US embassy cable - 04MANAMA1747

UNCLAS MANAMA 001747 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, ECON, KMPI, KDEM, BA 
SUBJECT: BAHRAIN PARTICIPATION IN G8 BMENA FORUM FOR THE 
FUTURE CONFERENCE 
 
REF: A. STATE 242059 
     B. STATE 237054 
 
Sensitive but unclassified (deliberative process); please 
protect accordingly.  Not for Internet distribution. 
 
1.  (SBU) Ambassador November 20 delivered Ref A and B 
G8/BMENA talking points and agendas to Minister of State for 
Foreign Affairs Mohammed Abdul Ghaffar.  Abdul Ghaffar said 
that Minister of Finance and National Economy Abdulla Saif 
would attend the December 11 meetings in Rabat, but it was 
not yet clear whether Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed 
bin Mubarak Al Khalifa or Abdul Ghaffar himself would 
accompany Saif.  There was a chance Mohammed bin Mubarak 
would have to remain in Manama at the time of the Rabat 
meetings.  In this case, Abdul Ghaffar would lead the 
"political" side of the Bahraini delegation. 
 
2.  (SBU) In a meeting on November 22 with the visiting U.S. 
Secretary of the Navy Minister Saif confirmed to the 
 
SIPDIS 
Ambassador that he would attend the Rabat meeting and that 
his staff was currently working on two papers: one on the 
Entrepreneurship Center and the other on the Network of 
Funds.  During the meeting, Saif referred to his phone 
conversation the day before with Treasury Under Secretary 
Taylor, during which they discussed the Network of Funds 
initiative at length.  (Note: In a separate meeting with 
EconOff on November 22, Yousif Humoud, Director of Economic 
Planning at the Ministry of Finance, said he expected Saif to 
present the Network of Funds paper at the Finance Ministers' 
break-out session.  Governor of the Bahrain Monetary Agency 
(BMA) Sheikh Ahmed Bin Mohammed Al Khalifa would also travel 
to Morocco to give the presentation on the Entrepreneurship 
Center, given the BMA's role in managing the Bahrain 
Institute for Banking and Finance, host to the new center. 
End Note) 
 
3.  (SBU) Abdul Ghaffar said that his government is concerned 
that momentum in the BMENA initiative could peter out under 
the British G8 presidency.  He is very appreciative of 
President Bush's leadership and hopes that Prime Minister 
Blair demonstrates the same commitment.  As a start, Blair 
could invite regional leaders to the next G8 summit.  Abdul 
Ghaffar said that the initiative was important to demonstrate 
that the G8 countries, and in particular the U.S., are 
friends doing positive things for the peoples of the region. 
 
4.  (SBU) Abdul Ghaffar stated that Bahrain would host the 
2005 Forum for the Future meeting.  The Ambassador responded 
that Secretary Powell had noted the Bahraini offer to host 
during his meeting with BMENA and G8 foreign ministers on the 
margins of the UNGA, but the issue appeared not to be settled 
yet.  Abdul Ghaffar replied that he had confirmed information 
that Bahrain would host the 2005 meeting, but this news was 
not yet public. 
 
 
MONROE