US embassy cable - 04AMMAN6669

S E C R E T AMMAN 006669 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/08/2014 
TAGS: ECON, ETRD, IZ, JO, PREL, PTER, SY 
SUBJECT: DEMARCHE DELIVERED ON SYRIA-IRAQ BORDER SECURITY 
 
REF: A. SECSTATE 166991 
     B. AMMAN 06369 (NOTAL) 
 
Classified By: CDA: David Hale, Reason 1.4(b) (d) 
 
1.  (S) Charge delivered reftel points on Syria-Iraq border 
security to Royal Court Minister Samir al-Rifai on August 3 
and on August 8 to Prime Minister Faisal al-Fayez.  Fayez 
confirmed he would be traveling to Damascus on August 20 for 
a meeting with his counterpart, primarily focused on economic 
issues.  Both Fayez and Rifai indicated that Jordan strongly 
shared our concerns -- these issues are continual themes in 
meetings with senior officials here -- and had voiced them to 
the Syrian leadership.  Unfortunately, Rifai said, the 
message fell on deaf ears there. 
 
2. (C) Fayez said his trip, in part, was a response to a 
request from the Syrian government for guidance on 
establishing modern, functioning, free market banking, trade 
and commercial sectors, with appropriate, WTO-compliant 
regulations and guidelines.  Fayez would be taking with him a 
team of experts from the Central Bank, Trade Ministry, and 
other agencies involved in Jordan's own economic 
transformation plan. 
 
3.  (S) COMMENT: The Prime Minister made clear that he would 
not be engaging the Syrian government on military/security 
issues, although they are a source of considerable irritation 
in the bilateral relationship, ref B.  He said the border 
security issues had been "solved", which seems doubtful 
despite a recent trip to Syria by Jordan's Director of 
Military Intelligence.  Fayez, who is under public pressure 
from the King to raise his government's performance on its 
domestic agenda, may simply have been told to avoid security 
matters when in Syria.  He told Charge he would ask the King 
whether he, or some other official, should convey our message 
to Damascus. 
 
4. (U) Baghdad minimize considered. 
HALE