US embassy cable - 04KUWAIT4414

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 004414 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA/ARPI 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/18/2014 
TAGS: PREL, PHUM, PGOV, ECON, KU, IS 
SUBJECT: GOK READY TO WORK WITH PALESTINIANS ONCE ABU MAZEN 
ELECTED PRESIDENT 
 
REF: A. KUWAIT 4369 
     B. KUWAIT 4312 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4 (B) and (D) 
 
1. (C) During a December 18 meeting on another topic, Kuwaiti 
Foreign Minister Shaykh Dr. Mohammed Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah 
told Ambassador LeBaron and British Ambassador Christopher 
Wilton that the December 13 visit to Kuwait of Mahmoud Abbas 
(Abu Mazen) "went very well."  Dr. Mohammed added that Abu 
Mazen "said all the right things" and delivered a 
three-pronged message to the GOK: the Palestinian people are 
in dire need of assistance, the Palestinian Authority (PA) 
would like to re-establish diplomatic relations with Kuwait 
and open an embassy, and Palestinians workers would like to 
come back to Kuwait. 
 
2. (C) Dr. Mohammed said the GOK fully supports Abu Mazen as 
a presidential candidate and new financial flows will depend 
on him being the next Palestinian president.  Thus any 
funding or discussion of upgrading relations will be after 
the Palestinian elections.  The FM shared that Abu Mazen is 
confident he will win the January election.  The FM reported 
that many Kuwaitis, particularly some Members of Parliament, 
want more assurances from the Palestinians before moving 
forward on any of these points.  The return of Palestinians 
remains a very sensitive issue, according to the FM, and the 
FM made it clear that the return of large numbers was not 
going to happen. 
 
3. (C) The British Ambassador asked if the GOK made a 
specific pledge of financial support during the visit and 
Ambassador inquired whether contributions pledged at the 2002 
Arab Summit in Beirut would serve as a guide.  (Note:  We 
understand the GOK has pledged at least USD 100 million to 
the PA.  End Note.)  Dr. Mohammed avoided assigning a value 
to GOK assistance but said that Kuwait had indeed made a 
pledge at Beirut but declined  dispense funds to former PA 
Chairman Arafat due to rampant corruption.  The GOK wants to 
ensure that any financial assistance will reach the desired 
Palestinian recipients before committing to re-opening the 
spigot.  He said that they were encouraged by the performance 
of Salam Fayyad in managing PA finances. 
 
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Visit Embassy Kuwait's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ 
 
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LEBARON