Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09KUWAIT230
2009-03-11 14:41:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Kuwait
Cable title:
MARCH 2 CONFERENCE IN SHARM AL-SHEIKH: READ OUT
how-toVZCZCXRO6518 RR RUEHDE RUEHDH RUEHDIR RUEHROV DE RUEHKU #0230/01 0701441 ZNR UUUUU ZZH R 111441Z MAR 09 FM AMEMBASSY KUWAIT TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2990 INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 1698 RUEHJM/AMCONSUL JERUSALEM 1378 RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000230
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
STATE FOR NEA/ARP, NEA/IPA, NEA/RA
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID EFIN PGOV PHUM PTER KPAL KBWG KU
SUBJECT: MARCH 2 CONFERENCE IN SHARM AL-SHEIKH: READ OUT
AND ACTION REQEUST
REF: A. SECSTATE 20388
B. KUWAIT 54
C. KUWAIT 22
D. KUWAIT 215
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000230
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
STATE FOR NEA/ARP, NEA/IPA, NEA/RA
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID EFIN PGOV PHUM PTER KPAL KBWG KU
SUBJECT: MARCH 2 CONFERENCE IN SHARM AL-SHEIKH: READ OUT
AND ACTION REQEUST
REF: A. SECSTATE 20388
B. KUWAIT 54
C. KUWAIT 22
D. KUWAIT 215
1. (SBU) Summary: Senior officials at the Kuwait Fund and the
Foreign Ministry told EconCouns that the March 2 Sharm
Al-Sheikh donors' conference for Gaza had been a great
success financially and also politically as it strengthened
the roles of the Palestinian Authority(PA) and moderate Arab
states. The officials confirmed that Kuwait would provide
$200 million in assistance which would be administered by the
Kuwait fund for Arab Economic Development. The officials
stressed that Kuwait did not intend to finance Hamas and that
it was taking care that the aid distribution channels used in
Gaza would ensure that Hamas did not receive any of the
funding. They said that the GCC countries would likely set
up a joint Gaza Fund administered by the Islamic Development
Bank as a mechanism for members to distribute their
assistance. End summary.
2. (SBU) On March 10, EconCouns and Econoff met with the
director of the MFA's Arab World Department, Ambassador
Jassim Al-Mubaraki, and with the regional manager for Arab
Countries at the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development,
Marwan Al-Ghanem, in separate meetings to discuss the results
of the March 2 Sharm Al-Sheikh donors' conference for Gaza
and the modalities of the GCC assistance package. EconCouns
also raised the issue with Sheikh Ali Khaled Al-Sabah, the
director of the MFA's economic department the day before.
Mubaraki opined that the conference had been a great success,
not just for the pledges made, but for its role in
strengthening Egypt, the Palestinian Authority, and the
moderate states. (Further discussion septel.)
Kuwait Fund to manage the $200 Million
--------------
3. (SBU) Both Mubaraki and Ghanem confirmed Kuwait's pledge
of $200 million over a five year period. Mubaraki also
confirmed his understanding that this pledge would be in
addition to the $34 million Kuwait committed to the UNRWA
emergency appeal during the Arab Economic Summit (ref b).
According to Mubaraki, the Kuwaiti cabinet decided on March 5
that the Kuwait Fund would be responsible for administering
the transfer of the money and monitoring the projects funded
by it. He added that the Kuwait Fund would use one or all of
the mechanisms that were being used to disburse Kuwait's
Paris Donors' Conference pledge of $300 million: the World
Bank Trust Fund for Palestine, the Arab Fund for Economic and
Social Development, and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB).
All three institutions had established infrastructures for
providing assistance to Gaza.
No Money to Hamas
--------------
4. (SBU) All of our interlocutors stressed that Kuwait did
not intend to finance Hamas, with Mubaraki stressing that
"Hamas will not receive a single penny from our support to
Gaza." Both Mubaraki and Ghanem noted, however, that the
Palestinian Authority had problems with corruption, and
Kuwait was unwilling to provide assistance directly to it.
He told EconCouns that Kuwait had instructed the three
organizations above to coordinate assistance projects in the
West Bank with the PA, but to provide no funds to Hamas.
