SECRETARY CLINTON'S MAY 14, 2009 CONVERSATION

S E C R E T STATE 051076 JERUSALEM E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/15/2029 TAGS: OVIP CLINTON HILLARY PGOV PREL ECON MY SUBJECT: SECRETARY CLINTON'S MAY 14, 2009 CONVERSATION WITH MALAYSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ANIFAH AMAN Classified By: EAP ACTING A/S GLYN T. DAVIES. REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D) ¶1. (SBU) May 14, 2009; 2:30 p.m.; Washington, D.C. ¶2. (SBU) Participants: U.S. The Secretary Glyn T. Davies, EAP Acting A/S Ian Kelly, Spokesman Joe McManus, Executive Assistant Daniel Bischof, EAP/MTS (Notetaker) MALAYSIA FM Anifah Aman Mohd. Radzi Abdul Rahman, Foreign Affairs Deputy Secretary General Ilango Karuppannan, Charge d'Affaires, a.i. Melvin Castellino S. Anthony Raja, Private Secretary to the Foreign Minister Muhammad Radzi Jamaluddin, Foreign Affairs Principal Assistant Secretary ¶3. (S) SUMMARY. In a May 14, 2009, meeting with FM Anifah, Secretary Clinton highlighted the opportunity for deeper bilateral relations with Malaysia. FM Anifah said he was pleased to take bilateral relations to a higher level and invited the Secretary and President Obama to visit Kuala Lumpur. Secretary Clinton said the United States supports full membership for Malaysia in the Contact Group for Piracy off the Coast of Somalia. Noting the recent arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi, the Secretary asked Anifah for advice on dealing with the situation in Burma. She said she wanted to work more closely with Malaysia to combat trafficking in persons. Anifah offered assistance in Afghanistan and Pakistan, especially in the area of Islamic banking. Anifah renewed a Government of Malaysia (GOM) request for the return of two Malaysian citizens held in Guantanamo Bay. He encouraged the United States to continue to move toward a two-state solution in the Middle East, a goal to which the Secretary said the Obama administration is committed. END SUMMARY. -------------- ENHANCED ENGAGEMENT -------------- ¶4. (C) The Secretary began her May 14 meeting by saying how pleased she was to welcome FM Anifah to Washington and that this was an opportunity to develop the bilateral relationship at the time of the new administrations in both our governments. The Secretary said there was much to discuss and much that we could work together on. She presented Anifah with a congratulatory letter from President Obama for Prime Minister Najib. Anifah said he was pleased to bring relations to a higher level. He invited President Obama to visit Malaysia, noting that the last President to visit was President Johnson 43 years ago. He also invited the Secretary to Malaysia on the margins of her trip to the ASEAN Post Ministerial Conference / ASEAN Regional Forum (ASEAN PMC/ARF) in July. The Secretary said she was looking forward to ASEAN PMC/ARF and that it was an opportunity to re-engage in the region. She said she expected to have a busy agenda but would take into consideration Anifah's kind invitation. -------------- PIRACY -------------- ¶5. (C) The Secretary said that the United States supports full membership for Malaysia in the Contact Group for Piracy off the Coast of Somalia (CGPCS) and that Malaysia has been a strong partner in combating piracy, including by deploying a frigate to the region since fall 2008. Anifah said he appreciated the invitation to the May CGPCS meeting and expected that Malaysia could contribute positively. The Secretary noted Malaysia's success in combating piracy in the Strait of Malacca and welcomed lessons learned from Malaysia. Anifah also mentioned that there will be a piracy conference held in Malaysia May 18-19 and that there will be 46 international speakers, including four from the United States. -------------- BURMA -------------- ¶6. (C) Referencing Malaysia's status as a leading member of ASEAN, the Secretary asked for Anifah's advice on dealing with Burma. She recounted the reports that Aung San Suu Kyi (ASSK) was being charged for violating the terms of her house arrest. The Secretary said she hoped that ASEAN will speak out, noting humanitarian concerns due to ASSK's health and concerns about freedom and rule of law in this matter. Anifah said he had gotten information about this matter only earlier that morning but added he was very concerned. He suggested using the ASEAN forum and offered to ask for an ASEAN meeting about Burma. He said that his government was committed to continued engagement with the United States on Burma. -------------- TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS -------------- ¶7. (C) The Secretary raised the April 2009 Senate Foreign Relations Committee Report on trafficking of persons in Malaysia and noted Prime Minister Najib's announcement of an investigation of Malaysian officials' complicity in the trafficking. She said she was aware that Anifah was scheduled to meet with Senator Lugar to discuss trafficking and the unfortunate refugee situation in Malaysia. She said she was looking forward to working with Malaysia on these issues. Anifah said that Prime Minister Najib is engaged on these matters, that this is an ASEAN region-wide problem, and that his government would seek to address the root of the problem. He added that the GOM is concerned about abuse by government agencies and that they were "looking into it deeply." -------------- NON-PROLIFERATION AND EXPORT CONTROLS -------------- ¶8. (C) The Secretary turned to export controls and financial transactions with countries such as North Korea and Iran. She said that the United States is interested in working together with Malaysia on money laundering and other illicit transactions. Anifah said the government is working to complete an export control law and is working on a megaports agreement. -------------- GUANTANAMO BAY DETAINEES -------------- ¶9. (S) Anifah noted a previous request by his predecessor for the United States to return to Malaysia the two Malaysian nationals detained in Guantanamo Bay. Anifah said that his government was still interested in receiving them back and conducting or assisting with any related investigation. The Secretary said that she appreciated the offer, adding that it was helpful to have this information. She said the Guantanamo Bay detainee issue was part of an inter-agency review, that the situation for each detainee was being reviewed individually, and that when the review was finished, we would inform the Malaysians. -------------- MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROCESS -------------- ¶10. (C) Anifah expressed appreciation for USG efforts in the Middle East and said Malaysia hoped the United States would continue to be an honest broker in efforts to achieve the two-state solution. He noted this would boost the image of the United States in the Muslim world. The Secretary said that the United States was committed to the two state solution. She said that the Arab Peace Initiative and the roadmap had been agreed to by most nations in the world, including 55 Muslim nations. She said she was hopeful to shift the conversation away from "the most extreme edges." -------------- -- AFGHANISTAN ASSISTANCE, GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS -------------- -- ¶11. (C) Anifah said that Malaysia was willing to assist with efforts in Afghanistan and Pakistan. On issues such as Islamic banking, Malaysia had much to offer. He also noted appreciation for U.S. efforts with the global financial crisis and said that Malaysia had learned financial institution restructuring lessons from the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98 that it was willing to share with the United States. The Secretary said that the USG would follow up on these invitations. CLINTON