US embassy cable - 05ABUDHABI3211

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 05 ABU DHABI 003211 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEA FOR ADMINISTRATOR TANDY 
STATE FOR INL/FO, INL/AAE PETE PRAHER, NEA/ARPI, NEA/RA, 
SA/FO, SA/A 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/20/2015 
TAGS: SNAR, PTER, KTFN, EFIN, ETTC, AF, TC 
SUBJECT: DEA ADMINISTRATOR'S UAE VISIT - IT'S ALL ABOUT THE 
MONEY 
 
REF: A. ABU DHABI 0508 
     B. ABU DHABI 3008 
     C. ABU DHABI 3161 
 
Classified By: (U) Classified by Ambassador Michele J. Sison, for reaso 
ns 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
 1. (U) This cable contains an action request.  Please see 
paragraph 11. 
 
2. (U) Summary: In a 15-17 July visit to the UAE, DEA 
Administrator Karen Tandy met with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince 
Mohammed bin Zayed (MbZ), Interior Minister Sheikh Saif bin 
Zayed, and Central Bank Governor Sultan Nasser Al Suweidi. 
Tandy stressed with each of her interlocutors that the U.S. 
wants to enhance its partnership with the UAE in order to 
help both nations better identify and target the flow of drug 
money laundering through the UAE.  All three officials 
pledged their cooperation and increased engagement, and said 
the most effective way to ensure an effective partnership is 
to share information.  UAE officials are keenly aware that 
the UAE is used as a transshipment point for narcotics from 
Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran, and Interior Minister Saif 
and MbZ discussed concentrated UAE efforts to stem the flow 
of drugs from these source countries.  After hearing Tandy's 
brief on the counternarcotics challenge faced by President 
Karzai's Government, MbZ offered to donate seven used Gazelle 
helicopters to Afghanistan's Narcotics Interdiction Unit (see 
para 11).  Administrator Tandy also met with the Dubai-based 
British, Canadian, and Australian Drug Liaison Officers 
(DLOs), who reported increasing success in narcotic-related 
law enforcement cooperation with Dubai authorities, along 
with their growing concerns about the use of Dubai's real 
estate market to launder drug profits.  They worried that the 
increasing number of air-links between Dubai and other 
international cities -- including planned direct links 
between Dubai and South America -- increased the potential 
for drugs to be transshipped through Dubai. 
 
3. (SBU) Summary, continued.  The UAE has solid anti-money 
laundering laws, and the Central Bank has been very proactive 
in shutting down the use of the UAE's financial sector for 
money laundering and terror finance.  However, UAE officials 
have not distinguished between drug money laundering and 
other types of money laundering.  Tandy's message that the 
international community is concerned about drug traffickers 
exploiting the UAE financial system resonated with her 
interlocutors.  As a result, we will likely see increased 
focus on the part of the UAE Government on the problem of 
drug money going through the UAE financial system.  End 
summary. 
Increased Cooperation to Follow the Money 
----------------------------------------- 
 
4. (U) DEA Administrator Karen Tandy, accompanied by DEA 
Chief of Financial Operations Donald Semesky, Assistant 
Regional Director Thomas Nuse, and Special Agent Philip 
Devlin, visited Abu Dhabi and Dubai July 15-17.  In meetings 
with MbZ, Interior Minister Saif, and Central Bank Governor 
Sultan Nasser Al Suweidi, Tandy noted that international 
narcotics experts have a solid understanding of the flow of 
the narcotics and pre-cursor chemicals, but are less clear 
about the movement of drug money.  Describing the UAE as the 
"linchpin" to understanding the flow of narcotics funds from 
Southwest Asia, Tandy underscored the importance of working 
with the UAE as a partner to identify and eliminate the use 
of the UAE financial system by narco-traffickers.  Central 
Bank Governor Sultan Nasser Al Suweidi pledged his personal 
commitment to work with the United States to "fill this hole 
in knowledge" and help the international community identify 
how drug money is sent through the UAE.  But noting that the 
UAE has limited intelligence resources, he asked that the 
U.S. work with the UAEG to "define the hole."  In that 
regard, both Interior Minister Saif (whose Ministry has 
overall federal responsibility for narcotics investigations) 
and Governor Al Suweidi were enthusiastic about Tandy's offer 
of training on identifying and targeting drug money 
laundering.  Al Suweidi requested the training be for all 
Gulf Cooperation Council countries. 
 
