US embassy cable - 04AMMAN6171

S E C R E T AMMAN 006171 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NOFORN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/21/2024 
TAGS: PREL, IZ, JO 
SUBJECT: JAF VICE CHIEF OF STAFF CRITICIZES SYRIA 
 
REF: AMMAN 2735 
 
Classified By: CDA David Hale for reasons 1.5 (b), (d). 
 
1. (C) SUMMARY:  JAF Vice Chief of Staff General Saud Nsairat 
alleged that Syrian border officials are not putting forth a 
sincere effort to stop illegal border crossers and weapons 
from entering Jordan.  Nsairat said Jordan needed a large 
x-ray machine to inspect vehicles entering Jordan through the 
free trade zone at the Jaber border crossing.  He also said 
that Jordan's efforts to negotiate with Syria over creeping 
Syrian accretion of Jordanian territory had gone nowhere. 
End Summary. 
 
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SYRIAN BORDER PROBLEMS 
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2. (C) In a meeting with PM A/S Bloomfield, Charge, DATT, and 
PolMilOff July 19, Jordan Armed Forces (JAF) Vice Chief of 
Staff Saud Nsairat alleged that Syrian border officials are 
doing nothing to prevent insurgents and weapons from entering 
Jordan, and said the quality and quantity of smuggled arms 
and materiel had increased recently.  Without providing 
details, Nsairat told Bloomfield that at 0630 local time July 
19 Jordanian border security captured an illegal border 
crosser near Umm Qais.  (Note: On July 19, local media 
reported that a Jordanian border patrol intercepted four 
armed men trying to infiltrate the border into Israel from 
the Wakkas region in northern Jordan.  According to the 
report, the Jordan patrol killed three and captured the 
fourth.  Septel will provide more detail.) Nsairat cited 
alleged illegal border crossings and Jordanian fears of 
vehicles carrying weapons and/or explosives as justifying the 
need for a large x-ray machine to inspect vehicles entering 
Jordan through the free trade zone at the Jaber border with 
Syria. 
 
3. (C) When asked if he thought Syria had a policy of 
encouraging infiltrators, Nsairat said the Syrian government 
was not actively trying to stop them, and "to some extent" 
were allowing it.  He believed that the Syrian border 
security forces could stop illegal crossings if they wanted 
to; they certainly can on their own border with Israel. 
However, border security officials were corrupt and could be 
bribed to ignore transgressors.  There were alleged instances 
of "undetected" individuals crossing within 100 meters of 
Syrian border posts.  He also alleged there were instances in 
which infiltrators used donkeys loaded with weapons to test 
the reaction of Jordanian border security while waiting on 
the Syrian side. 
 
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BILATERAL BORDER DEMARCATION COMMITTEE 
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4. (C) Nsairat said that Jordan was still in negotiations 
with Syria to discuss two or three Syrian border outposts 
that Jordan believes are inside Jordan territory.  Nsairat 
said Jordan's head of Military Intelligence, Brigadier 
General Reda al Btoosh, went to Damascus a few days ago as a 
follow up to earlier Prime Minister-level discussions to iron 
out border demarcation issues (ref A).  Separately, Jordan 
Royal Court Minister Samir al-Rifai, told Charge July 18 
that no progress had been made during the visit. 
 
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COMMENT 
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5. (S) Nsairat's comments to A/S Bloomfield are not entirely 
consistent with other recent comments from the King and 
Foreign Minister.  Septel will provide fuller analysis of 
Syria-Jordan security issues. 
 
6. (U) A/S Bloomfield did not have the opportunity to clear 
this cable. 
 
7. (U) Baghdad minimize considered. 
 
Visit Embassy Amman's classified website at 
 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/ 
 
or access the site through the State Department's SIPRNET 
home page 
HALE