MINISTER OF DEFENSE/INTERIOR ON GCC MINISTERS

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 001094 SIPDIS NOFORN SIPDIS DEPT FOR NEA/ARP, S/CT, DS/ATA, PM, G/TIP; ENERGY FOR KOLEVAR, DE ALVAREZ; NSC FOR ANDERSON E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/12/2016 TAGS: ECON EPET KU MAS PHUM PREL PTER ASEC KCIP SUBJECT: MINISTER OF DEFENSE/INTERIOR ON GCC MINISTERS MEETING, TIP REPORT, AND CRITICAL ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE REF: A. KUWAIT 1072 ¶B. KUWAIT 1009 ¶C. KUWAIT 794 ¶D. KUWAIT 921 Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C/NF) First Deputy Prime Minister, Interior Minister, and Minister of Defense Shaykh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah told the Ambassador July 7 that the major focus of the GCC meeting in Riyadh was to discuss Iraq and put some "imagination" into trying to address regional security implications. He confirmed what Kuwaiti FM Shaykh Dr. Mohamed had told the Ambassador July 7 (ref A),namely that GCC National Security Advisors will prepare a comprehensive action plan over the next two months. Shaykh Jaber added that there will be another GCC meeting in December with the aim of approving the comprehensive action plan by the end of the year. The Ambassador pledged continued U.S. support for GCC efforts on Iraq and Iran and noted the Secretary's interest in holding another meeting of the GCC plus 2 in the near future. ¶2. (C/NF) Shaykh Jaber noted that the subject of the recent assault of a Kuwaiti diplomat in Tehran had also come up at the Riyadh meeting (ref B). It turns out, the Minister said, this was not the first such attack against a GCC diplomat in Tehran. The Ambassador commented that this kind of behavior was not surprising given the nature of the Iranian regime. ¶3. (C/NF) The Ambassador stressed the importance of the U.S.-Kuwait dialogue on Iraq and regional issues and said he would recommend that the Secretary of Defense visit Kuwait in the near future. The Minister said he would welcome the visit. Trafficking in Persons -------------- ¶4. (C/NF) The Ambassador noted the recent release of the Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP). He urged the Minister to give the report his attention and encouraged the GOK to take steps to tackle the problems identified in the report. The Ambassador said the U.S. did not seek to embarrass Kuwait but hoped to use the report to encourage improvements in the conditions of domestic workers, with the objective of removing Kuwait from Tier 3 status. The Minister said Kuwait sought to improve in this regard and argued the solution lay in closer adherence to Kuwait's laws. Part of the problem, he alleged, was the export to Kuwait, by countries such as Bangladesh, of workers easily lured into crime and drug trafficking. The Ambassador concurred that TIP was not an easy problem to fix but stressed that the issue merited the Minister's attention and offered U.S. support to help Kuwait make progress. Critical Energy Infrastructure (CEIP) -------------- ¶5. (C/NF) The Ambassador told the Minister that, since their last meeting in May (ref C),the GOK had continued to make good progress in responding to U.S. recommendations concerning vulnerabilities in Kuwait's energy infrastructure. The Ambassador noted that during a second CEIP team visit to Kuwait in June, the U.S. had proposed the establishment of a Joint Working Group on CEIP (ref D),which would allow U.S.-Kuwait bilateral cooperation to move to the next level and open up additional opportunities for technical assistance. The Ambassador noted that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) underpinning the JWG did not need to be signed at the ministerial level. The Minister said he could authorize the MOU and expected to discuss the matter with General Mohamed Al-Bader, Chairman of the Security Decisions Follow-up Committee (SDFC),on the margins of a Council of Ministers meeting on July 8. ********************************************* * For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s Visit Kuwait's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ ********************************************* * LeBaron