KUWAIT HAS NOT YET CONSIDERED NEW AID FOR PAKISTAN

UNCLAS KUWAIT 000555 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREF EAID PHUM PK KU SUBJECT: KUWAIT HAS NOT YET CONSIDERED NEW AID FOR PAKISTAN IDPS REF: A. SECSTATE 55536 ¶B. KUWAIT 539 ¶1. (U) Econoff followed up on the possibility of Kuwait aid for Pakistan's IDPs with Ministry of Foreign Affairs Counselor Rashid Al-Hajri on June 1. Al-Hajri said the GoK's new Cabinet, which met first on May 31, had not yet considered the issue of relief for Pakistani IDPs. Officials from the Kuwait Red Crescent Society and the Kuwait Fund also stated they had not heard of this issue being considered by the new Cabinet yet. ¶2. (SBU) Mohamed Hassan, International Relations Supervisor for the Kuwait Red Crescent Society, told Econoff that the KRCS was making an assessment of the situation in Pakistan in coordination with the Pakistan Red Crescent Society and the Kuwait Embassy in Islamabad. Following the assessment, the KRCS Board will make a decision on assistance for the IDPs. ¶3. (U) Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development Deputy Director told Econoff that reconstruction assistance for earthquake victims in Jammu and Kashmir was held up by concerns about the security situation in Pakistan. He said the USD 49 million assistance project had been approved but that Kuwait Fund officials had not been able to travel to Pakistan to sign the final papers because of the uncertain security situation. He added that a hydroelectric project in Neelam Jhelam could not proceed until the earthquake reconstruction loan had been signed. ********************************************* ********* For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: visit Kuwait's Classified Website at: http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Kuwa it ********************************************* ********* JONES