SOMALIA - PRESIDENT SHARIF ON THE GULF,

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 NAIROBI 001860

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/E AND A/S CARSON

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/04/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM PTER SO AE QA
SUBJECT: SOMALIA - PRESIDENT SHARIF ON THE GULF,
AL-SHABAAB, AND US RELATIONS

Classified By: Ambassador Michael E. Ranneberger for reasons 1.4(b,d).

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Summary
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1. (C) On September 2, Ambassador Ranneberger and the
Mission's Somalia Unit met with Transitional Federal
Government (TFG) President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, and
four TFG ministers in Nairobi. Sharif said on his visit to
Qatar and Dubai he made progress toward achieving his goal of
ensuring Qatar's neutrality on relations with certain
extremists. The UAE government pledged to support the TFG
and Sharif asked for U.S. help in securing this assistance.
Sharif discussed distinct groups within al-Shabaab, including
some with links to al-Qaida and described his efforts to
neutralize the terrorist group by drawing away certain
individuals. He said that al-Shabaab is losing strength as
most Somalis now question its legitimacy. The TFG President
discussed outreach to the regions and the difficulties of
mounting a coordinated operation to route al-Shabaab
(developments in the Juba region will be reported septel).
Sharif reported that the Prime Minister's trip to Puntland
renewed engagement and the TFG is talking with Somaliland
about common security concerns. Sharif said the cabinet
reshuffle yielded mixed results and intimated that he might
reduce the cabinet's size and recruit ministers with greater
capacity. Sharif said that, following up on his meeting with
the Secretary, he hopes for a more robust U.S.-Somalia
partnership, including an additional tranche of funds to
support the security sector. He told the Ambassador he plans
to lay out his priorities for U.S.-Somalia engagement in New
York and Washington at the end of September when he attends
the U.N. General Assembly. End Summary.

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Productive Visit to Gulf States
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2. (C) The Ambassador met with Transitional Federal
Government (TFG) President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed in
Nairobi on September 2. The TFG President was en route to
Mogadishu after visiting Qatar and Dubai. President Sharif
appeared confident and was in excellent spirits. Also in
attendance was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance
Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden, newly appointed Minister of
Foreign Affairs Ahmed Jama Ali Jangeli, Minister of Land and
Air Transportation Mohamed Abdi Mohamed "Gandi," and Somali
Ambassador to Kenya Mohamed Ali Nur. The delegation returned
to Mogadishu the morning of September 3.


3. (C) Sharif told the Ambassador that his visit to Qatar
and UAE was "productive" and that he met with Qatari
leadership to secure their neutrality. "They want us to
engage in talks with al-Shabaab, but produced no coherent
proposals to that effect," Sharif said of Qatar. The
President did not say if he and the Qataris had discussed an
outstanding Arab League pledge of funds. He asserted that
Qatar is not fully aware of the situation in Somalia and the
negative role Hassan Dahir Aweys has played, but that after
the discussions, Qatar has a better appreciation.


4. (C) Sharif said he would possibly engage in talks with
elements of al-Shabaab, but only within a broader context of
outreach to all Somalis. The President insisted that any
negotiations must occur within Somalia, not outside the
country. While Sharif doubted Qatar could "deliver" Aweys or
key members of al-Shabaab, he is planning to send a technical
team back to Qatar to assess the specific proposals they have
in mind. Sharif said that one cannot always accomplish a
goal in the first or even second round of talks and seemed
hopeful that he could still gain Arab League support without
the strings of reconciliation with extremists. Sharif also
clarified that he would not talk with terrorists or the worst
extremist elements of al-Shabaab.


5. (C) Sharif emphasized the excellent meetings he held in
Dubai with representatives of the Somali diaspora and
business community. He told the Ambassador that he had
productive meetings with UAE officials who confirmed their
support for the TFG. The UAE government pledged its
assistance and Sharif said he believes the UAE will honor its

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pledges. He asked the Ambassador to ensure that the United
States use its close relationship with the UAE to follow up
on these pledges of support. We noted our earlier efforts to
persuade delinquent Brussels pldging conference donors to
come through for the TFG, and promised to keep up the
pressure.

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Al-Shabaab: Fracturing the Group
By Targeting Distinct Elements
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6. (C) In response to the Ambassador's question about
pulling support away from al-Shabaab, Sharif described a
definite distinction among its discrete groups. Sharif said
that some within the most committed al-Shabaab have foreign
training and links with al-Qaida. While this is the smallest
group within al-Shabaab, many are from Afghanistan and other
foreign countries. In contrast, he said most of the native
Somali Shabaab supporters have been pulled in "by emotion" or
economic reasons - they have no other options to sustain
them. He said there are others who genuinely question the
legitimacy of the government and have real concerns about the
direction the country is taking. Sharif said these latter
groups are being targeted by the TFG to pull them from
al-Shabaab and that many are now questioning the legitimacy
of the extremist group. Sharif said the ideological, "real"
al-Shabaab from abroad have foreign ideas and will never be
swayed by negotiations. The TFG President said that others
could potentially be included in discussions and their needs
addressed.

