AMBASSADOR DELIVERS CRITICAL ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000782 SIPDIS NOFORN SIPDIS STATE FOR S/CT, DS/ATA, NEA/ARP; NSC FOR JESSEE; ENERGY FOR KOLEVAR E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/13/2017 TAGS: EPET KCIP ASEC KU SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR DELIVERS CRITICAL ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE SECURITY REPORTS TO KUWAITI LEADERSHIP REF: A. KUWAIT 419 ¶B. KUWAIT 177 ¶C. KUWAIT 431 ¶D. KUWAIT 448 ¶E. KUWAIT 506 ¶F. KUWAIT 598 ¶G. KUWAIT 729 ¶H. KUWAIT 732 Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C/NF) In a series of meetings between May 13-16, the Ambassador hand-delivered hard copies of two Critical Energy Infrastructure Protection (CEIP) reports from assessments conducted by a State-DHS-DOE-USCG team from 13-21 May (Ref A) and a USCENTCOM J-3 team on 1-4 February (Ref B) to Kuwaiti leaders including: - Prime Minister Shaykh Nasser Al-Mohamed Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah; - First Deputy Prime Minister, Interior Minister and Defense Minister Shaykh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah; - Oil Minister Shaykh Ali Jarrah Al-Sabah; - Special Advisor to the Amir for Petroleum Issues Khaled Al-Fulaij; - Acting Director of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation Saad Al-Shuwaib; - Chairman and Managing Director of Kuwait National Petroleum Company Sami Al-Rushaid; and - General Mohammed Al-Bader, Security Decision Follow-up Committee. ¶2. (C/NF) These meetings followed an initial round of meetings conducted after the May assessment to brief leaders on the team's initial findings and urge early implementation of some of the short-term recommendations (Refs C-H). The Ambassador explained that arrangements were being made for a team of USG experts to return to Kuwait in June to answer technical questions related to the report and provide advice on implementation. He emphasized that the reports were highly sensitive and should be tightly controlled since they clearly identify a number of critical security gaps that could potentially be exploited by terrorists. ¶3. (C/NF) All the leaders said they were eager to proceed and thanked the Ambassador for the USG's continued assistance with CEIP. They said that the matter had been raised in recent Cabinet meetings. The Prime Minister, Interior Minister, and Oil Minister said they had reached agreement that coordination of CEIP across the various Kuwaiti agencies involved (the Oil Ministry, the Interior Ministry, the state-owned petroleum companies, the Coast Guard, and State Security) should be managed by the Security Decision Follow-up Committee (SDFC),a body of retired senior military officers led by General Mohammed Al-Bader which reports directly to the Cabinet (Ref D). All of the leaders expressed strong support for General Al-Bader's leadership. The Interior Minister, Oil Minister, and KNPC Chairman particularly highlighted the General's ability to work outside the normal government bureaucracy and operate across organizational stovepipes to effectively implement new plans and policies. The Prime Minister said General Al-Bader was "not liked by everyone," but was "perfect" for this role. The Oil Minister said National Security Bureau President Shaykh Ahmed Al-Fahad would also track CEIP efforts. The Ambassador has requested a separate meeting with Shaykh Ahmed to inform him of the latest CEIP developments. ¶4. (C/NF) General Al-Bader and his SDFC staff said that in the past few weeks, they have already launched projects to strengthen access controls, establish a shore protection force, extend sea barriers, and upgrade command, control and communications systems. (For assistance on the last of these projects, they have hired Kroll, the U.S.-based risk consulting company.) The SDFC has also begun long-term planning to address security vulnerabilities in the upstream oil sector around tank farms, gathering centers, booster stations, and export manifolds, but they emphasized that the more immediate priority was to enhance security in and around the refineries and export facilities in the Shuaiba Industrial Zone. General Al-Bader said that, ideally, he would like to see the creation of a specialized, armed security force with a unified chain of command to focus exclusively on oil sector safety and security. He said he hoped to be able to create an Oil Security Force Training Academy to provide instruction from both security and safety experts. General Al-Bader indicated that the SDFC has tried in the past to overhaul the oil sector security regime, but KUWAIT 00000782 002 OF 002 has been constrained by changes in leadership at the Oil Ministry. Al-Bader said he hoped that the active engagement of the USG would provide him with the political boost he needs to overcome these obstacles. ¶5. (C/NF) Comment: In addition to this series of high-level meetings, the upcoming Gulf Security Dialogue (May 22) provides an opportunity to welcome progress and encourage further collaboration on CEIP. We similarly look forward to the June visit by a multi-agency CEIP team to discuss the recommendations made in the two recent USG assessment reports and to provide advice on implementation. ********************************************* * 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