5. (SBU) Interior Minister Saif acknowledged that the 
Ministry's police investigators do not yet have the ability 
to track drug money.  He said his investigators and UAE 
customs officials are adept at tracking drugs and pre-cursor 
chemicals, but since police departments do not have financial 
crimes experts, they are less able to track the movement of 
money.  To rectify this problem (particularly in order to 
investigate money laundering and terror finance cases), last 
year Interior Minister Saif sent five of his officers to a 
six month accounting course.  (Note: In February, Interior 
Minister Saif told Ambassador that the five officers would 
now spend two years working at the Central Bank in order to 
gain a better understanding of the banking system -- ref A.) 
 
6. (U) To further establish the UAE's participation as a 
partner in the international fight against narcotics 
trafficking and money laundering, Tandy emphasized the 
importance of UAE participation at next year's International 
Drug Enforcement Conference (which will likely be held in 
May).  Governor Al Suweidi unequivocally stated that he would 
personally ensure that the UAE sent a delegation.  Interior 
Minister Saif agreed that UAE attendance was important. 
"Sharing and collaborating in the fight against drugs will 
help the United States in the short term and the UAE in the 
long run, because it will prevent the problem from increasing 
in the UAE." 
 
7. (U) All of Tandy's interlocutors expressed strong support 
and full cooperation for DEA's plans to establish a permanent 
presence in the UAE, but they emphasized that the key to 
successful collaboration is enhanced information sharing. 
Noting that the British often claim that drugs and drug money 
from Pakistan and Afghanistan transit the UAE, both Al 
Suweidi and Interior Minister Saif said that the EU countries 
typically do not provide the UAE enough information to target 
these transactions.  They expressed hope that DEA would be 
more forthcoming.  According to Interior Minister Saif, "The 
bottom line is we do not have good coordination with the EU, 
and we look forward to enhanced cooperation with the U.S." 
(Prior to her meeting with MbZ, Tandy met with MbZ's senior 
international aide, Yousef al Otaiba.  He also reiterated 
that the UAEG was more than willing to help the U.S. in its 
efforts to identify drug money launders and noted that 
increased information sharing would facilitate these efforts. 
 "You may have one piece of the puzzle, and we may have 
another.  Without sharing, we might never assemble the 
puzzle.") 
 
8. (SBU) Governor Al Suwaidi noted that interagency 
cooperation on anti-money laundering extends to all of the 
Emirates and to the western borders of the UAE, "even though 
we don't know where the borders end these days." (this aside 
was a reference to the ongoing border dispute between the UAE 
and Saudi Arabia -- ref B).  The UAE's National Anti-Money 
Laundering Committee (NAMLC), chaired by the Central Bank 
Governor, includes officials from the UAE Ministries of 
Interior, Justice, Finance, Economy, and Foreign Affairs, as 
well as representatives from varying Emirate-level 
organizations involved in financial investigations. 
Cutting Off Drugs from Source Countries 
--------------------------------------- 
 
9. (U) Recognizing that simply eliminating poppy production 
in Afghanistan is not sufficient, Governor Al Suweidi 
observed that poppy farmers need viable alternative ways to 
earn money.  He added that just enabling the farmers to 
produce other crops is also not sufficient.  "In order to 
have an income, these farmers need to be able to export their 
products, and there may not be a market (for agricultural 
products from Afghanistan)." 
 
10. (SBU) The UAE is used as a transit point for narcotics 
trafficking primarily from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran. 
According to Yousef al Otaiba, "most drugs that transit the 
UAE go on to Saudi Arabia.  From there, we don't know where 
they go, but we want to stop them from coming through here." 
In an effort to stem the flow of narcotics from Pakistan and 
Afghanistan, the UAE posted a permanent Drug Liaison Officer 
in Islamabad in the late 1990s, and both Interior Minister 
Saif and MbZ noted that the UAE DLO has a close working 
relationship with U.S. DEA Agents in Pakistan. 
 
