US embassy cable - 05KUWAIT1449

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 001449 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARPI 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/09/2015 
TAGS: KDEM, PGOV, PREL, KU, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY 
SUBJECT: ASSEMBLY SPEAKER, PROMINENT MP DOWNPLAY 
DISSOLUTION RUMORS 
 
REF: KUWAIT 1406 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Richard LeBaron for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
1. (C) Summary and Comment:  Responding to a week of press 
speculation that Prime Minister Shaykh Sabah Al-Ahmed 
Al-Sabah would seek the dissolution of the National Assembly 
in response to repeated ministerial grillings, National 
Assembly Speaker Jassem Al-Khorafi told local dailies April 9 
that his talks with the Prime Minister indicated the PM would 
attempt to resolve differences "with wisdom and caution." 
During their meeting the same day, prominent MP and Chairman 
of the International Relations Committee Mohammed Jassem 
Al-Sager told the Ambassador the PM would avoid the 
dissolution of the assembly for fear that the process of 
forming a new government could expose Al-Sabah family rifts. 
With the Amir and Crown Prince increasingly incapacitated, 
internal family divisions do appear to be growing.  If he is 
to protect the reputation of the ruling family, Shaykh Sabah 
must ensure his every action is calculated to balance a large 
array of competing interests.  End Summary and Comment. 
 
2. (U) Speaking to local dailies April 9 upon his return to 
Kuwait from travel abroad, National Assembly Speaker Jassem 
Al-Khorafi said he had "not seen or heard from the ....Prime 
Minister of any intention towards dissolving the assembly." 
The Speaker, who had met with the PM and Deputy PM as well as 
Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs, Mohammed Dhaifullah 
Sharar the same day, said it was likely that the disputes 
between the government and some MPs could be solved "through 
discussion and dialogue, in accordance with constitutional 
and democratic procedures." 
 
3. (C) During an April 9 meeting with the Ambassador and the 
Senior Advisor and Coordinator for Iraq Policy, Ambassador 
Richard Jones (septel), MP Mohammed Jassem Al-Sager said it 
was doubtful that the PM would seek to dissolve the Assembly. 
 Responding to a question from Ambassador LeBaron, Al-Sager 
said there was "no truth to what the newspapers are saying 
(about dissolution)."  He said PM Shaykh Sabah would not ask 
to dissolve the body because he does not want to expose rifts 
inside the Al-Sabah family by attempting to form a new 
government.  Furthermore, the election of a new National 
Assembly would provide "no guarantees" that current speaker 
Jassem Al-Khorafi would be re-elected to his position or that 
government-leaning and Progressive MPs would have a majority. 
(Comment: Al-Sager clearly views the reelection of Al-Khorafi 
and a government-leaning majority with mixed emotions. While 
he recognizes they are both positive for the advancement of 
progressive policies, he is also wary of an excessively 
pro-government National Assembly.  He sarcastically noted 
that the current National Assembly, which he referred to as 
the "weakest ever," had failed to "impeach" even one 
Minister, despite repeated attempts.  End Comment.) 
 
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LEBARON