UAE-SAUDI BORDER CONGESTION EASES

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABU DHABI 000611

SIPDIS

FOR NEA/ARP AND EEB/TPP/IPE
STATE PLEASE PASS USTR (BUNTIN, JCHOE-GROVES)

E.O. 12958: 05/26/2019
TAGS: ETRD PTER KIPR ECON PREL PGOV SA AE
SUBJECT: UAE-SAUDI BORDER CONGESTION EASES

CLASSIFIED BY AMBASSADOR RICHARD G. OLSON FOR REASONS 1.4 B AND D


1. (C) Summary and Comment. Following a June 15 meeting between UAE
and Saudi customs officials, more than a thousand trucks backed up on
the UAE side of the border for days entered Saudi Arabia. UAE
customs officials report the problem was technical, related to a new
Saudi fingerprinting system. There is no indication delays were
politically motivated, e.g., related to the UAE's decision to
withdraw from the GCC Monetary Union. End Summary and Comment.


2. (SBU) New customs procedures in Saudi Arabia in the past two weeks
created a "humanitarian crisis" as thousands of truck drivers waited
on the UAE side of the border in temperatures approaching 110
degrees. The UAE Red Crescent Authority provided food, water and
medical care to drivers, several of whom were suffering from heat
stroke, according to local hospital officials. UAE Federal Customs
Authority (FCA) Director General Mohammed Al Mehairi told EconOff on
June 14 that it was taking trucks 240 hours to cross into Saudi
Arabia and 20,000 people were stranded. Al Mehairi said Saudi
importers and UAE exporters were complaining about the delays,
particularly the condition of perishable goods. On June 15, Al
Mehairi led a delegation of UAE federal and local (Abu Dhabi, Dubai
and Sharjah) customs officials to Riyadh to resolve the issue.


3. (C) Al Mehairi told EconOff on June 16 that his meeting with Saudi
counterpart Saleh Al Khalyawi was very open and successful. Al
Mehairi said the Saudis are concerned about illicit trade in drugs,
alcohol, weapons (particularly on the Yemeni border),and counterfeit
goods across all their borders. In an effort to improve security,
Saudi customs officials rolled out a new computer system on the
border, including fingerprinting drivers. The system was first
implemented at the UAE crossing at Al Ghuwaifat, although Saudi
officials did not inform the UAE. Al Mehairi said his visit,
combined with other "pressure" (likely political and commercial),
drove the Saudis to increase staff capacity at the border. Almost
1500 vehicles reportedly crossed into Saudi Arabia that afternoon.
Al Mehairi was confident the problem was resolved, noting the
importance of facilitating trade. (Note: UAE-Saudi two-way trade
exceeded USD 5 billion in 2007, the latest available UAE statistics,
making Saudi Arabia the UAE's seventh largest trading partner. End
Note.)


4. (SBU) On a separate but related issue, Al Mehairi told EconOff
that he urged Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi customs officials (who
accompanied him to Riyadh) to note Saudi concerns about counterfeit
goods and step up IPR enforcement at the emirate-level. (Note: The
FCA is a policy body that does not have enforcement authority in
individual emirates. End Note.)
OLSON