The Distribution Mechanism
--------------
5. (SBU) In response to EconCouns' question about the GCC
distribution mechanism, Ghanem explained that all of the
details had yet to be developed, but that the GCC would
likely adopt a Saudi proposal to use a system similar to that
used in administering the Al-Aqsa and Al-Quds funds which
were established in 2000 at the Arab Emergency summit in
Cairo. Under this proposal the IDB would serve as the
secretariat and implementing entity and donor countries would
sit on the board of the Gaza fund. Ghanem said that Qatar,s
effort to have a new organization established to oversee GCC
aid, since it does not have a national development fund of
its own, had led to the Saudi proposal to use the Al
Aqsa/Al-Quds fund approach. He said the IDB would likely
establish a regional office in Gaza rather than continuing to
serve it through periodic missions. Ghanem said that under
KUWAIT 00000230 002 OF 002
the Saudi proposal each country could decide whether or not
to participate in the new GCC funding entity or to distribute
its assistance independently. He said a minimum $50 million
contribution would be required in order to obtain a board
seat. Ghanem speculated that Kuwait would not use the IDB
mechanism exclusively. Rather, it would continue to use
other distribution channels, the World Bank and the Arab
Fund, in addition to the IDB.
Other Contributions
--------------
6. (SBU) Ghanem asked whether the USG had received an
official tally of individual contributions from Egypt,
complaining that it had been difficult to put all the numbers
together. He volunteered the GCC contributions: Saudi Arabia
- $1 billion, Qatar - $250 million, Kuwait - $200 million,
UAE - $174 million, Bahrain - $23 million. (Note: He was
unable to explain the discrepancy between the informal USG
figure of $400 million for the UAE. It does not appear to be
an exchange rate issue, since AED 400 million would be around
$108 million. End Note.)
Comment
--------------
7. (SBU) Ghanem and Mubaraki's comments about both the
success of the Sharm Al-Sheikh conference and the problems
with corruption in the PA track with what we have heard from
other GoK officials including MFA U/S Al-Jarallah (ref d).
Although it appears as if the details of the GCC fund have
yet to be finalized, they described it as being similar to
the existing arrangements with the Islamic Developement Bank.
Post finds it interesting that Kuwait and other countries
may not direct all of their pledges via the GCC. Kuwait
remains interested in bringing Qatar back into the fold, but
not at the expense of giving up complete control over its aid
contributions. End Comment.
********************************************* *********
For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit:
visit Kuwait's Classified Website at:
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Kuwa it
********************************************* *********
JONES
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
STATE FOR NEA/ARP, NEA/IPA, NEA/RA
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID EFIN PGOV PHUM PTER KPAL KBWG KU
SUBJECT: MARCH 2 CONFERENCE IN SHARM AL-SHEIKH: READ OUT
AND ACTION REQEUST
REF: A. SECSTATE 20388
B. KUWAIT 54
C. KUWAIT 22
D. KUWAIT 215
1. (SBU) Summary: Senior officials at the Kuwait Fund and the
Foreign Ministry told EconCouns that the March 2 Sharm
Al-Sheikh donors' conference for Gaza had been a great
success financially and also politically as it strengthened
the roles of the Palestinian Authority(PA) and moderate Arab
states. The officials confirmed that Kuwait would provide
$200 million in assistance which would be administered by the
Kuwait fund for Arab Economic Development. The officials
stressed that Kuwait did not intend to finance Hamas and that
it was taking care that the aid distribution channels used in
Gaza would ensure that Hamas did not receive any of the
funding. They said that the GCC countries would likely set
up a joint Gaza Fund administered by the Islamic Development
Bank as a mechanism for members to distribute their
assistance. End summary.
2. (SBU) On March 10, EconCouns and Econoff met with the
director of the MFA's Arab World Department, Ambassador
Jassim Al-Mubaraki, and with the regional manager for Arab
Countries at the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development,
Marwan Al-Ghanem, in separate meetings to discuss the results
of the March 2 Sharm Al-Sheikh donors' conference for Gaza
and the modalities of the GCC assistance package. EconCouns
also raised the issue with Sheikh Ali Khaled Al-Sabah, the
director of the MFA's economic department the day before.