UAE Helicopter Offer 
-------------------- 
 
11. (C) UAE officials want to assist U.S. and international 
efforts to eradicate poppy production and narcotics 
trafficking in Afghanistan.  In this vein, MbZ told 
Administrator Tandy that the UAE Air Force would donate give 
seven used Gazelle 5-seater helicopters and their associated 
spare parts to the Afghanistan Ministry of Interior's 
Narcotics Interdiction Unit (NIU).  (Note: Al Otaiba told 
Ambassador July 18 that the helicopters are currently not 
operational, but that the UAE commits to getting them to 
Afghanistan in a state of operational readiness.  The 
timeline for delivery is uncertain.  He also said that the 
helicopters could be delivered with or without armament -- 
depending on how the NIU intended to use them.  According to 
Jane's Defense Weekly, military loads can include two 68 mm 
rockets, four wire-guided missiles, and two forward-firing 
machine guns, and photographic and survey equipment can also 
be added.  The Gazelle helicopter has a maximum cruising 
speed of 161 mph, a service ceiling of 16,000 ft, a hovering 
ceiling of 9,000 ft, and a 200 mile range with a pilot and 
1,000 lb payload.  We have asked Al Otaiba for the 
specifications of the sevel Gazelle's in question and expect 
an answer shortly.  Action Request for SA/A, INL/AAE, and 
Embassy Kabul: Embassy Abu Dhabi would appreciate feedback on 
whether such a donation would meet the NIU's needs and how we 
might best pursue this offer with the UAE in terms of urgency 
of timing or other considerations.) 
 
UAE Counternarcotics Efforts 
---------------------------- 
 
12. (U) The UAE pursues an aggressive anti-drug policy that 
includes interdiction efforts, harsh penalties for offenders, 
rehabilitation programs and public awareness campaigns, and 
UAE leaders take the fight against drug use seriously.  MbZ 
stated that as the father of nine children, he would do all 
he can to be sure that none of his -- or anyone else's -- 
children fall prey to the tragedies of drug abuse.  "When we 
started developing the UAE, we did not know about the threat 
of drugs, but it is here now.  And, we have to deal with the 
problem.  We can't hide it."  Comparing it to the threat 
posed from Iran, MbZ said, "I believe Iran is our biggest 
threat and may be a problem one day, but the threat from 
drugs is here now, and the war against drugs is going on now 
-- 24 hours a day." 
 
13. (U) Prior to meeting Interior Minister Saif, Tandy 
visited with Colonel Mattar Al Muhairy, the Director of the 
Ministry of Interior's Criminal Investigations Division 
(CID).  Al Muhairy described the UAE Ministry of Interior's 
recent CID consolidation and reorganization that brought 
responsibility for counternarcotics under CID.  He also 
explained some of the UAE's efforts to combat narcotics 
trafficking and use, including increased checkpoints and 
border patrols along the UAE's land borders with Oman and 
Saudi Arabia.  The Ministry has also engaged in a broad 
public outreach campaign to educate its population on the 
dangers of drug abuse, including a Drug Awareness Week that 
coincided with the International Drug Awareness Day.  Al 
Muhairy also explained the UAE's drug rehabilitation program, 
noting that the Ministry takes personal responsibility for 
working to rehabilitate Emirati drug users.  He said that 
ministry officials work with recovering addicts to help them 
find jobs and reinsert into society, and meet twice a month 
with each drug addict for two years.  The Ministry also has a 
social team that works with families of addicts for up to six 
months.  These efforts have helped prevent recidivism among 
Emirati national drug users, he said. 
 
14. (U) Al Muhairy, who is also a member of the NAMLC, also 
described an interagency counternarcotics team, headed by the 
Ministry of Interior, which has representatives from each 
Emirate and the relevant UAE agencies.  This team meets twice 
a month to facilitate speedy responses on counternarcotics 
issues and to further develop the personal connections that 
enhance interagency communication. 
 
