PRESIDENT'S MEETING WITH FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR

S E C R E T BUENOS AIRES 000746 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/30/2018 TAGS: PREL PTER KJUS KWNM KCRM KSMIG SNAR AR SUBJECT: PRESIDENT'S MEETING WITH FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR REF: BUENOS AIRES 00739 Classified By: Ambassador E. Anthony Wayne for reasons 1.4 (B) and (D). ¶1. (S) Summary. On May 21, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (CFK) received FBI Deputy Director John Pistole. CFK said she is committed to fight terrorism and not to deal with terrorists. She criticized the investigation of the 1994 AMIA attack carried out in the 1990s, although she gave no hint that indictments would be issued against former President Menem and other former government officials on the next day (reftel). Pistole explained the FBI's commitment to work closely with the Argentine services on terrorism and international criminal issues. He stressed the need for vigilance against possible Hizballah terrorism. Argentine Justice and Security Minister Anibal Fernandez said Argentina was on alert. He praised his meeting earlier in the day with Pistole (septel) and highlighted the possibility of FBI training for Argentine officials in combating cybercrimes such as child pornography. Minister Fernandez also thanked the U.S. for agreeing to send experts to a June conference for judges and prosecutors on implementing Argentina's new federal law on trafficking in persons. End summary. ¶2. (C) Late on May 21, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner (CFK) received FBI Deputy Director John Pistole. Ambassador Wayne, Argentine Justice and Security Minister Anibal Fernandez and Intelligence Secretary Hector Icazuriaga also attended. The Ambassador used the occasion to deliver President Bush's Revolution Day message, which the President welcomed. ¶3. (SBU) CFK started the meeting by noting that she had just met with the International President of MTV, who described MTV's substantial new investments in Argentina and its decision to make Buenos Aires its Spanish-language hub for the world. The Ambassador noted that MTV and other U.S. companies were investing in Argenina because of Argentine creativity. CFK replied that she welcomed that investment, but that sometimes Argentines were "too creative," referring to recent rumors about financial problems. ¶4. (C) Deputy Director Pistole said he had had an excellent day of talks, noting that this was his second visit to Argentina. On his first trip, he participated in a "3-plus-1" dialogue on the terrorist connections in the Tri-border area. CFK said she had earlier in the day visited the Province of Chaco, which borders Paraguay. She described her visit to an area where an industrial park had created good jobs for local citizens. She had participated in opening a new "state-of-the-art" denim factory built by a Brazilian firm. The plant would employee 300 and supply much of Argentina's denim needs. In this connection, CFK described the $50 billion in reserve which Argentina had accumulated so it could withstand economic shocks. "We are way above international standards," she argued. "But we still have problems, and right now we are having problems about how to redistribute internally the wealth we are generating," referring to the ongoing problem with the agricultural sector. ¶5. (C) Pistole said his discussions earlier with Justice Minister Anibal Fernandez, with the National Police Chief, and with various judges, prosecutors, and security officials at the federal and provincial levels had been very useful. He explained the FBI's priority on building good networks for information sharing as well as on offering training and access to new law enforcement technology systems to its international partners. He expressed appreciation for the good cooperation of the Argentine services and said the FBI was looking for opportunities to help, such as in the fight against cybercrime. ¶6. (C) CFK said she believes historians will look back at 9/11/2001 as an historic turning point where the world learned of the need for much more international cooperation to fight terrorism. Argentina had already felt the effects from the terrorist attacks of 1992 and 1994 on Israeli and Jewish targets in Argentina. "We suffered at home before the U.S. did ... We continue to struggle to do all we can on the investigation into these incidents," CFK said. "This is a strong and real commitment." CFK said she had been a member of the Congressional Committee in the 1990s looking at the criminal investigation of the 1994 AMIA bombing. "I felt the investigation was not being done well and unfortunately, my doubts were correct... The investigation was greatly delayed and things were covered up. But, you can be sure of my strong commitment to fight international terrorism." Comment: CFK made no mention that an Argentine prosecutor in the AMIA case would call the next morning for the arrest of former President Menem and other former GOA officials for mishandling the first AMIA investigation in the 1990s. ¶7. (S) Deputy Director Pistole said we all need to be careful that our publics not become complacent about the terrorist threat. We all need to be vigilant, including in the United States. He noted that the USG has many investigations underway on Hamas and Hizballah financing. He also noted current U.S. concern that Hizballah is planning a retaliatory attack for the killing of former Security Chief Imad Mugniyah in Damascus. The most likely target appears to be an Israeli target outside of Israel. Minister Fernandez noted that Argentina was aware of the renewed Hizballah threat and that its security and intelligence forces were on alert. CFK said that unfortunately the Argentine government in the 1990s had made commitments to many actors in the Middle East and then broke some of them, making Argentina a target. Fernandez added that while Venezuela worked with Iran, and Argentina has good ties to Venezuela, Argentina has kept distant from Iran. CFK said she believes it is important to be "clear and transparent" on terrorism. She said her government would have "no double standards on terrorism" and she recognizes the need to be "always alert." ¶8. (C) Pistole noted the upcoming 100-year anniversary of the FBI and described in detail the evolution of the FBI's focus and practices since 2001, especially its new emphasis on information sharing, analysis, and collaboration with other services on terrorism, counter-intelligence and cybercrimes, such as child pornography and child predators as well as trafficking in persons. Minister Fernandez briefed CFK on the two anti-trafficking (TIP) experts which DHS/ICE was sending to a major conference he is organizing for June 11-12 on how to implement Argentina's new federal law against TIP. He said this conference will try to educate prosecutors and judges on the importance of implementing vigorously the new law. He also told the President that the FBI would look into providing training to Argentina's law enforcement personnel in fighting cybercrime. CFK expressed her pleasure and support for both initiatives and for the new focus on collaboration by the FBI. ¶9. (U) At the end of the meeting, CFK once again told the Ambassador how fascinating the U.S. presidential campaign has been and how it still seems far from clear who will emerge victorious. ¶10. (C) Comment: CFK never mentioned or even alluded to the Antonini-Wilson case in Miami. The Casa Rosada released a photo and TV clip of the meeting which was carried widely in the media. The Argentine Intelligence Service (SIDE) arranged the meeting, and Justice Minister Fernandez worked hard to put a positive spin on U.S.-Argentine cooperation to the President during the meeting. ¶11. (U) Deputy Director Pistole did not have an opportunity to clear this cable. WAYNE