TUNISIA TO PROVIDE TRAINING FOR IRAQI OFFICIALS

C O N F I D E N T I A L TUNIS 000169 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/MAG AND NEA/I NSC FOR ABRAMS AND OSULLIVAN E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/01/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL SENV AF IZ JA TS SUBJECT: TUNISIA TO PROVIDE TRAINING FOR IRAQI OFFICIALS Classified By: AMBASSADOR ROBERT F. GODEC FOR REASONS 1.4 (b) AND (d) ¶1. (C) On January 30, during a meeting with MFA Secretary of State Saida Chtioui, Ambassador stressed USG hope that Tunisia would find ways to contribute to efforts in Iraq, Afghanistan and Sudan. Chtioui told Ambassador that Iraqi officials would be coming to Tunisia for two training programs in the coming months. Chtioui said that the GOT would provide technical experts for these Japanese-funded programs, the first of which would be related to waste water management. Chtioui said, "We welcome any suggestions" the USG may have regarding other Iraqi training needs. Ambassador noted that the GOI tends to prefer training be conducted in Iraq. Chtioui responded that this would be difficult for the GOT given the security situation in Iraq. Regarding Afghanistan, Chtioui said language difficulties -- particularly the lack of English-speaking Tunisian officials -- prevented the GOT from offering such programs to the Afghan government. ¶2. (C) On February 2, MFA United States Desk Officer Mehdi Ferchichi provided additional details on the two proposed programs for Iraqi officials. Ferchichi told PolOff that the first program, scheduled for March 5-16, 2007, would be focused on waste water management. Ferchichi said the Tunisian Embassy in Baghdad had asked the GOI to provide the names of 25 Iraqi officials to participate in the program, which is financed by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Ferchichi said that the second program under consideration had been requested by the Iraqi Ministry of Culture. Associated with the USAID-funded "Prosperity" (Izdihar) project, the program is designed to educate Iraqi Ministry of Culture officials on intellectual property rights. Ferchichi said this second request had yet not moved to the planning stages. ¶3. (C) COMMENT: To post's knowledge, this is the first time the GOT has offered technical support and expertise to the GOI. While GOT officials have often highlighted Tunisian technical knowledge and willingness to share this knowledge with developing countries, implementation of programs for Iraqi officials would be a significant development. Post will continue to encourage Tunisian support for Iraq and report GOT progress as appropriate. END COMMENT. GODEC