US embassy cable - 04ABUDHABI3693

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 ABU DHABI 003693 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR PM, NEA/ARPI 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/17/14 
TAGS: PREL, PARM, MARR, MCAP, MASS, IZ, IR, GE, TC 
SUBJECT: A/S BLOOMFIELD MEETS UAE DEPUTY PM SHEIKH HAMDAN 
 
Classified by Ambassador Michele J. Sison, reasons 1.4(b) 
and (d). 
 
1. (S) Summary: During an October 17 meeting, UAE Deputy 
Prime Minister and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs 
Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed and A/S Bloomfield reviewed US-UAE 
bilateral cooperation and discussed the current situation 
in Iraq as well as specific military cooperation issues. 
Sheikh Hamdan offered advice on how to recruit Sunni 
support within Iraq, and warned of Iranian interference in 
Iraq's internal affairs.  He said the UAE is open to 
discussions on the disposition of its SCUD missiles.  On 
the UAE's request for an armed Predator, he stated that the 
UAE was developing its own system, and regretted that the 
US could not meet the UAE's homeland security needs.  End 
Summary. 
 
2. (U) Meeting participants: A/S Bloomfield, Ambassador 
Sison, Frank Ruggiero, (PM/RSAT), Pol Chief (note taker), 
MFA U/S Abdullah Rashid Al Nuaimi and MFA Asst. U/S for 
Political Affairs Tariq Al Haidan. 
 
UAE's Positive Role on Behalf of Iraqis 
--------------------------------------- 
 
3. (C) Sheikh Hamdan described the UAE's role in persuading 
Germany to participate more actively in the reconstruction 
of Iraq.  Germany has helped train Iraqi police officers in 
the UAE and plans to train pilots and vehicle/aircraft 
mechanics in the UAE in the near future, he said.  Sheikh 
Hamdan, who met with Chancellor Schroder when he led a 
high-level delegation to Berlin in April, said he hoped 
other European countries would follow Germany's example. 
Bloomfield agreed that there had been a forward-looking 
shift in German policy and he thanked the UAE for its 
positive role. 
 
Reassuring Iraq's Sunnis 
------------------------ 
 
4. (C) When asked for his views about how the U.S. could 
convince Iraq's Sunnis that we are not against them, Sheikh 
Hamdan replied that more Sunni notables should be included 
in the government.  Under Saddam, Sunnis were accustomed to 
playing a role in government and in commerce, but with 
Saddam's ouster, they are afraid that their influence "is 
slipping out of their hands," he said.  While not a 
"magical solution," Sheikh Hamdan told Bloomfield that co- 
opting Sunni notables into government could be a way 
forward.  Bloomfield thanked Sheikh Hamdan for the advice 
and suggested that the Arabic media could help defuse the 
Iraqi insurgency by broadcasting the more positive message 
that while Saddam's day is over, Sunnis can prosper in the 
new Iraq, and have many neighbors who support them.  Sheikh 
Hamdan agreed that it was important to maintain the 
delicate equilibrium among the Shi'a, Sunni, and Kurds of 
Iraq.  "They are all part of the balance of power," he 
said.  It was also important to proceed with elections and 
not have a fragmented Iraq, he added.  He cautioned that 
not holding elections would be catastrophic. 
 
Iranian Influence in Iraq 
------------------------- 
 
5. (S) Sheikh Hamdan said that Iran's interference in Iraq 
was a very serious matter and urged the US to be very 
prudent about this issue.  He said he had firsthand 
knowledge of Iran using the cover of a commercial company 
to conduct intelligence operations inside Iraq.  He 
recounted talks he had recently with Hassan Sadr, Iran's 
next ambassador to Saudi Arabia, in which Sadr told him of 
plans to establish a UAE-Iran commercial enterprise in 
Iraq.  Bloomfield said that US experts have a range of 
views on the extent of Iranian influence in southern Iraq. 
 
6. (S) When Bloomfield told of USG efforts to eliminate 
shoulder-fired missiles capable of shooting down an 
aircraft, and that there is recent evidence in Iraq of such 
missiles originating in Iran, Sheikh Hamdan opined that 
this was one way the Iranians are trying to send "a warning 
shot" to the US to stay away from Iran.  Sheikh Hamdan said 
the Iranians want the US to know that if our policy is 
contemplating attacking Iran next, we will face a stronger 
resistance from Iranians than we have from Iraqis.  The 
Iranians are trying to send the message to the US that if 
we were to intervene in Iran it would be costly for us. 
 
7. (C) Sheikh Hamdan said the UAE is deeply concerned about 
what Iran represents as well as the threat of terrorism 
emanating from Iran.  He urged the international community 
to be strong in the face of Iran's WMD threat.  Bloomfield 
said the US wants Iran to be a good neighbor but finds the 
opposite in all directions.  He said Iran should stop 
antagonizing the world community, and must cooperate with 
the IAEA. 
 
Status of US Military in the UAE 
-------------------------------- 
 
8. (C) Bloomfield thanked the UAE for being a good host to 
US military operations during OEF and OIF, and said it was 
important for Sheikh Hamdan to raise with him and the 
Embassy any issues in the relationship that may be cause 
discomfort before they come between us.  Sheikh Hamdan said 
he was not aware of any major problems in the relationship 
other than the occasional U.S. violation of UAE air space, 
which he called a sensitive issue for the Emiratis. 
 
ATACMS and North Korean SCUDS 
----------------------------- 
 
9. (S) Asked about UAE's intention on ATACMS, Sheikh Hamdan 
told Bloomfield that he would inquire about the status of 
the ATACMS MOU and follow up with the Ambassador.  In the 
context of ATACMS issue, Bloomfield reminded Sheikh Hamdan 
of previous discussions with him about UAE's willingness to 
discard its North Korean SCUD missiles. 
 
 
 
(S) Sheikh Hamdan said he would discuss the matter with his 
brother, Abu Dhabi Deputy Crown Prince and Chief of Staff 
of the UAE Armed Forces, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed, and 
then inform us, but he assured Bloomfield that the SCUDS 
matter would be handled cooperatively and with full 
transparency.  Bloomfield offered to send a team to the UAE 
for discussions.  The removal of SCUDS from the UAE would 
be a "good news story" for Congress, he said, and would 
eliminate another former customer in the Middle East for 
North Korean weapons, contributing to our efforts to cut 
off one of the North Koreans' important sources of hard 
currency to build up their nuclear weapons program. 
 
Predator 
-------- 
 
10. (S) Sheikh Hamdan raised the issue of the UAE's request 
for an armed Predator UAV by stating unequivocally that the 
UAE is in the advanced stages of negotiations with its 
allies for a UAV system that meets its homeland defense 
requirements.  He said the UAE regretted the fact that the 
US was not able to satisfy the UAE's needs, but thanked us 
for our efforts.  He reiterated that the UAV, which he said 
would be co-produced in the UAE (note: South Africa, 
Jordan), would be effective for UAE's homeland security, 
but also in protecting the UAE's allies. 
 
11. (U) A/S Bloomfield cleared this message. 
 
SISON