US embassy cable - 04MANAMA1228

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAMA 001228 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP 
LONDON FOR ETHAN GOLDRICH 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/04/2029 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PTER, EAIR, ETRD, BA, IZ 
SUBJECT: BAHRAIN'S FOREIGN MINISTER DISCUSSES DOD SCHOOL 
AND  IRAQI PRIME MINISTER ALLAWI VISIT 
 
Classified By: Charge D'Affaires Susan L. Ziadeh for 
reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
1.  (C)  SUMMARY.  Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin 
Mubarak Al Khalifa stressed to Charge during an August 4 
meeting the need to find a way to work together to keep the 
most important cultural tie, the Department of Defense 
Bahrain School, operational.  Shaikh Mohammed conveyed GOB's 
offer of financial assistance to help the school transition 
to a post-DOD status, if DOD decided it would not sustain the 
school for the long term. On Iraq, the Foreign Minister 
characterized Iraqi Prime Minister Allawi's August 2 visit a 
success during which he met with King Hamad and PM Khalifa. 
The GOB did not commit to sending troops to Iraq at this time 
in response to Allawi's request.  However, Shaykh Mohammed 
indicated that any troop commitment would only be done as 
part of an overall GCC decision, and that the matter would 
likely be raised at the September GCC meeting scheduled to 
take place in Riyadh. The Foreign Minister relayed Allawi's 
concern that fighters training in the Afghanistan/Iran border 
areas are being allowed to transit Iran into Iraq. According 
to the Foreign Minister, Allawi solicited GOB's help in 
weighing in with Iran on this issue. END SUMMARY. 
 
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THE DOD BAHRAIN SCHOOL 
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2.  (C)  The Foreign Minister welcomed Charge to Bahrain and 
quickly turned the discussion to the fate of the Bahrain 
School.  Shaikh Mohammed told Charge that so often the 
bilateral relationship focuses on political and economic 
affairs.  However, he stressed there should be equal 
importance in maintaining cultural ties and that the Bahrain 
School is the strongest cultural tie of the bilateral 
relationship. The Foreign Minister reiterated that over 350 
non-Navy students could be affected by closure of the school 
and underscored that Americans who want to establish 
businesses in Bahrain could be affected as well if there is 
no school for their children.  "Closing the school should not 
be an option," he said.  Shaikh Mohammed admitted that 
terrorism exists everywhere but asserted that closing the 
school will send a signal to terrorists that their tactic to 
disrupt U.S.-Arab relations is working.  "We do not want 
terrorists to win," he stated.  Shaikh Mohammed offered GOB 
financial assistance to help DOD transition the school to a 
post-DOD status, if necessary.  Charge assured the Foreign 
Minister that the GOB's views about the school have been 
registered in Washington.  Charge confirmed that a meeting is 
scheduled for August 4 to discuss the issue and she would 
again convey to Washington the GOB's great interest in the 
fate of the school, its importance to the bilateral 
relationship, and the GOB's offer of assistance. 
 
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IRAQI PM MEETS WITH GOB 
------------------------ 
 
3.  (C)  Shaikh Mohammed then turned the discussion to Iraqi 
Prime Minister Allawi's August 2 visit.  The Foreign Minister 
relayed that Allawi's met with His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa 
Al Khalifa and Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa 
and thanked the GOB for its continued cooperation and 
support. Shaikh Mohammed took pride in the historically 
strong relationship between the two countries and noted GOB 
actions that demonstrated Bahrain's support of Iraq: Bahrain 
assumed protecting power of Iraqi missions in many countries; 
the GOB was the first GCC country to recognize the Iraqi 
Governing Council (IGC); and the GOB was the first to open 
their embassy in Iraq in the post-war era. 
 
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MUSLIM/ARAB TROOPS TO IRAQ 
---------------------------- 
 
4.  (C) The Foreign Minister attended Allawi's meeting with 
the Prime Minister.  He relayed that the primary objective of 
Allawi's visit was to request the GOB to send troops to Iraq 
as peacekeeping and stabilization contingents which would 
serve with the current coalition forces.  Shaikh Mohammed 
indicated the GOB did not commit to send troops at this time 
and that any decision to send troops would be done within a 
GCC context.  The GOB committed to discussing the issue of 
sending troops at the upcoming September GCC meeting in 
Riyadh.  In the meantime, the GOB offered training to be 
conducted in Bahrain, to enhance Iraqi naval forces 
capabilities. 
 
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IRAQ'S RELATIONSHIP WITH IRAN 
----------------------------- 
 
5.  (C)  The Foreign Minister told the Charge that Allawi is 
"not happy" with Iraq's relationship with Iran.  Allawi told 
the PM that evidence exists that fighters training along the 
Afghanistan/Iraq border were being allowed to transit Iran 
and foment trouble in Iraq.  Prime Minister Allawi requested 
the GOB's help to raise this issue with the Iranians.  In his 
capacity as GCC Chairman, the Foreign Minister informed us he 
was meeting with Iran's Ambassador to Bahrain later today. 
 
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ECONOMIC ISSUES 
--------------- 
 
6.  (C) All in all, Shaikh Mohammed considered Allawi's visit 
a success and one that established important face-to-face 
leadership relations.  Seeking their moral support, Allawi 
invited the GOB to attend the September Donor Conference in 
Tokyo, even though he recognized that the GOB is unable to 
contribute monetarily to the reconstruction and development 
of Iraq.  The Foreign Minister added that Bahrain can be 
helpful to Iraq through private sector investment.  He also 
indicated that the GOB requested consideration of landing 
rights in Iraq for Bahrain-based Gulf Airlines, citing 
maritime transportation as inefficient if Bahrain is to 
pursue business and investment opportunities in Iraq. 
ZIADEH