US embassy cable - 03KUWAIT5808

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KUWAIT 005808 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR INR/R/MR NEA/ARP, NEA/PPD, PA, INR/NESA, IIP/G/NEA-SA, 
INR/B 
WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE 
LONDON FOR GOLDRICH 
PARIS FOR O'FRIEL 
SECDEF FOR OASD/PA 
CINCCENT FOR CCPA 
USDOC FOR 4520/ANESA/ONE/FITZGERALD-WILKS 
USDOC FOR ITA AND PTO/OLIA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OIIP, KU, KDMR 
SUBJECT: KUWAIT MEDIA REACTION SPECIAL, DECEMBER 21-23: GCC 
SUMMIT IN KUWAIT 
 
1.  News stories: All newspapers report on December 23 the 
contents of the final communiqu issued at the conclusion of 
the GCC Summit in Kuwait on December 22. Al-Watan, Al-Anba 
and Al-Rai Al-Aam published the full official text of the 
communiqu. Among the points of the communiqu highlighted 
in the reportage were: 
 
-Approval of a GCC pact to combat terrorism 
 
-Support for Saudi Arabia's proposal on reviewing 
educational curricula in GCC countries 
 
-Support for the US plan to transfer sovereignty to the 
Iraqi people 
 
-Call to prosecute all those who committed "crimes against 
humanity" in Iraq 
 
-Denunciations of the terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia over 
the past months and the killing of Kuwaiti POWs and Iraqis 
by the "former Iraqi regime" 
 
-Support for the Road Map peace plan and denunciation of 
"Israeli aggressions" 
 
-Affirmation of the "importance of women in society" and a 
recommendation to refer the issue of women's political 
rights to "relevant ministerial committees" 
 
-Plans for customs union and common market by 2007, and a 
unified currency by 2010 
 
-Call for Israel's signature to the Non-Proliferation Treaty 
 
-Support for UAE in a dispute with Iran over the sovereignty 
of three islands 
 
 
 
Al-Qabas reports that the closing session of the GCC Summit 
was delayed by four hours due to disputes over the 
paragraphs related to reforming education and the role of 
Gulf women. Al-Qabas highlights on their December 23 front 
page that the paragraph welcoming the arrest of Saddam was 
absent from the final communiqu. 
 
All newspapers report that in his speech marking the opening 
of the GCC Summit on December 21, Prime Minister, Sheikh 
Sabah Al-Ahmed said Iraq was now heading towards democracy 
and that Gulf states must unite to combat terrorism. 
 
A GCC citizen in Kuwait has been arrested with plans of and 
directions for using surface-to-air missles along with maps 
of locations in Kuwait and other GCC countries, according to 
Al-Rai Al-Aam and Al-Watan. 
 
All newspapers report Kuwaiti efforts to mend the 
differences between Qatar and Saudi Arabia on the sidelines 
of the GCC Summit. 
 
Al-Watan reports that the Minister of Education Dr. Rasheed 
Al-Hamad called on the GCC Summit to take up the issue of 
reform of educational curricula. Al-Qabas reports that on 
December 22 that Islamist MP Waleed Al-Tabtabaei stated that 
the idea of reforming educational curricula in Islamic 
countries " was born from the womb Right wing and Zionist 
institutions in the United States who adopt a policy of 
aggression towards Islam." 
 
3.  "Let Us Believe In Our Leaders" 
Editor-in-chief of independent Al-Qabas, Waleed Al-Nesf 
opined (12/21):  "This is the third GCC summit in Kuwait 
since its liberation and the first after Saddam. We should 
help to position the Iraqis on the right track, and help 
them in the reconstruction of Iraq. We tell our leaders that 
they must tackle the major issues such as confronting 
terrorism, and numerous political, economical and education 
reforms in addition to discussing freedom of opinion." 
 
4.  "Eliminating Terrorism" 
Editor-in-chief of independent Al-Anba, Bibi Al-Marzook 
opined (12/21):  "Many changes have taken place in the 
region after August 2, 1990 [the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait] 
and September 11, 2001. GCC countries have been targeted 
more than any others by terrorism. Combating the extremist 
ideology requires changing the way of thinking that is 
taught at schools. What we hope most is that our governments 
can achieve security and stability, because if terrorism 
continues the Gulf region will end up paying a dear price." 
 
5.  "A Historical Opportunity for Change" 
Islamist Salafi Dr. Wael Al-Hasawi wrote in independent Al- 
Rai Al-Aam (12/21):  "For the first time ever, GCC countries 
do not feel an external threat, especially from the Iraq. 
However, this does not mean that there are not threats from 
terrorist groups active in the Gulf that seek to destabilize 
the region. [GCC leaders] must first pay attention to vital 
and important issues, such as allowing their people to 
participate in running the affairs of their countries [in 
order to exploit the opportunities before them]. Second, 
they must work on unifying the Gulf region by establishing a 
federal system. And third, they should freeze expenditures 
on weapons and instead work on establishing a unified GCC 
army to confront any possible aggression." 
 
6.  "What Do We Want From the GCC Summit?" 
Mohammad Al-Babtain wrote in independent Al-Watan (12/21): 
"The GCC must focus on the strategic changes occurring in 
the region and on establishing a Gulf common market. GCC 
leaders must also work on activating the role of the GCC in 
the Middle East region in establishing a decisive and direct 
stance concerning terrorism and the means to combat it." 
 
7.  "The GCC and the People's Unity" 
Conservative Islamist Dr. Sami Khalifa wrote in independent 
Al-Rai Al-Aam (12/20):  "Gulf-wide unity remains a popular 
aspiration in the GCC countries. While GCC unity has become 
a popular political demand, no serious attempts have been 
made by [the governments of] member states to translate this 
demand into reality. In the aftermath of the fall of 
Saddam's regime, current political circumstances dictate the 
meeting of the aspirations of GCC countries' nationals 
towards the unity of the member states." 
 
8. "The Summit: Between Optimism and Pessimism" 
Dr. Shamlan Al-Essa wrote in independent Al-Seyassah 
(12/23):  "The final communiqu [of the GCC Summit] was 
prepared before the beginning of the summit. It does not 
consist of any new resolutions except for forming a 
committee to study the possibility of linking the GCC 
countries by a railway. Issues like education, combating 
terrorism and the relations with the new Iraq were not 
highlighted during the summit. For whatever reason, the 
decisions adopted by the GCC in Kuwait were very ordinary." 
 
9. "What Comes After the Summit" 
Lawyer Jamal Al-Kandari wrote in independent Al-Watan 
(12/23):  "The GCC final communiqu did not reach decisive 
decisions on important issues that should have been solved 
in previous summits. Issues such as a unified currency and 
new investment laws were not solved during the GCC summit, 
, 
in contrast to the Europeans who succeeded in solving many 
issues [during their summit]. We agree that issues like Iraq 
and terrorism are important, but that does not mean that we 
ignore other important issues to the GCC countries.  Our 
leaders must understand that the world today is different 
that it was 25 years ago, and therefore, our challenges are 
greater." 
MORAN