Views of Counterpart DLOs 
------------------------- 
 
15. (SBU) During a roundtable discussion with Tandy, the 
U.K., Canadian, and Australian drug liaison officers (DLOs) 
unanimously agreed that UAE authorities -- and Dubai police 
and customs authorities in particular -- have made 
significant strides in working to address the drug 
transshipment problem.  But they noted that drug traffickers 
use Dubai as a hub for laundering their profits (particularly 
through use of Dubai's robust real estate market).  Asked to 
take a wild guess about money laundering in Dubai, British 
DLO Robert Walker estimated that "in addition to the 
legitimate property market, there is an extra layer of the 
sector consisting of money laundering.  17-18% of the money 
spent by foreigners to purchase freehold properties in Dubai 
is with the intent of concealing the source of the money." 
Although the authorities are aware that drug money laundering 
in the UAE is a problem, they do not know how to address it. 
General consensus among the DLOs was that simply providing 
training on counternarcotics and drug money laundering will 
not be effective.  Walker said, "the way to do it is to 
stream into the things they are interested in" (ie: by 
framing the issue as one of homeland security or regional 
stability). 
 
16. (SBU) Walker explained that while drug mules and dealers 
are not physically located in the UAE, many of the people 
planning drug movements are. Canadian DLO Dennis O'Bryne 
noted that with the increased number of Emirates Airlines air 
links between Dubai and other international cities -- soon to 
include Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro -- the potential for 
drugs to be transshipped via the UAE has significantly 
increased.  He said that although heroin is the main narcotic 
shipped through the UAE, he anticipates that cocaine will 
eventually come. 
 
17. (SBU) The DLOs agreed that the potential for 
collaboration with the UAE is very good, but that it takes 
time to make progress in the Emirates.  Walker, who noted 
that his office had been open in the UAE for nine years, 
stated that the UAE has provided evidence for use in UAE 
courts, and has closed down money exchanges and seized large 
sums of narcotics-related money, based on U.K. information. 
 
Terrorism-Narcotics Links? 
-------------------------- 
 
18. (C) Tandy noted that trafficking organizations and 
terrorists often use the same clandestine routes and methods 
to move money, people, weapons, and drugs, but that often 
times, the extent of links between terrorists and narcotics 
traffickers are unknown.  In response to Don Semesky's 
explanation of how hawala dealers are regulated in the U.S., 
MbZ responded in his classic blunt manner.  Stating that the 
U.S. is "too nice," MbZ stated that the U.S. has no need for 
hawala and should simply outlaw their operation.  He also 
reiterated his belief that the U.S. should not allow 
individuals released from the U.S. detention facility in 
Guantanamo to return to their home countries, where they may 
be lauded as heroes by extremists and join-up with them. 
"You cannot treat radicals nicely.  When someone joins with 
extremists, he is no longer a person.  He has abandoned his 
society and religion."  Along the same lines, MbZ stated his 
belief that the only way to deter extremism in Iraq and 
Afghanistan is to institute and enforce the death penalty. 
"You cannot catch someone like Zarqawi and say you will 
simply take him to prison."  In an discussion about the 15 
July Friday sermon condemning terrorism (UAE imams had been 
instructed by the UAEG to read verbatim a sermon approved by 
the Ministry of Justice and Islamic Affairs unequivocally 
condemning acts of terrorism), MbZ told Tandy that the UAE 
would soon divide the Ministry of Justice and Islamic Affairs 
into two ministries (ref C). 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
19. (C) Although the UAE has not distinguished between drug 
money laundering and other forms of money laundering in the 
past, UAE officials link this problem to that of countering 
the threat posed by terrorism.  Interior Minister Saif boiled 
it down in one sentence -- "at the end of the day you will 
see a link between drugs, crime, and terrorism."  UAE leaders 
are committed in their fight against terrorism, and they see 
the drug and drug money battle as a part of this bigger 
picture.  As Minister of Interior Saif said, "the Government 
of the UAE sends the clear message that no outlaw should 
benefit from the UAE and no other country should suffer from 
people in the UAE."  Now that senior UAE leaders understand 
the depth of the U.S. concern regarding the use of the UAE 
financial system by narco-traffickers, we expect to see 
increased engagement by the Central Bank's examiners and the 
Ministry of Interior's police officers and investigators on 
identifying and targeting the proceeds of narcotics 
trafficking. End comment. 
 
20. (U) This cable was cleared by DEA Administrator Karen 
Tandy. 
SISON