SOUTH CENTRAL LEADERS DISCUSS SECURITY AND U.S.

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAGHDAD 003977 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/06/2017 TAGS: PREL PGOV IZ SUBJECT: SOUTH CENTRAL LEADERS DISCUSS SECURITY AND U.S. STRATEGY WITH DEPUTY SECRETARY Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Patricia A. Butenis for reasons 1.4(b) and (d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Deputy Secretary Negroponte welcomed Iraqi leaders from the south central region to a meeting at the Regional Embassy Office in Al Hillah on November 27. Common themes from the discussion included strengthening the Iraq Security Forces and the Rule of Law, encouraging Iraq,s neighbors to play a constructive role in the country,s development, and concern over application of the &Anbar Awakening8 model to the middle-Euphrates region. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) Deputy Secretary Negroponte welcomed the governors of Babil, Najaf, Karbala, and Diwaniyah, their respective provincial council (PC) chairmen, Iraqi security force (ISF) officials including 8th Iraqi Army Division Commanding General MG Uthman al-Ghanimi, tribal leaders and the President of Kufa University to the U.S. Regional Embassy Office in Al Hillah to discuss the economic, political and security situation in the middle-Euphrates region of Iraq. ¶3. (C) As the discussion went around the table, the provincial leaders praised the Iraqi police (IP) and Iraqi Army (IA) for their role in establishing security in the region, called for increased and sustained support for the ISF, stressed the importance of passing pending national legislation, sought U.S. influence in persuading Iraq,s neighbors to support national reconciliation and development, asked for stronger linkages between U.S. and Iraqi universities, called for further USG assistance in the opening of the Najaf airport, and raised concerns over U.S. tribal engagement. In general, the provincial officials and tribal leaders asked that the U.S. support legal institutions that will enforce the rule of law, while encouraging U.S. officials to prod Baghdad lawmakers and neighboring countries to support political progress and economic development in Iraq. ¶4. (C) The tribal leaders from Babil, Karbala and Diwaniyah were careful to express their strong support for ISF, while calling on the U.S. to provide greater assistance to the IA and IP. The tribal leaders expressed support for provincial authorities while emphasizing that the tribes could and should play a greater role in the political and economic development of the region. In response, the provincial officials expressed strong reservations over a policy of tribal engagement to the south. Echoing many other comments, Governor Sheikh Hamid Mousa Ahmed Al Kudary of Diwaniyah said that the U.S. policy of forming tribal &awakening8 or &salvation8 councils worked well in Fallujah, Ramadi, and Ninewa because there was a vacuum of security and government services in those areas. In south central Iraq, by contrast, security and services are being provided by the provincial governments. Since there is no security void to fill in the region, the officials commented that empowering the tribes would fuel conflict rather than resolve it. ¶5. (C) The middle-Euphrates regional leaders also voiced concerns over recent news that the U.S. was adjusting its goals in Iraq. Karbala Governor Aqeel Al-Ghazali warned that scaling back strategic aims or benchmarks would give neighboring countries an opportunity to further their own goals in Iraq. ¶6. (U) The Deputy Secretary,s party has cleared this cable. BUTENIS