JORDAN BLUE LANTERN:VERIFYING BONA FIDES OF

UNCLAS AMMAN 000217 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR PM/DTCC BLUE LANTERN COORDINATOR E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ETTC KOMC JO SUBJECT: JORDAN BLUE LANTERN:VERIFYING BONA FIDES OF REGISTERED BROKER IMAD MATARNEH (CASE NUMBER K-2064) REF: A. A) WILSON-JOUBERT-LIN EMAIL NOV 09 ¶B. B) 09 STATE 99523 ¶1. (SBU) Economic Section and Foreign Commercial Service (FCS) LESs conducted initial/preliminary database searches on this firm through Government of Jordan (Ministry of Industry and Trade(MoIT)) on-line records and found no pertinent information. FCS personnel are familiar with the owner, Imad Matarneh, however, who has an established business in Amman. ¶2. (SBU) Blue Lantern Officer, accompanied by LES assistant, met Mr. Imad Matarneh, president of Al-Montaser Technical Services on 8 December 2009. Mr. Matarneh reported he has served in the Jordanian Armed Forces, retiring as a Major in 1994 from the Special Communications Commission, which oversees all telecommunications operations in/for Jordan. He explained that his company is named Near East Technologies, Ltd. (NET),but had recently formed Al-Montaser as an affiliate/subsidiary. He said they specialize in telecommunications and technology with his clients being primarily the Jordanian Armed Forces and other security agencies, such as the General Intelligence Department and the Public Security Directorate. ¶3. (SBU) Matarneh reported his company is the in-country representative for major U.S. defense technology companies such as Raytheon, ITT, and Hawker-Beechcraft, and noted that he is the facilitator and go-between for these U.S. businesses to operate in Jordan; Al-Montaser never actually handles or possesses any equipment or material. ¶4. (SBU) Matarneh said the 2007 U.S. Government requirement to have companies register as brokers created a possible privacy issue regarding his other -- primarily European -- clients. So to ensure he was protecting the proprietary data, he created a completely separate company, Al-Montaser, which was registered as required (he said his firms are cleared by the Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine (TRACE) (http://www.finra.org/Industry/Compliance/Mar ketTransparency/ TRACE/) ¶5. (SBU) Matarneh's connections to the Jordanian military generally speak well of his reputation and reliability. Additionally, he is known by U.S. military officers in Post's Defense Attache Office with no reported derogatory information about him or his companies. A local staff member reports rumors within the Amman business community that Matarneh has a reputation for "playing hardball" with colleagues and competitors if he deems it necessary, however there is no information that his businesses have ever operated improperly. ¶6. (SBU) Conclusion. Based on initial impressions, the owner appears to be a well-established and connected businessman in Jordan, and the company, while newly created, appears to be as represented, and legitimately engaged in the business he reports they are engaged in. ¶7. (U) Corrected address/contact information for this firm is: - IMAD MATARNEH, PRESIDENT - AL-MONTASER TECHNICAL SERVICES, LTD. - OFFICE 312, AL-HUSSEINI CENTER - 39 ABDALLAH GHOUSHEH STREET - AMMAN - JORDAN 11118 - TEL: 962-6-593-0382 - FAX: 962-6-593-1517 Visit Amman's Classified Web Site at http://diplopedia.state.sgov.gov/index.php?ti tle=Embassy Amman Beecroft