JORDAN: REACTIONS TO PM NEGATIVE; CABINET SWORN IN

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 AMMAN 002709 ///CANCEL - RESENT UNDER NEW MRN /////////////////////////////////// NOFORN SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/14/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM JO SUBJECT: JORDAN: REACTIONS TO PM NEGATIVE; CABINET SWORN IN AMMAN 00002709 001.2 OF 003 Classified By: Ambassador R. Stephen Beecroft per Reasons 1.4(b) and (d ) AMMAN 00002709 002 OF 003 Dr. Walid Ma'ani -Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources: Dr. Khaled Irani -Minister of Environment: Hazem Malhas -Minister of Trade and Industry: Amer al-Hadidi * -Minister of Social Development: Hala Latouf * -Minister of Tourism and Antiquities: Maha Khatib * -Minister of Culture: Nabih Shuqum -Minister of Public Sector Development: Imad Fakhoury -Minister of Agriculture: Saed Masri * -Minister of Transportation: Ala'a Batayneh -Minister of Public Works and Housing: Dr. Mohammed Obeidat -Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs: Abd al-Salam al-Abbadi -Minister of Water and Irrigation: Mohammed Najjar -Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs: Tawfiq Khraishan -Minister of State for Prime-ministerial Affairs: Jamal al-Shamayleh -Minister of State for Municipal Affairs: Ali al-Ghazawi * - Incumbent under previous government ** - Incumbent as Interior Minister; promoted to Deputy PM *** - New Deputy PM DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER BIOS -------------- Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior: Nayef al-Qadi ¶5. (C//NF) Qadi, a Muslim East Banker, was born in Hawsha, near Mafraq, in 1944. He is the son of a prominent sheikh from the Bani Khaled tribe. Qadi obtained his BA in political science from Baghdad University. He is a career diplomat with at least three decades of experience, primarily in the Arab world, with tours in Iraq as DCM (1969-73), London as Consul (1973-80),Representative to the Arab League (1980-83),DCM in Beirut (1983-89),Ambassador to Qatar (1989-93),and Ambassador to Egypt (1993-94). He was part of the delegation that negotiated the Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty. Qadi was appointed to the upper house of parliament in 1997, where he served until being appointed Minister of Interior (1998-2000). Qadi oversaw the closure of HAMAS's Jordan office in 1999. Qadi has the reputation of being an East Bank conservative par excellence, and is considered to be anti-Palestinian as well as an outright opponent of reform. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Economic Affairs: Dr Rajai Muasher ¶6. (S//NF) Muasher was born 2 January 1944 to a wealthy East Bank Christian family in Amman. He holds a BA in business administration from the American University in Beirut (1963) and a PhD in marketing and business from the University of Illinois (1969). During 1970-74, Muasher joined the Royal Scientific Society and served as director of its economic department. Muasher headed the National Economy Ministry (later the Ministry of Trade and Industry) during 1974-76 and headed that ministry again from 1985-87. In 1984 he established the Ahlia Financial Investment Company, which eventually became the Jordan Ahli Bank, an institution that claims to be the third largest in Jordan with regional offices in Lebanon, Cyprus, and the West Bank. He served as member of the upper house of parliament during 1993-2005. Muasher is a member of the Jordan Banker's Association and on the board of trustees for the King Hussein Cancer Foundation. Muasher's is one of the most well known anti-reform personalities in Jordan. Muasher is an associate of the premier's father, Zayd al-Rifa'i, and is part of the East Banker core that Zayd represented in the Senate. AMMAN 00002709 003 OF 003 ¶7. (S//NF) COMMENT. Initial reactions have been critical of the ministerial lineup particularly because the premier and his deputy prime ministers are considered to be conservative East Bankers with little interest in advancing reforms. Rifa'i, Qadi, and Muasher leading the group makes the future of existing reform efforts in Jordan fairly bleak and it is unclear to what extent the trio will prevent additional efforts from yielding meaningful results. Samir Rifa'i's appointment is unlikely to cause short-term damage to the Jordanian-US relationship, but the trio's resistance to social, political, and economic reforms is likely to cause longer term difficulties. END COMMENT. Beecroft