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Regional Engagement
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7. (C) President Sharif said that Prime Minister Omar
Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke,s visit to Puntland "changed our
relationship with Puntland." Sharif thanked the Ambassador
for U.S. efforts to encourage both sides to come together.
Sharif said he plans to visit the region personally after the
end of Ramadan. The Ambassador replied that we will continue
pushing Puntland to improve its cooperation with the TFG.
Sharif told the Ambassador the TFG has also initiated
behind-the-scenes talks with Somaliland on security-related
issues. He said the conflict with al-Shabaab requires a
coordinated effort with the understanding that no single
regional entity would be able to confront the onslaught of
al-Shabaab on its own.


8. (C) The TFG strategy to confront al-Shabaab is to create
a coordinated, multi-region, cross-clan front against
al-Shabaab. The President said peace-building efforts by
ministers from the regions were the TFG,s first step. To
that end, the late Security Minister Omar Hashi was murdered
rallying the people of Hiran. When the Ambassador asked
Sharif about developments in Jubaland, the TFG President
turned to Former Defense Minister, now Transport Minister
Mohamed "Gandi" to reply. Gandi remains charged with
building reconciliation and engineering an anti-Shabaab
effort in Gedo and Lower Juba, per septel. President Sharif
said the TFG is sending teams of TFG officials from Ethiopia
through both the Gedo and Galguduud regions to assess the
current condition of resources and heighten coordination on
the ground. President Sharif said only simultaneous actions
in all regions will succeed against al-Shabaab.

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Cabinet Shift Yields
Mixed Results
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9. (C) On the recent cabinet reshuffle, President Sharif
expressed slight frustration with the results. He said that
he and PM Sharmarke made the move partially to preempt clans
from developing feelings of ownership over specific
portfolios, and to soothe certain clans' feelings of
dissatisfaction at being excluded from the cabinet (Note:
Sharif appointed two Abgal to ministries, likely as a sop to
that clan.) However, he and the Prime Minister have found
that the various clans remain dissatisfied. Sharif noted
that it is his job to help the Prime Minister in constituting

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an effective cabinet. He mused that since a larger cabinet
still evoked such clan unhappiness, he and the Prime Minister
might as well reduce the size of cabinet, keeping only the
most effective ministers.

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Cementing the Bilateral
Relationship
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10. (C) President Sharif said he wants to arrive in New York
for the United General Assembly (UNGA) on/about September 21.
He said he hopes his meeting with the Secretary will yield
increased assistance from the United States, including funds
for the security services. Sharif made a specific and strong
appeal for another urgent tranche of funds to help sustain
TFG troops and support security operations. The Ambassador
assured Sharif that we were working to get the funds to him
expeditiously. The Ambassador said that, in addition to
continued U.S. security sector support, together we should
intensify planning so that, as the TFG expands its authority,
the U.S. and TFG can work together to show results to the
Somali people.


11. (C) While in the United States for UNGA, Sharif said he
wants to define more clearly the U.S.-Somalia relationship,
meeting with as many U.S. officials as possible, and possibly
going to Washington for meetings with the USG, Congress, and
others. Sharif also mentioned that he would like to travel
to key areas of the U.S. to meet with the Somali diaspora.
He told us it is time to show the Somali people some tangible
results on the ground from our bilateral relationship. The
United States' investment in Somalia now will yield Somali
gratitude and a strong relationship in the future, he
asserted.


12. (C) Sharif emphasized that his presentation in New York
will focus on priority sectors: security, humanitarian, and
ministerial capacity building in order to provide services.
In addition, the TFG is cognizant of the need to focus on
transitional tasks over the coming two years - a challenge
given the security situation. Sharif said that the
challenges are great as Somalia was literally re-building
from the ground up. President Sharif agreed with us that his
UNGA delegation should be composed of his best people with
detailed plans of needs and objectives.

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Comment
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13. (C) With a possibly weakened al-Shabaab, a lull in
fighting in Mogadishu, and fresh from a trip to the Gulf,
President Sharif was confident and upbeat. He articulated
TFG priorities in a clear, coherent way. In a positive sign,
Sharif demonstrated that he has delegated important tasks to
his ministers, especially outreach to the regions. If Sharif
does indeed travel to Puntland, it could signal a new chapter
in their relationship. The Ambassador encouraged the TFG
President to come to New York with a detailed plan of action.
In the interim, it is important that we provide an
additional tranche of financial support through the
PricewaterhouseCoopers accountability mechanism.
RANNEBERGER