GOK OFFICIAL: GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT AGREEMENT NOT

UNCLAS KUWAIT 000136 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP; EEB/IPE; STATE PASS USTR JASON BUNTIN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EINT PGOV ECPS KIPR EIND ETRD KU SUBJECT: GOK OFFICIAL: GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT AGREEMENT NOT FEASIBLE RIGHT NOW REF: A. (A) 12/2/09 BUNTIN-TOMS EMAIL ¶B. (B) 2/29/10 TOMS-BUNTIN EMAIL ¶1. (SBU) On January 28th, Econoff met with Ishaq Abdulkarim, the Finance Ministry's Director of International Economic Co-Operation, about the status of Kuwait's interest in the WTO Government Procurement Agreement (GPA). Abdulkarim stated that there had been no updates or any movement on this issue from the GoK side because it considered GPA to be a part of its larger Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) relationship with the U.S. He added that since there has been no movement on TIFA issues, the GoK no longer views the GPA as a priority, adding that acceding to it is not feasible right now. ¶2. (SBU) Comment: Kuwaiti law mandates explicit offset requirements and compels working through local partners in most cases. Absent a clearly defined end goal, whether a Free Trade Agreement or some other bilateral or multilateral economic agreement, the Kuwaiti bureaucracy is unlikely to want to expend the political capital needed to push Kuwait into joining an agreement that would curtail these direct benefits to its citizenry. 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