Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09KUWAIT643
2009-06-29 06:13:00
SECRET
Embassy Kuwait
Cable title:
KUWAIT-FRANCE NUCLEAR COOPERATION
how-toVZCZCXRO1092 PP RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHDH RUEHDIR RUEHFL RUEHHM RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHPB RUEHROV RUEHSL RUEHTM RUEHTRO DE RUEHKU #0643/01 1800613 ZNY SSSSS ZZH P 290613Z JUN 09 FM AMEMBASSY KUWAIT TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3578 INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUEHAM/AMEMBASSY AMMAN PRIORITY 2032 RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS PRIORITY 1172 RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY RHEBAAA/DEPT OF ENERGY WASHDC PRIORITY
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000643
SIPDIS
STATE FOR NEA/ARP, EUR/ERA, ISN/RA, ISN/NESS
PARIS FOR ECON
AMMAN FOR ESTH
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/23/2019
TAGS: PREL EINV ETRD ECON ECIP ENRG KU FR
SUBJECT: KUWAIT-FRANCE NUCLEAR COOPERATION
REF: A. KUWAIT 143
B. KUWAIT 578
C. KUWAIT 184
Classified By: EconCouns Oliver B. John for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000643
SIPDIS
STATE FOR NEA/ARP, EUR/ERA, ISN/RA, ISN/NESS
PARIS FOR ECON
AMMAN FOR ESTH
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/23/2019
TAGS: PREL EINV ETRD ECON ECIP ENRG KU FR
SUBJECT: KUWAIT-FRANCE NUCLEAR COOPERATION
REF: A. KUWAIT 143
B. KUWAIT 578
C. KUWAIT 184
Classified By: EconCouns Oliver B. John for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)
1. (C) Summary: French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde
visited Kuwait June 20-21 for the twelfth meeting of the
Kuwait-France Joint Economic Committee. Local media and
wires played up French-Kuwaiti nuclear cooperation both from
her talks with the Amir and from the concurrent visit by
representatives of France's state-owned Areva. Contacts in
the GoK, however, stress that there was much less to the
meetings than portrayed in the press. Minister Lagarde's
visit comes four months after President Sarkozy discussed
security cooperation with the GOK, part of his government's
high-profile endeavor to significantly expand the GOF's
defense and commercial links with GCC nations. End Summary.
2. (SBU) French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde engaged in
high-level talks with the GOK June 21, as part of the twelfth
meeting of the Kuwait-France Joint Economic Committee, the
first such meeting since 2006. According to the official
Kuwait News Agency (KUNA),Lagarde's talks with Amir Sabah
Al-Sabah focused on nuclear power cooperation and Islamic
finance. Other topics discussed by Lagarde's delegation and
GOK officials included civil aviation, public health
partnerships and infrastructure development. Accroding to
Sheikh Jarrah Al-Sabah from the MFA's Economic Department,
the "technical meetings" of the Joint Economic Committee
focused on making minor revisions to the agreed minutes from
the 2006 meeting and on signing an Agreement on Cooperation
in Development and Infrastructure for Communications, which
he said had already been "teed-up" before the meetings.
3. (C) The talks come four months after President Sarkozy
discussed arms sales, including the possible sale of dozens
of Rafale fighter jets, with the GOK (ref A) and two months
after heavily publicized war games involving Kuwaiti and
French forces in northern Kuwait -- and less than a month
after Sarkozy formally opened the GOF's first military "base"
in the Gulf, in Abu Dhabi. These and other GOF initiatives
are part of the Sarkozy administration's effort to reinforce
France's presence in the region in line with its "Defense
White Book" designation of the Gulf as a strategic "priority
zone" (ref A).
4. (SBU) In recent months, Kuwait has taken steps to further
plan for nuclear power generation. In the wake of Sarkozy's
February 2009 visit, a GOK technical team visited France to
discuss nuclear cooperation with GOF officials and
representatives of Areva, the giant nuclear power generation
and electricity transmission company, which is majority owned
by the French Government. (Note: Areva and another French
state-owned company, EDF, are part of a French consortium
bidding on a project to build nuclear reactors in the UAE.
End Note). In March, an Amiri Decree established the
National Committee for Using Nuclear Energy for Peaceful
Purposes, chaired by the Prime Minister, with a secretariat
headed by former OPEC acting secretary-general, Dr. Adnan
Shihab-Eldin.
5. (C) Concurrent with Lagarde's visit, Areva representatives
undertook meetings with GOK officials, ostensibly to discuss
nuclear cooperation. However, Dr. Adnan Shihab-Eldin told
Econcouns that Minister Lagarde had oversold the Areva talks.
He acknowledged that GOK officials had met with Areva and
discussed nuclear reactor technology, but said that the main
purpose of Areva's visit was to discuss mining sector
projects in Kazakhstan and Mongolia with the Kuwait
Investment Authority (KIA),Kuwait's sovereign wealth fund.
6. (C) Eldin stated that the French do have a lead in nuclear
cooperation talks with the GOK. He said that "they came here
quickly" and that the Amir liked what he heard. He said that
French firms have significant experience and expertise in the
realm of nuclear power and that he, personally, likes their
technology. That said, he stressed, that the GoK is nowhere
near to making a decision on reactor technology, and that
even if the GOK were to go with French technology, there
would be opportunities for U.S. firms, given the close U.S. -
KUWAIT 00000643 002 OF 002
Kuwaiti strategic relationship.
