TUNISIAN INTEL COOPERATION IMPROVING

S E C R E T TUNIS 000009

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/FO (GRAY) AND FOR NEA/MAG (HARRIS AND
HOPKINS) AND INR (SWEET)
NSC FOR ABRAMS AND RAMCHAND

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/01/2027
TAGS: PTER PINR PGOV ASEC TS
SUBJECT: TUNISIAN INTEL COOPERATION IMPROVING

REF: A. PARIS 4533

B. TUNIS 1328 AND PREVIOUS

C. 09/14/2007 BUSH-BEN ALI LETTER

D. TUNIS 544

E. 2/23/07 HAYDEN/BEN ALI LETTER

Classified By: Ambassador Robert F. Godec for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (S/NF) Summary. After several recent high-level USG
interventions with the GOT, most importantly the September
letter from President Bush to President Ben Ali, it appears
that the Tunisian Ministry of Interior (MOI) is making an
effort to improve intelligence sharing on counterterrorism
issues. Following the Ambassador's November 15 meeting with
the Minister of Interior, GOT security services have shared
an increasing amount of intelligence information, including
about the disrupted December 2006/January 2007 threat to US
and UK interests in Tunisia. While it is too early to judge
if this cooperation will continue, the recent improvement is
noteworthy. End Summary.


2. (S/NF) The GOT's intelligence and security cooperation,
like much bilateral cooperation, has been plagued for years
by a lack of Ministry of Interior responsiveness and
generally limited exchange of information. Although the 2005
visit of former Presidential Homeland Security Advisor Fran
Townsend resulted in increased GOT efforts to combat the flow
of Tunisian foreign fighters to Iraq, intelligence
cooperation on domestic issues remained lacking.


3. (S/NF) Following the December 2006/January 2007 disruption
of a terrorist plot that allegedly targeted US and UK
interests in Tunisia, Post and Washington repeatedly urged
the GOT at many levels to improve cooperation. Most notably,
in February 2007, CIA Director General Hayden sent a letter
to President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali asking for greater
information exchange. Similarly, President Bush told Ben Ali
in a September 2007 letter that the United States and Tunisia
need to enhance counterterrorism cooperation. During a
November 15 meeting, the Ambassador told Minister of Interior
Rafik Belhaj Kacem that, as the two letters indicated, the
USG continued to consider GOT intelligence cooperation
unsatisfactory. Belhaj Kacem was plainly displeased by the
characterization (though he had heard it before from the
Ambassador and others) and told the Ambassador the GOT
believed its cooperation to be exemplary. (NB. This was one
of a series of conversations the Ambassador had on this
subject with senior GOT officials, including Minister of
State Ben Dhia and Foreign Minister Abdallah.)


4. (S/NF) Although Belhaj Kacem did not expressly offer to
improve cooperation, in the weeks since the November meeting,
there has been a noticeable upswing in information flow from
the Ministry of Interior. Specifically, and as reported
through other channels, the MOI has shared the following
information with GRPO:

-- Facts about the December 2006/January 2007 terrorist plot
(Ref B) that allegedly targeted US and UK interests in
Tunisia, including information about weapons and explosives
found in the group's possession;

-- Information about the MOI's counterterrorism efforts along
Tunisia's borders;

-- MOI characterizations of the threat of domestic extremism;
and

-- Background on Tunisian foreign fighters and facilitators.


5. (S/NF) Comment. While it is too early to judge if the
recent upswing in MOI information sharing represents a shift
in the GOT mindset, this cooperation is noteworthy in the
Tunisian context. Foreign governments and security services
often remark on the GOT's notoriously poor intelligence
sharing and French President Sarkozy is expected to strongly
demarche President Ben Ali during an early 2008 visit to
Tunisia (Ref A). While we should not count this as a victory
yet, we are cautiously optimistic that we have achieved a
measure of success in our long-running effort with the GOT.
Continued USG and foreign pressure on the GOT will be
important as we seek to sustain this improvement over time
and to further deepen the cooperation. End Comment.

Please visit Embassy Tunis, Classified Website at:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/tunis/index.c fm
GODEC