KUWAIT NSB DEPUTY AIRS VIEWS ON IRAN AND IRAQ AT

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000440 SIPDIS NOFORN SIPDIS FOR NEA/ARP E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/25/2017 TAGS: PREL MNUC PTER NATO PGOV IZ IR KU SUBJECT: KUWAIT NSB DEPUTY AIRS VIEWS ON IRAN AND IRAQ AT NATO MEMBER EMBASSY MEETING REF: A. 06 KUWAIT 4652 ¶B. 06 KUWAIT 4557 ¶C. USDAO KUWAIT IIR 6 946 2026 07 Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4(b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary. NATO member embassies met March 21 to discuss NATO cooperation with Kuwait under the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI) and the upcoming visit of a NATO Parliamentary Assembly delegation. The Poles briefed on the March 5-6 Contact Point Embassy meeting in Brussels highlighting NATO training and study opportunities and the need to avoid misunderstandings among ICI countries as to the scope of the initiative. The second half of the meeting included Kuwait National Security Bureau VP Shaykh Thamer. Thamer generally praised the NATO training and study efforts and expressed particular interest in NATO training on nuclear incident responses. However, he strongly criticized the effort to establish a joint Security Cooperation Center for ICI and Mediterranean Dialogue (MD) countries because of the involvement of Israel. On regional security issues, Thamer highlighted the nuclear threat from Iran and mentioned several threats from Iranian leaders to the GOK to attack U.S. facilities in the Gulf if Israel or the U.S. attacked Iran. Thamer expressed hope for the Baghdad Security Plan and concern about the inability of Iraqi parliamentarians to "talk to each other." Thamer said that there was no increased security risk from terror attacks in Kuwait. End summary. ¶2. (SBU) NATO member embassies met on March 21 at the Polish Embassy and discussed the March 5-6 NATO Contact Point Embassies meeting in Brussels. Discussions in Brussels emphasized avoiding misunderstandings of the scope of the ICI, noting it is not a prelude to NATO membership, or similar to the Partnership for Peace (PFP),nor does it include security guarantees. ¶3. (SBU) The Poles gave an excellent brief on the Brussels meetings. The briefer said the meetings reviewed ICI aims of enhancing member countries' security, assisting with regional stability, and increasing opportunities for military cooperation. A Public Diplomacy Strategy for ICI for "getting the word out" to opinion leaders in region - political leaders, journalists, academics - was discussed. Concrete ways that ICI can assist countries were identified, including NATO cooperative training initiatives, establishment of a Middle East faculty at the NATO Defense College in Rome, and the proposed establishment of a joint Security Cooperation Center for ICI and Mediterranean Dialogue (MD) countries. The Poles also briefed on the upcoming trip of a NATO Parliamentary Assembly delegation to Kuwait from 30 March to 2 April. (Note: No American Congressional participants were on the list. End note.) Meeting with NSB Deputy Shaykh Thamer -------------- ¶4. (C) Shaykh Thamer Ali Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, Vice President of the National Security Bureau (NSB),described the December 12, 2006 NATO meeting in Kuwait as "excellent." He said having NATO Permanent Representatives and leadership in Kuwait allowed them to hear directly from Kuwaiti government officials and academics and reinforced the understanding that Kuwait has "excellent" relations with all NATO member countries. Thamer said Kuwait informed NATO on March 19 it is ready to sign a transit agreement. Thamer said the information security agreement had been completed. (Note: This will solve future transit of equipment issues. Kuwait would no longer need formal letters from NATO advising it of incoming equipment. End note.) ¶5. (C) Thamer was positive about the plan to expand ICI programs and the establishment of a Middle East faculty at the NATO College in Rome. However, he was extremely negative about the idea of a joint security cooperation center for ICI and the MD countries in the region because of the membership of Israel. Thamer said it was not up to NATO to decide who Gulf countries have diplomatic relations with. He said Kuwait is "always trying to sell the NATO relationship to GCC countries and things like this do not help." He added that Kuwait views its relationship with NATO in terms of training and information exchange, not high level diplomacy. ¶6. (C) Thamer expressed strong interest in training opportunities related to strengthening the GOK's nuclear KUWAIT 00000440 002 OF 002 incident preparedness. He said this had been raised with NATO in Brussels. (Note: Please apprise re status. End note.) Iran -------------- ¶7. (S) Thamer said the nuclear threat from Iran was Kuwait's overriding security issue. He mentioned several blunt threats from Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Khamenei, in the past two years stating that if Israel or the U.S. attacks Iran, it would retaliate by attacking U.S. facilities in the Gulf. Thamer said Kuwait understands this to mean facilities in Kuwait. The GOK takes this threat very seriously and protested formally to Iran. He said there was a threat, even without nuclear capability, from their Shihab missiles which can reach Kuwait, as well as Shia sleeper cells in Kuwait that could conduct terrorist operations. ¶8. (C) In response to a question about the Iraq Neighbor's Conference, Thamer said it is "about time" that the U.S. and Iran talked and they must work together. However, he said the GOK was concerned that earlier discussions between Iran and the EU-3 had suggested some form of security assurances to Iran without first consulting with Kuwait or other Gulf states. ¶9. (C) Thamer complained that Iran is spreading Shiism among Sunni populations, especially in Africa. He also stated that Iran is seeking converts among the Muslim expatriate community in Kuwait, especially Egyptians. Iraq -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Thamer said that Kuwait has an open dialogue with Sunnis, Shia and Kurds in Iraq, noting they hear "some good things, some bad things." He said the Iraq parliament members have a forum and need to talk to each other. He said the trips to Jordan and Sharm al-Sheikh were nice, but did not do much to increase communication between the parties. ¶11. (C) Thamer said he hoped that the Maliki plan would work. He said a Shiite PM giving permission for the military to go into Shiite neighborhoods was a good start and had a significant impact in causing Moqtada Al-Sadr to flee to Iran. ¶12. (C) He ended his comments on Iraq by asserting that Shia Arabs differ from Shia Persians in that Arabs don't believe in the concept of "Velayat al-Fakih" (clerical rule). Rather, Arab Shia feel religion should be separate from politics. He said Iraq would never have a theocratic state like Iran for this reason noting that "Sistani won't agree to Velayat al-Fakih." (Note: when someone noted that SISTANI was in fact of Persian and not Arab origin, Thamer did not clarify. End note.) Kuwait -------------- ¶13. (C) Regarding domestic security issues, Thamer said there was no indication of increased terrorist risk in Kuwait compared to other countries. He believes terrorists think of Kuwait as a "safe haven" and won't attack here for that reason. (Note: Not clear what Thamer meant by safe haven. End note.) He said Kuwait learned a big lesson in the Peninsula Lion incident in 2005. The GOK had information from "friends" and acted on it. "We shot first and asked questions later," he explained. He promised the gathered ambassadors: "If there is a threat in Kuwait we will tell you about it." ********************************************* * 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