Mubaraki opined that the conference had been a great success,
not just for the pledges made, but for its role in
strengthening Egypt, the Palestinian Authority, and the
moderate states. (Further discussion septel.)
Kuwait Fund to manage the $200 Million
--------------
3. (SBU) Both Mubaraki and Ghanem confirmed Kuwait's pledge
of $200 million over a five year period. Mubaraki also
confirmed his understanding that this pledge would be in
addition to the $34 million Kuwait committed to the UNRWA
emergency appeal during the Arab Economic Summit (ref b).
According to Mubaraki, the Kuwaiti cabinet decided on March 5
that the Kuwait Fund would be responsible for administering
the transfer of the money and monitoring the projects funded
by it. He added that the Kuwait Fund would use one or all of
the mechanisms that were being used to disburse Kuwait's
Paris Donors' Conference pledge of $300 million: the World
Bank Trust Fund for Palestine, the Arab Fund for Economic and
Social Development, and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB).
All three institutions had established infrastructures for
providing assistance to Gaza.
No Money to Hamas
--------------
4. (SBU) All of our interlocutors stressed that Kuwait did
not intend to finance Hamas, with Mubaraki stressing that
"Hamas will not receive a single penny from our support to
Gaza." Both Mubaraki and Ghanem noted, however, that the
Palestinian Authority had problems with corruption, and
Kuwait was unwilling to provide assistance directly to it.
He told EconCouns that Kuwait had instructed the three
organizations above to coordinate assistance projects in the
West Bank with the PA, but to provide no funds to Hamas.
The Distribution Mechanism
--------------
5. (SBU) In response to EconCouns' question about the GCC
distribution mechanism, Ghanem explained that all of the
details had yet to be developed, but that the GCC would
likely adopt a Saudi proposal to use a system similar to that
used in administering the Al-Aqsa and Al-Quds funds which
were established in 2000 at the Arab Emergency summit in
Cairo. Under this proposal the IDB would serve as the
secretariat and implementing entity and donor countries would
sit on the board of the Gaza fund. Ghanem said that Qatar,s
effort to have a new organization established to oversee GCC
aid, since it does not have a national development fund of
its own, had led to the Saudi proposal to use the Al
Aqsa/Al-Quds fund approach. He said the IDB would likely
establish a regional office in Gaza rather than continuing to
serve it through periodic missions. Ghanem said that under
KUWAIT 00000230 002 OF 002
the Saudi proposal each country could decide whether or not
to participate in the new GCC funding entity or to distribute
its assistance independently. He said a minimum $50 million
contribution would be required in order to obtain a board
seat. Ghanem speculated that Kuwait would not use the IDB
mechanism exclusively. Rather, it would continue to use
other distribution channels, the World Bank and the Arab
Fund, in addition to the IDB.
Other Contributions
--------------
6. (SBU) Ghanem asked whether the USG had received an
official tally of individual contributions from Egypt,
complaining that it had been difficult to put all the numbers
together. He volunteered the GCC contributions: Saudi Arabia
- $1 billion, Qatar - $250 million, Kuwait - $200 million,
UAE - $174 million, Bahrain - $23 million. (Note: He was
unable to explain the discrepancy between the informal USG
figure of $400 million for the UAE. It does not appear to be
an exchange rate issue, since AED 400 million would be around
$108 million. End Note.)
Comment
--------------
7. (SBU) Ghanem and Mubaraki's comments about both the
success of the Sharm Al-Sheikh conference and the problems
with corruption in the PA track with what we have heard from
other GoK officials including MFA U/S Al-Jarallah (ref d).
Although it appears as if the details of the GCC fund have
yet to be finalized, they described it as being similar to
the existing arrangements with the Islamic Developement Bank.
Post finds it interesting that Kuwait and other countries
may not direct all of their pledges via the GCC. Kuwait
remains interested in bringing Qatar back into the fold, but
not at the expense of giving up complete control over its aid
contributions. End Comment.
********************************************* *********
For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit:
visit Kuwait's Classified Website at:
http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Kuwa it
********************************************* *********
JONES