KRG WELCOMES COUNTER-TERRORISM ASSISTANCE AGAINST

S E C R E T BAGHDAD 003769 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/15/2017 TAGS: PGOV PTER TU IZ SUBJECT: KRG WELCOMES COUNTER-TERRORISM ASSISTANCE AGAINST PKK REF: SECSTATE 145370 Classified By: Deputy Political Counselor Ellen Germain for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Minister of Interior Karim Sinjari welcomed upcoming visits by an Iraq Threat Finance Cell (ITFC) agent and the S/CT terrorist finance assessment team. Sinjari told RRT Erbil November 14 that he sees the visits as a means to identify specific deficiencies in the KRG's expertise, laws and financial regulatory frameworks in the realms of money laundering and terrorist financing. He said he would like the visits to result in USG assistance in these areas for the KRG. The Chairman of the KRG Central Bank also attended the meeting and pledged his support to our efforts. ¶2. (C) The Iraq Threat Finance Cell (ITFC) agent will go to Erbil to collect and analyze intelligence on PKK and other terrorist financial flows in the north. An S/CT and Treasury Financial System Survey team will visit the north in December to examine the banking system in the KRG with a view toward improving our counter-terrorist finance intelligence and interdiction capabilities. ¶3. (C) The KRG is not getting Interpol Red Notices of wanted individuals independently. Sinjari said he would like to get these for his security personnel throughout the Kurdistan Region. The KRG also does not have access to the GOI database containing criminal records of Iraqis. The GOI Minister of Interior needs to supply the database, according to Sinjari, but has thus far refused to do so. ¶4. (C) RRT reiterated to Sinjari the desirability of the KRG security forces detaining PKK individuals or operatives found in the Kurdistan Region. ¶5. (S) Comment: Post is currently uploading Interpol Red Notices on PKK members into the Erbil and Sulaymaniyah airport lookout systems, and will ensure the KRG has copies of PKK-related Red Notices. We are also addressing ways to increase connectivity between the GOI and KRG on sharing criminal information. CROCKER