US embassy cable - 02AMMAN6507

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 006507 
 
SIPDIS 
 
TREASURY FOR U/S TAYLOR 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/05/2007 
TAGS: EFIN, JO 
SUBJECT: JORDAN FINANCE AND FOREIGN MINISTERS ON WASHINGTON 
MEETINGS 
 
 
1.  (c)  The Ambassador called on Foreign Minister Marwan 
Muasher on November 4 and on Finance Minister Michel Marto on 
November 5 to review their recent meetings in Washington on 
supplemental economic assistance for Jordan.  Confirming the 
informal readouts the embassy has received by email, both 
were very pleased with the way things went.  They said they 
were especially reassured by the serious, senior-level 
attention the United States is giving this issue. 
 
2.  (c)  Marto and Muasher both said they completely 
understood the sensitivity of quoting specific figures and 
assured the Ambassador that they will be extremely discrete. 
They also confirmed that they will begin work at once on the 
list of five questions that came out of the meetings.  (Marto 
asked for more clarity on the third question, regarding how 
assistance would be used to help ensure adequate budget 
resources.)  They would be happy to welcome U.S. experts to 
Jordan for further technical work, with a goal of wrapping up 
a package by November 15. 
 
3.  (c)  Muasher and Marto said that the financial package 
described by NSA Rice, U/S Larson and others would meet 
Jordan's needs.  They said it was their understanding that in 
addition to a supplemental ESF package, the U.S. would 
continue its efforts to assure Jordan's access to alternative 
sources of supply if Iraqi oil shipments were cut off. 
Muasher said that, as discussed with A/S Burns, he had tried 
to reach Kuwaiti State Minister Shaikh Muhammad to follow-up 
on their discussions in Amman earlier this month on a 
Kuwaiti-Saudi-UAE oil package.  While he had not yet heard 
back from Shaikh Muhammad, Muasher understood from A/S Burns 
that Saudi Arabia and the UAE appeared to be favorably 
disposed, but he thought an additional high-level 
intervention by the United States would be necessary. 
 
4.  (c)  Marto was also very pleased with his meeting with 
U/S Taylor.  He personally welcomed the emphasis on economic 
conditionality he had heard in the meetings at State and 
Treasury, particularly regarding continued performance under 
the IMF stand-by program.  This message, he said, helped him 
maintain the government's support for economic reform, 
including pension reform, under the Fund program.  Noting 
that Prime Minister Abul Ragheb had told him that it would be 
politically impossible for the government to raise gasoline 
or diesel prices in the midst of a military conflict, Marto 
said that such conditionality helped his efforts to convince 
the government to eliminate subsidies and meet budget targets 
agreed with the IMF. 
GNEHM