COMMENT
--------------
7. (S) Although there appears to be less to this visit than
meets the eye, the French continue to work assiduously to
deepen their relationship with the GOK and the rest of the
GCC states. Proactive lobbying by Sarkozy, Lagarde and other
GOF officials -- and a dearth of public interest from other
suitors -- is feeding speculation that Kuwait and France will
embark on nuclear power generation cooperation. However,
from what GoK officials have told us and what we know about
Kuwait's own glacial decision making processes, it appears
certain that the French are overselling the progress of these
talks. Nevertheless, interest in nuclear power generation is
on the rise throughout the Arab nations of the Gulf and
French firms currently dominate discussion of all such
development programs. 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
SIPDIS
STATE FOR NEA/ARP, EUR/ERA, ISN/RA, ISN/NESS
PARIS FOR ECON
AMMAN FOR ESTH
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/23/2019
TAGS: PREL EINV ETRD ECON ECIP ENRG KU FR
SUBJECT: KUWAIT-FRANCE NUCLEAR COOPERATION
REF: A. KUWAIT 143
B. KUWAIT 578
C. KUWAIT 184
Classified By: EconCouns Oliver B. John for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)
1. (C) Summary: French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde
visited Kuwait June 20-21 for the twelfth meeting of the
Kuwait-France Joint Economic Committee. Local media and
wires played up French-Kuwaiti nuclear cooperation both from
her talks with the Amir and from the concurrent visit by
representatives of France's state-owned Areva. Contacts in
the GoK, however, stress that there was much less to the
meetings than portrayed in the press. Minister Lagarde's
visit comes four months after President Sarkozy discussed
security cooperation with the GOK, part of his government's
high-profile endeavor to significantly expand the GOF's
defense and commercial links with GCC nations. End Summary.
2. (SBU) French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde engaged in
high-level talks with the GOK June 21, as part of the twelfth
meeting of the Kuwait-France Joint Economic Committee, the
first such meeting since 2006. According to the official
Kuwait News Agency (KUNA),Lagarde's talks with Amir Sabah
Al-Sabah focused on nuclear power cooperation and Islamic
finance. Other topics discussed by Lagarde's delegation and
GOK officials included civil aviation, public health
partnerships and infrastructure development. Accroding to
Sheikh Jarrah Al-Sabah from the MFA's Economic Department,
the "technical meetings" of the Joint Economic Committee
focused on making minor revisions to the agreed minutes from
the 2006 meeting and on signing an Agreement on Cooperation
in Development and Infrastructure for Communications, which
he said had already been "teed-up" before the meetings.
3. (C) The talks come four months after President Sarkozy
discussed arms sales, including the possible sale of dozens
of Rafale fighter jets, with the GOK (ref A) and two months
after heavily publicized war games involving Kuwaiti and
French forces in northern Kuwait -- and less than a month
after Sarkozy formally opened the GOF's first military "base"
in the Gulf, in Abu Dhabi. These and other GOF initiatives
are part of the Sarkozy administration's effort to reinforce
France's presence in the region in line with its "Defense
White Book" designation of the Gulf as a strategic "priority
zone" (ref A).
4. (SBU) In recent months, Kuwait has taken steps to further
plan for nuclear power generation. In the wake of Sarkozy's
February 2009 visit, a GOK technical team visited France to
discuss nuclear cooperation with GOF officials and
representatives of Areva, the giant nuclear power generation
and electricity transmission company, which is majority owned
by the French Government. (Note: Areva and another French
state-owned company, EDF, are part of a French consortium
bidding on a project to build nuclear reactors in the UAE.
End Note). In March, an Amiri Decree established the
National Committee for Using Nuclear Energy for Peaceful
Purposes, chaired by the Prime Minister, with a secretariat
headed by former OPEC acting secretary-general, Dr. Adnan
Shihab-Eldin.
5. (C) Concurrent with Lagarde's visit, Areva representatives
undertook meetings with GOK officials, ostensibly to discuss
nuclear cooperation. However, Dr. Adnan Shihab-Eldin told
Econcouns that Minister Lagarde had oversold the Areva talks.
He acknowledged that GOK officials had met with Areva and
discussed nuclear reactor technology, but said that the main
purpose of Areva's visit was to discuss mining sector
projects in Kazakhstan and Mongolia with the Kuwait
Investment Authority (KIA),Kuwait's sovereign wealth fund.
6. (C) Eldin stated that the French do have a lead in nuclear
cooperation talks with the GOK. He said that "they came here
quickly" and that the Amir liked what he heard. He said that
French firms have significant experience and expertise in the
realm of nuclear power and that he, personally, likes their
technology. That said, he stressed, that the GoK is nowhere
near to making a decision on reactor technology, and that
even if the GOK were to go with French technology, there
would be opportunities for U.S. firms, given the close U.S. -
KUWAIT 00000643 002 OF 002
Kuwaiti strategic relationship.
COMMENT
--------------
7. (S) Although there appears to be less to this visit than
meets the eye, the French continue to work assiduously to
deepen their relationship with the GOK and the rest of the
GCC states. Proactive lobbying by Sarkozy, Lagarde and other
GOF officials -- and a dearth of public interest from other
suitors -- is feeding speculation that Kuwait and France will
embark on nuclear power generation cooperation. However,
from what GoK officials have told us and what we know about
Kuwait's own glacial decision making processes, it appears
certain that the French are overselling the progress of these
talks. Nevertheless, interest in nuclear power generation is
on the rise throughout the Arab nations of the Gulf and
French firms currently dominate discussion of all such
development programs. 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