US embassy cable - 04KUWAIT368

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 000368 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR PM, NEA, NEA/ARP, NEA/NGA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/04/2014 
TAGS: PREL, MARR, KU, IZ 
SUBJECT: U.S. DELEGATION MAKES PROGRESS ON CONTINUED 
KUWAITI AIK FUEL FOR U.S. FORCES 
 
Classified By: CDA FRANK C. URBANCIC; REASON:  1.4 (B) AND (D). 
 
1.  (C)  During a series of meetings on January 27, 2004, 
U.S. Delegation led by Assistant Secretary for Political 
Military Affairs Lincoln Bloomfield Jr. made a concerted 
effort to ensure continued Kuwaiti AIK fuel supplies for the 
foreseeable future.  Bloomfield, supported by a large DOD and 
State contingent, briefed his interlocutors on the current 
state of play in Iraq.  He outlined the  massive rotation of 
U.S. troops which is currently being ramped-up and he 
emphasized the central role that Kuwait plays in everything 
the United States is trying to accomplish in Iraq. 
 
2.  (C)  In his meeting with Prime Minister Sabah Al-Ahmed, 
Bloomfield noted that the United States could not have the 
successes it is having without continued Kuwaiti support.  He 
said the U.S. understood that this was financially and 
administratively painful for Kuwait and that Kuwait deserved 
the best estimate from the United States for what future 
requirements would be.  Bloomfield, supported by Principal 
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International 
Security Affairs Peter C.W. Flory, said specifically that the 
United States anticipated a fuel requirement of approximately 
458 million gallons for 2004.  While that was expensive, it 
was also a conservative, i.e., high, estimate which the U.S. 
hoped would begin to decline as greater stability and 
self-sufficiency in Iraq alleviates the burdens on U.S. and 
Coalition forces. 
 
3.  (C)  The Prime Minister emphasized that Kuwait is, and 
wants to remain, a partner of the United States.  Kuwait was 
proud of its new MNNA status and it was delighted that the 
President himself had conferred such a rare honor upon a 
country as small as Kuwait.  Kuwait completely appreciated 
what the United States was doing in Iraq and it wanted to be 
as helpful as it could be.  While he did not promise 
unlimited fuel supplies, the Prime Minister noted that 
Bloomfield and Flory would be having meetings with the 
Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense afterward, as well 
as with an inter-ministerial working-level group, and he 
said, "I am sure you will find the outcomes to be positive." 
 
4.  (C)  In the meeting with Foreign Minister Dr. Mohammed 
Al-Sabah, which followed the Prime Minister's meeting, both 
Bloomfield and Flory went into much greater detail on U.S. 
requirements and activities in Iraq.  Mohammed emphasized 
that Kuwait wanted to be helpful in these activities and he 
did not balk at the number of 458 million gallons (compared 
to 482 million gallons consumed in 2003).  Rather, he 
emphasized that the U.S. needed to help the GOK in its 
relations with Parliament.  What the Finance Minister needed 
was some sort of "cover" to account for the great expenses 
which he was making on behalf of U.S. forces.  In the 
separate meeting which followed at the inter-ministerial 
level, it became clear that this "cover" was indeed the 
primary focus of the GOK.  The representatives of the 
Finance, Energy and Defense Ministries took the specific 
12-month projections for categories of fuels which 
Bloomfield, Flory and the CENTCOM team provided, and spoke of 
the requirement to account for the fuel allocations in a 
"contract" between the Finance Ministry and the Kuwait 
Petroleum Corporation.  Bloomfield suggested that the 
Embassy, supported by CENTCOM, could provide periodic updates 
to these projections in the months ahead in order that the 
Kuwaitis might better anticipate the actual amounts required. 
 The Kuwaiti officials were sanguine about the prospects for 
resolving the bureaucratic impediments to continue fuel 
support to the U.S., and they thanked Bloomfield for 
kicking-off these discussions in such a positive and 
productive way.  Charge emphasized that the Embassy remained 
available to facilitate any further questions and to pass 
information which might be needed, and the inter-ministerial 
meeting took that on board. 
 
5.  (C)  COMMENT:  While no one has made any firm commitment 
to any set amount, it is clear that the GOK, which is now 
shut down for the next eight days for the Eid Al-Adha 
holidays, will not take precipitous action to turn off the 
fuel taps.  The GOK Is also looking for the best available 
estimates of our fuel needs that it can work within its own 
budgeting process.  END COMMENT. 
 
6.  (U)  Assistant Secretary Bloomfield has cleared this 
message. 
 
 
URBANCIC