INTERIOR MINISTER SEIZED WITH ELECTIONS; LOOKING

S E C R E T KUWAIT 000536 SIPDIS NEA/ARP, NEA/I E.O. 12958: DECL: 2018 TAGS: PGOV PTER PINS KDEM KU SUBJECT: INTERIOR MINISTER SEIZED WITH ELECTIONS; LOOKING FORWARD TO CT EXCHANGE REF: KUWAIT 512 Classified By: Ambassador Deborah K. Jones for reasons 1.4 b and d (S) In a chance encounter with the Ambassador while both were awaiting meetings with the Kuwaiti PM on May 13, Interior Minister Shaykh Jaber Al-Khaled Al-Jaber Al Sabah frankly relayed his frustrations with the Kuwaiti parliamentary candidates and the electorate who, he said, are placing tribal over national interests. He assured the Ambassador that his staff had briefed him on the May 4 S/I Satterfield and May 12 S/CT Dailey discussions with Kuwait State Security (KSS). Remarking somewhat obliquely about the tendency of some people to "talk and not to listen," the Minister said he looked forward to a formal meeting soon to discuss pressing CT cooperation issues and Iraq-Kuwait border issues. Shaykh Jaber noted that he had engaged in many discussions on this topic with Washington interlocutors in his previous roles. A scheduled meeting may be postponed due to Shaykh Saad's death and associated formalities. ********************************************* * 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/ ********************************************* * JONES