S. at the highest level.
China forgave much of Iraq's debt and signed a deal to sell
$96 million in light weapons to the GOI. Finally, at the
Socialists International meeting in Geneva, Talabani
convinced participants to issue a statement supporting Iraq.
END SUMMARY.

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The "3 plus 1"
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2. (C) The Ambassador told Talabani the political situation
in Iraq had worsened in Talabani's absence. The Sunnis must
remain in the government, the Ambassador said, or it would
have severe consequences in Iraq and Washington. He called
on Talabani to help hold Iraq together. He and O'Sullivan
pushed Talabani for a commitment to remain in Iraq. Talabani
agreed to remain in Iraq for the rest of 2007 with the
exception of a return trip to the Mayo Clinic in September,
promising he would spend 20-25 days of each month in Baghdad,
with the remainder in Kurdistan.


3. (C) O'Sullivan mentioned that Hashimi might need
political cover (such as a statement from the GOI) to move
forward on the issue of the arrest of the Minister of
Culture. Talabani said that Mithal al-Alusi, Council of
Representatives (CoR) member, who claimed to possess evidence
that the Culture Minister had a hand in the murder of his
sons, had the right to justice. However, Talabani agreed that
the GOI handled the situation poorly.


4. (C) Talabani thought the CoR could pass the hydrocarbons
framework law, though he noted that Tawafuq was "acting like
a dictator" -- expecting to get its way on every issue.


5. (C) The Ambassador urged Talabani to get the Presidency
and PM together to deal with Tawafuq and then focus on the
larger issues. Talabani agreed, saying the "Gang of Four,"
as he refers to the Presidency plus the PM, should make
important decisions together and discuss actions such as
arresting a minister before they happen. He said the
challenges are getting Maliki to accept this framework and
getting Hashimi to relax his demands.


6. (C) During the meeting, Talabani called VPs Hashimi and
Mehdi and Prime Minister Maliki to set up meetings with them.
(Note: Talabani then told the Ambassador over the phone on
July 4 that continuing tensions between Maliki and Hashimi
would delay any thought of a Presidency Council/PM meeting.
He agreed to continue mediating and work to bring them
together. End Note.)

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DPM Saleh on the Council of Ministers Meeting
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7. (C) Barham Saleh joined the meeting and told the group
that the Council of Ministers (CoM) had reaffirmed the draft
hydrocarbons framework law, which it would send to the CoR
immediately. He said Tawafuq had not attended the meeting.
The PM wanted to discuss the draft revenue management law,
but Saleh convinced him that they should wait until they
could discuss it with Talabani and the Presidency Council.
Saleh said they must bring Hashimi and Tawafuq along on these
laws -- if laws create more divisions in the country, then
they have negated their purpose. The CoM passed a resolution
on the Japanese-World Bank issue and approved some Oil
Ministry contracts and $50 million for Rusafa (Rule of Law
Complex).

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Talabani Visits Iran, Iran Again Pledges to Cooperate
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8. (S) Telling the Ambassador about his discussions in
Tehran, Talabani said Iran was ready for negotiations at the
highest level. He met with Iranian President Ahmadinejad,
Supreme National Security Council Chair Larijani, and IRGC
Quds Force commander Soleimani, who told Talabani they would

BAGHDAD 00002254 002 OF 002


put him in touch with Muqtada al-Sadr so that Talabani can
instruct Sadr on what to do with his Jaysh al-Mahdi (JAM)
militia. They also told Talabani they would form a security
committee and could eliminate the Al Qaeda presence within
two months. They had concerns about the Joint Security
Working Group, saying that the Arab states and Turkey were
plotting against them. They also claimed that the U.S. had
turned toward the Sunnis.


9. (C) Talabani said that $170 million of the $1 billion
Tehran recently pledged to the GOI would go to the Kurdistan
Regional Government (KRG). Tehran suggested the KRG send a
delegation to discuss how to best spend their portion. He
said they did not deny their support for Ansar al-Islam
(AAI),but they told him they had closed the AAI offices and
arrested some of its members. Talabani said he had sent one
of his staff to confirm these claims, who verified they
closed on June 20.


10. (C) He noted that Iran's relations with Syria were not
good. Iran had evidence that Syria was encouraging the
Ba'athists to cooperate with Saleh Mutlaq. For this reason
he recommended that Maliki not visit now.


11. (C) He said ISCI leader Abdul Aziz al-Hakeem, whom he
visited in Tehran, was doing well and responding to cancer
treatment better than expected. A specialist had come from
Vienna and Hakeem would soon go to Vienna for further
treatment.

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China Cancels Debt, Sells Light Weapons
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12. (C) Talabani expressed satisfaction with his trip to
China, saying that China had agreed to cancel all GOI
sovereign debt and 80 percent of Iraqi commercial debt -
about USD 6.4 billion. China would sell Iraq USD 96 million
in small arms for the Iraqi police, which Talabani expected
to be delivered to the port at Basrah within one month.
China expressed readiness to sell heavier weapons, but
Talabani told them the GOI could get those from the U.S.
China was also ready to train Iraqi security forces, set up
courses for students, and invest in Kurdistan.

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Socialist International Conference
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13. (C) Talabani stated that he convinced the participants
at the Socialists International conference in Geneva to issue
a proclamation on Iraq and asked the socialist countries to
cancel Iraqi debt. He reminded the French, Belgians, and
Italians, who were contemplating a proclamation calling for
Coalition withdrawal from Iraq, about the U.S. role in their
own liberation during World War II. How could Iraq protect
itself without the Coalition, he asked rhetorically.


14. (C) He told the Ambassador he would invite French
Minister of Foreign Affairs Kouchner to Iraq. He also said
he would ask KRG President Barzani, in Paris at the time, to
ask the French government to make a statement in support of
Iraq.

CROCKER