US embassy cable - 05AMMAN7753

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 007753 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE PASS U/S DOBRIANSKY AND U/S HUGHES, NEA/I, NEA/P, 
NEA/PD, STAS 
ALSO FOR USAID 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KSCA, SENV, TBIO, SOCI, EAID, KNNP, IZ, JO 
SUBJECT: Iraqi Scientists, Engineers Seek Funding for 
Practical R&D to Support Iraq Reconstruction 
 
Ref: Amman 3791 
 
1.  Summary: The "International Conference to Engage Iraq's 
Science & Technology Community in Developing its Country" 
took place in Amman, Jordan on September 18-20 with support 
and participation from DOE and State.  Over fifty Iraqi 
scientists and engineers attended to present and seek 
funding for well-vetted R&D proposals in health, water, 
agriculture, environment, and material sciences.  Several 
Iraqi ministries were represented at the Vice Minister 
level.  STAS Atkinson unveiled the Iraq Virtual Science 
Library.  USG support has created a cadre of Iraqi 
scientists and engineers eager and able to assist with 
practical reconstruction activities.  Under continuing 
threat, however, and with little U.S. funding for their 
efforts to date, this cadre is a weakening pro-American 
bastion.  End summary. 
 
DOE NNSA and Sandia Working With Arab S&T Foundation 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
2.  The conference was co-sponsored by the Department of 
Energy's (DOE) Sandia National Laboratories and the UAE- 
based Arab Science and Technology Foundation (ASTF).  DOE's 
National Nuclear Security Administration also funded the 
conference.  State representatives came from the Office of 
the Science and Technology Adviser to the Secretary of State 
(STAS), the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental 
and Scientific Affairs' Office of S&T Cooperation (OES/STC), 
and State's International Security and Non-Proliferation 
Bureau (ISN)(formerly the Non-Proliferation Bureau).  DOE 
was represented by NNSA's Office of Global Security 
Engagement and Cooperation at the Deputy Director level. 
 
State's NP/PTR Bureau Working for Non-Proliferation 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
3.  BACKGROUND: Both DOE and State are involved in engaging 
Iraqi scientists and engineers, and the agencies have 
cooperated closely to ensure there is not a duplication of 
efforts.  State's program, which works through Embassy 
Baghdad's Iraqi Interim Center for Science and Industry 
(IICSI) with ISN Bureau funding, focuses on Weapons of Mass 
Destruction (WMD) scientists, with a goal of preventing WMD 
expertise proliferation. 
 
4.  DOE and the Arab S&T Foundation initially had a broader 
mission focused on reintegrating Iraqi scientists and 
engineers into the global science community, and utilizing 
their knowledge and skills for reconstruction.  However, 
recent DOE efforts are focused on WMD scientist engagement 
as a priority, and proposals to be funded by DOE as a result 
of this conference will include WMD scientists.  State is 
working closely with DOE to identify areas where we can 
collaborate and possibly fund proposals jointly. 
 
Conference Objectives - Collaborative R&D and Funding 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
5.  The conference's goal was to bring together three sides 
of a triangle: a "supply" of Iraqi and international 
expertise, "demand" for that expertise from ministries and 
other organizations in Iraq, and international funding 
sources. 
 
6.  Part of the development process has been to pair up 
Iraqi principal investigators (PI's) with international 
collaborators from a variety of world-class research 
institutions around the world, including Jordan, Egypt, the 
United Kingdom, Ireland, Sweden, Germany, Australia, and the 
United States. 
 
7.  PI's and their international collaborators met in Amman 
in May 2005 (reftel) to hone their initial proposals. Based 
on the results of that meeting and further consultations 
following it, PI's presented over thirty carefully developed 
grant proposals at the September conference.  Proposals 
focus on health, water, agriculture, environment, and 
material sciences, with a joint goal of re-engaging Iraqi 
scientists and engineers with their global colleagues and in 
reconstructing Iraq. 
 
Supply, Demand and Funding - One Leg Missing 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
8.  At the conference, there were engineers and scientists 
from universities all over Iraq who comprise a "supply" of 
experts with a wealth of practical experience and ability. 
Universities represented at the conference included Baghdad 
University, Basrah University, Al-Nahrain University, Mosul 
University, the Iraqi Center for Cancer and Medical Genetics 
Research, the Iraqi Academy of Science and Al-Mustansiriya 
University. 
 
9.  Representing the "demand" side of the equation, several 
Iraqi ministries sent high-level participants to the meeting 
to identify scientists who can assist with problems 
confronting those ministries.  The Ministries of Planning, 
Environment, Science and Technology, Water and Construction 
were represented at the Vice Minister or Secretary General 
level. 
 
10.  Funding institutions, the third and likely most 
important part of the equation, were in disappointingly 
short supply during the conference.  ASTF, DOE, and State 
supporters of this re-engagement process see the conference 
as the kick-off for a longer term outreach process to find 
funding for the consulting and project services that these 
scientists represent.  UNESCO, UN Environment Program (UNEP) 
and the Arab League Education, Cultural and Scientific 
Organization (ALECSO) were present. The UNESCO and ALECSO 
representatives addressed the plenary session at the formal 
opening of the conference, as did Jordanian Higher Council 
for Science and Technology Secretary General Dr. Khalid 
Elshuraydeh. 
 
Iraqi Virtual Science Library - Liftoff! 
---------------------------------------- 
 
11.  STAS Dr. George Atkinson unveiled the Iraq Virtual 
Science Library (IVSL) at the conference.  The Library is a 
powerful tool to provide the Iraqi scientific and 
engineering communities, via the Internet, with access to 
many professional societies' databases and thus thousands of 
scientific and engineering journals and current research 
papers.  IVSL is a collaborative initiative between the 
Defense Department and the State Department funded by the 
Defense Threat Reduction Agency and managed by the National 
Academy of Sciences.  Perhaps more than any other single 
factor, the IVSL will allow information-starved Iraqi 
scientists to catch up with the current research in a huge 
variety of scientific and technical fields and to increase 
their direct contacts with the counterparts around the 
world.  The IVSL is undergoing "beta" testing with a group 
of Iraqi universities and will be officially rolled out 
later this year.  Other academic institutions and Iraqi S&T 
ministries can participate in the future.  Dr. Atkinson 
provided conference attendees with contact information at 
the National Academy of Sciences for future inquiries. 
 
Press Coverage Notes Themes of Tolerance, Cooperation 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
12.  Dr. Atkinson gave an interview to a journalist from the 
Jordanian daily "Al-Rai" newspaper following his speech to 
the plenary.  The article appeared on the back page of the 
September 20 edition, headlined " U.S. Advisor Says: The 
King's Remarks and Amman Message Strike A Beautiful Chord 
for Tolerance and Equality."  The sub-headline was "Atkinson 
Announces the Virtual Science Library for Iraqis Program." 
The article noted Atkinson's parallels between themes of 
tolerance, equality and cooperation that run through King 
Abdullah's "Amman Message," and the philosophical 
underpinnings of science.  Atkinson also stressed the 
importance of good science to good policy, saying that the 
human condition can be improved through good science that 
informs the political process. 
 
13.  Comment: USG support for these R&D proposals merits 
serious consideration.  Such support would ensure that some 
of the most democratic and secular members of Iraqi society 
(most of whom were educated in the US, UK or elsewhere in 
the West) can be gainfully employed to improve the lives of 
many Iraqi citizens and help rebuild the higher education 
system. 
 
HALE