PA SECURITY ADVISORS: ANNAPOLIS DECLARATION AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L JERUSALEM 002445 SIPDIS SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE, NSC FOR ABRAMS/SINGH/WATERS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/28/2017 TAGS: PGOV KWBG EAID PTER IS SUBJECT: PA SECURITY ADVISORS: ANNAPOLIS DECLARATION AND SPEECHES POSITIVE, BUT DECLARATIONS MUST BE MATCHED BY SUBSTANTIVE PROGRESS Classified By: Acting Principal Officer Thomas Duffy, for reasons 1.4 ( b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. Presidential security advisor Haj Ismayil and the Prime Minister's security advisor, BG Hazem Attallah, told PolOff on November 28 that the Annapolis declaration's target timeline for negotiations and U.S. monitoring/assessment are very positive. They welcomed U.S. assessment of security reforms and performance on combating terrorism. Both expressed concern about a political process that is not accompanied by real improvements on the ground for Palestinians, and said the IDF routinely undermines PA security efforts. End summary. President's Security Advisor: We Want U.S. to Be a "Harsh Judge" for Both Sides -------------- ¶2. (C) Presidential security advisor Haj Ismayil Jabr told PolOff on November 28 that he and other security officials were pleased to see a target timeline for negotiations given Palestinian fears of an open-ended process that does not generate serious results. He said he welcomes USG involvement as a serious monitor of both side's fulfillment of Roadmap commitments, and said that the USG should be a "harsh judge" in assessing performance. He commented that he hoped the USG's monitoring role would be more serious than past USG monitoring efforts, which he said were short-lived and did not address the GOI's failure to cease settlement construction or remove outposts. He said the PA will carry out its security commitments regardless of Israeli performance, and asked that the USG work with the GOI to facilitate PA security forces' movements in the West Bank and purchase of equipment from abroad. PM Fayyad's Security Advisor: U.S. Monitoring "Major Achievement" -------------- ¶3. (C) PM Fayyad's security advisor BG Hazem Attallah told PolOff on November 28 that having the USG in a monitoring role is a major achievement that the PA strongly supports. He said USG assessment of performance will be helpful in completing structural reforms and cracking down on terror cells and criminal gangs. He said USG monitoring will demonstrate that the PA is making bold efforts on security and present the GOI with clear choices between seeking peace or continuing settlement expansion. Attallah said USG monitoring will also discourage what he termed "continual IDF disruption of PA security efforts" that, whatever the motivation, appears intentional to PA security officers who watch the IDF undermine PA efforts to build public confidence as Abu Mazen's "One Gun." DUFFY