BAHRAIN: ARAB LEAGUE FOREIGN MINISTERS MEETING IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L MANAMA 000195 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/01/2017 TAGS: PREL BA REGION SUBJECT: BAHRAIN: ARAB LEAGUE FOREIGN MINISTERS MEETING IN CAIRO MARCH 3-4 REF: A. STATE 24372 ¶B. MANAMA 0167 Classified By: Ambassador William T. Monroe for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) . ¶1. (C) The Ambassador March 1 delivered reftel demarche concerning the March 3-4 Arab League (AL) Foreign Ministers meeting in Cairo to Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Nizar Al Baharna, who will represent the GOB at the meeting. (Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa is in Washington at this time.) Al Baharna noted that he would go directly from the Cairo meeting to a session with GCC foreign ministers in Riyadh on March 5. ¶2. (C) On the Israel-Palestinian situation, Al Baharna said there will be "lots of questions" from the public and the Palestinians for the AL to show support for the national unity government. He noted that Hamas political head Khalid Mashaal, in a public statement within the past few days, struggled to say something he did not want to say - that Hamas would accept Israel's right to exist if Israel withdrew to the pre-1967 borders and supported the creation of an independent Palestine. In Al Baharna's view, Hamas and the Quartet are virtually "singing the same tune." The Ambassador disagreed, saying the Quartet required Hamas to recognize Israel before engaging. How could Israel possibly engage with an entity that refuses its right to exist? He cautioned there would be no give on the Quartet principles. ¶3. (C) On Iraq, the Ambassador asked Al Baharna for Bahrain's thoughts on the March 10 Neighbors Conference in Baghdad. Al Baharna said that Turkey had offered to transport officials from Ankara to Baghdad, and would probably make the same offer for the ministerial level meeting in April. He stated, however, that at the March 5 GCC meeting in Riyadh, ministers would discuss GCC participation at the March 10 Baghdad meeting. Bahrain, he said, would not go to Baghdad alone, it would have to go with other GCC ministers. There are still serious concerns about the safety of going to Baghdad. The Ambassador replied that the March 10 meeting represented an important opportunity to support Iraq, and Bahrain should not miss out. (Comment: Al Baharna's comments contrast with those of Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa a week earlier (Ref B), when he clearly stated that Bahrain supports holding a Neighbors Conference inside Iraqi territory. Al Baharna is relatively new to his job and we do not know exactly how authoritatively he can speak for the GOB.) ¶4. (C) Al Baharna said that Bahrain and the United States share many of the same concerns about Iran. Al Baharna suggested that Iran may be trying to find a way to comply with P5 1 requirements that would allow it to "save face," particularly on uranium enrichment. The entire region is concerned about the possible impact of an Iranian nuclear weapons program. "It's bad for all," he said. ¶5. (C) Al Baharna had no substantive comment about Sudan, and stated that the U.S. and Bahrain were like-minded on Lebanon. ********************************************* ******** Visit Embassy Manama's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/manama/ ********************************************* ******** MONROE