ISRAELI AMBASSADOR DESCRIBES HER CURRENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SINGAPORE 000109 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/27/2020 TAGS: PREL ECON PINR PTER IS SN SUBJECT: ISRAELI AMBASSADOR DESCRIBES HER CURRENT PRIORITIES IN SINGAPORE SINGAPORE 00000109 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Classified by Charge d'Affaires, a.i., Dan Shields, reas on 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary. In a January 21 luncheon conversation with the Charge, Israeli Ambassador Amira Arnon: -- described Israel's top objective in Singapore as promoting Israeli trade and business ties, noting that the upcoming Singapore Air Show would be "huge" for Israel; -- stated that Israel is pushing for greater counter-proliferation cooperation with Singapore, particularly with relation to Iran, and suggested the United States and Israel work together on approaching Singapore on Iran-related proliferation issues; -- expressed disappointment at the lack of Middle East expertise in Singapore; and -- said that while Israel aspired to open an embassy in Indonesia, there were no immediate plans to move forward on the idea. End Summary ¶2. (C) Israeli Ambassador to Singapore (as well as non-resident Ambassador to Timor Leste) Amira Arnon told the Charge during a January 21 luncheon that Israel's main interest in Singapore was business, and that despite an official relationship which is purposely kept low key, commercial ties are generally open and quite active. Ambassador Arnon described her top priority as promoting Israel's trade with Singapore, and cited the upcoming February 2-6 Singapore Air Show as "huge" for Israel's agenda for Singapore. Israel sees Singapore as a hub for its trade in Southeast Asia, and Israel's business community seeks to develop opportunities to partner with Singaporean counterparts on biotechnology, information technology and software industries, where Israel believes both countries hold competitive advantages. Post notes Arnon did not specifically mention Israel's defense trade with Singapore, which is significant; however, in a separate conversation with EconPolCouns, Ambassador Arnon described Israel's defense sales with Singapore as "complementing, not competing with" U.S. defense cooperation. ¶3. (C) Another top priority for Israel in Singapore currently, according to Ambassador Arnon, was pushing for greater counter-proliferation/counter-terrorism cooperation, particularly with regard to Iran. Arnon suggested that the United States and Israel work together on approaching Singapore on Iran-related proliferation issues, in Singapore, Tel Aviv, Washington and Vienna. Arnon recognized that Singapore had little direct influence on Iran, but cited several positive steps Singapore had taken, such as a couple of recent cases in Vienna recently where Singapore had stood up against consensus in the Non-Aligned Movement to block pro-Iranian initiatives. Israel passes intelligence on ships of concern passing through the Strait of Malacca to Singapore, Ambassador Arnon stated. Israel also appreciated Singapore's willingness to provide briefings on official meetings between Singapore and Iranian officials. Ambassador Arnon, admitting that her embassy was "not plugged in" to the extent she would like with key Singaporean government officials, suggested that Israel's military and intelligence channels had more active interactions with Singaporean counterparts on Iran than its diplomatic corps. ¶4. (C) Ambassador Arnon lamented at the lack of Middle East expertise in Singapore, saying there were no Singaporeans who really understood Middle East issues. This can be attributed in part, she said, to Singapore's desire to refrain from high level visit exchanges or official contacts which would draw substantial public attention, an approach Israel respects and comfortably works around. Regardless of the dearth of high-level official contacts, Israel maintained working level contacts and Israeli private businesses were active in the region. Ambassador Arnon was optimistic that the relatively new Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore would eventually be of high quality, as in typical Singaporean fashion the university would be able to recruit first-class expertise from abroad. SINGAPORE 00000109 002.2 OF 002 ¶5. (C) Ambassador Arnon stated that Israel has "aspirations" of opening an embassy in Jakarta, but that there are no indications that it will move forward on plans in the foreseeable future. SHIELDS Visit Embassy Singapore's Classified website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eap/singapore/ind ex.cfm